A majority of Americans are not covered by life insurance, according to a survey by ValuePenguin by LendingTree, a personal finance website.
The survey found that more than one-third of all respondents (35%) did not have a life insurance policy. When pressed for the primary reason behind this decision, over 40% of respondents said they believed that life insurance was too expensive.
Over half of all baby boomers surveyed (53%), adults between the ages of 54 and 72, said they were not covered by a life insurance policy because they thought policy premiums were too steep and not affordable.
The researchers evaluated the change in term life insurance policy rates for different age groups, based on quotes from the five largest insurers for a male in good health who did not smoke, covered by a 20-year policy with a $500,000 death benefit. ValuePenguin found that the increase in monthly premiums as the policyholder aged was much smaller when that person was young, compared with the amount of the premium when older.
For example, the average life insurance policy quote only increased by 2% between ages 25 and 30, but jumped much higher between ages 60 and 65 – an average increase of 93%, or $227.85.
The survey reports that on average, policyholders could save nearly $450 by purchasing a term life insurance policy at age 25, compared with waiting until age 65.
A cross-section of respondents across all age groups (Generation Y, 27%; Generation Millennial, 35%; Generation X, 36%; Baby Boomer, 42%; and Silent Generation, 47%) agreed.
ValuePenguin commissioned Qualtrics to conduct an online survey of 1,029 Americans from May24-27, 2019, in order to understand their feelings towards life insurance.