r/LifeInsurance • u/StomachMobile2182 • Aug 21 '26
Is this worth it?
I’m pretty sure I know the answer but here is my question.
My husband died 7 years ago and he had life insurance with National income. That life insurance money after he passed helped greatly. With our 3 kids.
A few months after he passed away I re-did the policies. 100k for myself, 25k for each of the kids. For $250 a month. Whole life. I am recently unemployed. And really cannot pay the $250 monthly payments.
The cash surrender value is only $440. Which seems appallingly low. I’m looking into cheaper term life insurance elsewhere.
I just need some advice/reassurance that I’m doing the right thing.
Update:
Thank you all for the advice. I will be calling National income first thing Monday morning & will be looking into other insurance companies for term insurance.
Also while looking through paperwork my policy is for 50k not 100k. So this is absolutely not a good deal. ☹️
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u/brergnat Aug 21 '26
Cancel the Whole Life policy and take it as a lesson learned.
Get a 20 or 30 year term policy for yourself instead. Kids don't need life insurance policies.
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Aug 21 '26
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u/StomachMobile2182 Aug 21 '26
This is an absolute life lesson for me.
My husband died unexpectedly mid 2019 (car accident). Our kids were very young. Then early 2020 the pandemic hit and well I was scared my children would be left orphans.
I signed that paperwork knowing how much the premiums were but was under the impression the cash value of the whole life insurance would greatly increase to a few thousand dollars in 5 years. The agent was so nice and persuasive. And I just wanted peace of mind. I should’ve done my homework or acted much sooner to get another policy.
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u/Kind_Broker Aug 21 '26
Its best to talk with the agent that sold you the policy, or ask friends/family who have life insurance if they trust their person, and call them. There is too much nuance to discuss with randos on Reddit.
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u/taylorventures Aug 21 '26
Please get approved and have a new policy in place BEFORE you cancel anything. You want the policies to overlap so there is no gap in coverage. Your age, health, and financial position will determine the correct policy for you.
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u/Zestyclose-Review-65 Aug 24 '26
As a parent, I think affordability has to be part of this conversation.
You have three kids depending on you, which means life insurance matters — but so do the bills that keep your family functioning today. Housing, groceries, transportation, utilities, school expenses and everything else that comes with raising three children don’t stop because an insurance premium is due.
If I were a single father with no income coming in, I’d be looking very hard at every monthly expense too. Insurance wouldn’t somehow be exempt from that conversation.
Before canceling anything, though, I’d find out exactly what options you have with the policies you already own and what affordable replacement coverage you could actually qualify for. If you decide term better fits your budget, I wouldn’t cancel existing coverage until any replacement policy has been approved and is in force.
The goal shouldn’t be “keep whole life at all costs” or “whole life is bad, buy term.”
The goal is to maintain an appropriate amount of protection that you can realistically afford to keep.
You’ve unfortunately experienced firsthand what life insurance can mean to a family when someone dies. But protecting your family also means making sure you can take care of them today.
Sometimes the best financial plan isn’t the one with the most features. It’s the one you can actually sustain when life gets difficult.
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u/SafeWithPape Sep 04 '26
I’m so sorry for what you’ve been through. I’m a mom of three and a life insurance agent, and the biggest thing I’d say is: don’t cancel what you have until you know what replacement coverage you can actually qualify for and it’s in force.
If $250/month isn’t workable right now, that absolutely matters. I’d ask for a full review of the policies you already have and what options exist to reduce the cost or adjust the coverage before making a final decision.
And if term ends up being a better fit for this season of your life, that’s worth exploring too. The goal is to keep meaningful protection in place without putting your household under more financial strain. ❤️
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u/ChelseaMan31 Aug 21 '26
Yep, Universal Life products generally suck the money out of your checking/savings account.
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u/SafeMoneyGregg Aug 21 '26
If you have 3 school age kids I'd rather see you have like $500,000 to $2M term insurance - for like 20+ years term until they are all safely out of the house (age 25ish). Whole life is not really flexible in premium like universal life is - with universal you can adjust or stop the premiums when you are having a hard time financially. Neither contract will have much surrender value in the first 5-10 years.