Saturday, October 4, 2008

Selling of life insurance through multi-level

Someone asked if life insurnce is sold through multi-level, with high commission paid to all the levels. The focus of MLM organisation is to increase the volume of sales by paying high commission to all the levels.

The answer is "yes, in most cases". The total commission paid to all the levels can be as much as 160% of the annual premium, paid over the first three years. If you invest $500 per month in a life insurance policy, the total commission is as much as 160% X 12 X $500 = $9,600. The commission is taken out of your policy and is shared by the agent, agency supervisor and agency manager. This is money that you have to work very hard to earn, and you can lose it so easily and surely, when you buy a life insurance policy.

Most companies pay commission as high as indicated above. Some companies have only one level and pays a lower rate of commission. One company that I know of (which shall be unnamed) used to pay commission at less than half of the market rate, but I am told that this company has now increased its commission and advertising expenses considerably.

I generally advice people not to linvest in any life insurance product (i.e. whole life, endowment, education, investment-linked policy) due to the high charges. They give poor value to the consumer. It is better to invest in a low cost investment fund (i.e. equity, bond or money market fund).

Read this FAQ:
http://www.tankinlian.com/faq/savings.html

If you have bought a high cost life insurance policy, it is usually better to continue the policy, as you have already incurred the upfront expense. But you should NEVER buy any high cost insurance policy in the future.