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Universal and IUL blog
How cost-of-insurance disputes begin in the contract languageWhat the cost-of-insurance clause says, how guaranteed and current charges differ, what a contract allows, and how a gap with practice becomes a dispute.Choosing the guarantee age on guaranteed universal life: 90, 100 or beyondHow long should a guaranteed universal life guarantee run? Longevity risk, the shape of the price steps, what happens at the end age, and a decision list.Cap, participation and spread on the same index path: a worksheetA worksheet that runs invented index paths through a cap, a participation rate and a spread, so you can compute credits yourself and see when each method wins.From index move to account value: one IUL crediting year in orderFollow one hypothetical indexed universal life year from segment start to credit date, with the index change, cap, floor, monthly charges and new account value.Indexed universal life claims weighed one at a timeEight common pitch claims about indexed universal life, each tested against contract mechanics, charges and tax rules, with credit given where it is due.Four households weighing indexed universal life for retirementFour hypothetical households test indexed universal life against the alternatives, with round-number arithmetic and a look at where each might reasonably land.Indexed UL loan mistakes: rate, crediting and lapse trapsEight mistakes people make when borrowing from an indexed universal life policy, how each happens, what it costs and how to avoid it, with worked arithmetic.Questions to put to an IUL proposal before you signA grouped checklist for reading an indexed universal life proposal: the illustrated rate, changeable caps, charges, loans, funding and what to get in writing.Mistakes that void a no-lapse guarantee on universal life coverageLate premiums, skipped payments, loans, withdrawals and coverage changes can break a no-lapse guarantee. One hypothetical step by step, and how to protect it.One month inside a universal life policy: every deduction in orderA single monthly cycle traced with invented round numbers, from premium in through each charge and the interest credit to the new account value.Stress-testing an in-force illustration at lower crediting ratesHow to ask for a ledger at the guaranteed and a lower assumed rate, then a worksheet that finds the lapse age and the premium needed to keep the policy alive.Table ratings and flat extras on permanent policies: questions and answersThirteen questions on how a table rating or flat extra changes the premium, cash value and guarantees of whole and universal life, and how to push back.A worksheet to test your universal life statement for charge creepA repeatable worksheet for pulling charges off a universal life annual statement, computing cost per $1,000 at risk, and knowing when to ask the insurer.A universal life annual statement checklist: ten things to verifyTen checks for the yearly report on a universal life policy, with the reason for each, what a warning sign looks like and the questions to send the insurer.Switching a universal life death benefit option: a worked exampleSwitching a universal life death benefit option between level and increasing, step by step, with underwriting, insurance cost and cash value in round figures.Minimum, target and maximum premium in universal life comparedOne hypothetical universal life policy funded at three premium levels, with account values, lapse timing, tax-law limits and who each level suits.A universal life policy in its grace period: notices and deadlines in orderDay by day from the monthly deduction that exceeds the account value to the grace notice, the lapse date and the reinstatement window, with what to ask.Your universal life projection shows a shortfall: a response planWhat to do, in order, when a projection shows a universal life policy running out early: gather ledgers, test fixes, weigh a smaller benefit or an exchange.A market drop inside a variable universal life policy, quarter by quarterA hypothetical VUL downturn, quarter by quarter: falling account value, rising net amount at risk, heavier charges relative to value, and options at each stage.Variable universal life subaccounts: what you choose and what you cannotHow subaccounts, fund fees, separate account assets, transfers and rebalancing work inside a VUL, and who bears investment risk versus the insurer.