In the simplest sense, life insurance pays a cash benefit to the beneficiary if the insured person dies while the policy is in force. The beneficiary can use the cash for any reason — to replace lost income, cover living expenses, pay off debts, fund college, save for retirement and so much more.
Life insurance can offer other benefits too, including cash value, loans and optional riders. It’s available to individuals and often to groups as part of an employee benefits package.
Universal life insurance offers coverage that can be kept in force for a lifetime. Some policies also build cash value over time, so you may be able to take a loan from the policy’s cash value if needed.
Whole life insurance offers premiums guaranteed for life — the premium never increases, and the cash value grows over time, so you can alleviate the worry about the costs of final obligations.