What Will Life Insurance Pay For? 
When you buy a life insurance , you choose a face amount for your policy . That face amount is paid to your beneficiary when you die . Unless you buy a policy that has `` living benefits '' , life insurance only pays for death of the insured person . As mentioned above , some policies have features that allow you to receive part of the face amount while still alive . The ability to take this money before death can be triggered by terminal illness , critical illness -LRB- such as advanced cancer -RRB- , or chronic illness -LRB- inability to care for one 's self independently -RRB- , depending on the policy . Permanent policies also can provide money while the insured person is still alive . Cash value that is built up in the policy can be borrowed from or surrendered to use for whatever purpose the policy owner desires . 