Life Insurance in Texas
Coverage for Texans, from 10-year term to lifetime whole life, final expense, mortgage protection and IUL.
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Valor Life Benefits is licensed to sell life insurance in Texas, Colorado, South Carolina and Michigan, and Texas residents can apply for every kind of coverage on this site. Policies sold to Texas residents follow the rules of the Texas Department of Insurance, which licenses agents and takes consumer complaints.
Texas Life Insurance Rules Worth Knowing
These points come from the Texas Department of Insurance Texas life insurance guide:
| Refund window | At least 10 to 20 days after delivery, depending on the policy, to cancel for any reason and get a full refund. The policy states its own period, usually on the first page. |
|---|---|
| Grace period | Most policies allow 31 days after a premium due date. A death during the grace period is paid, minus the premium owed. |
| Contestable period | Two years. During that time the company can deny a claim over wrong or missing information on the application, and must return the premiums if it does. |
| Claim payment | Companies must pay the death benefit within two months after receiving proof of death and verifying the beneficiary, with interest from the date of proof on individual policies. |
| Creditors | A policy's cash value and death benefit are usually exempt from creditors, bankruptcy demands, garnishment and attachment. |
Community Property and Agent Rules in Texas
Texas is one of nine community property states. The Texas State Law Library guide explains that property a couple acquires during marriage is generally owned equally by both spouses, with a few exceptions.
Texas also lists conduct rules for agents in its consumer guide. An agent cannot offer you a gift, or a break on an investment or loan, to get you to buy life insurance. It is illegal for an agent to replace your policy just to earn a new commission. Improper offers and replacements can be reported to the Texas Department of Insurance.
Before replacing a policy in Texas, the department lists what you give up: a new policy usually takes longer to build cash value and pay dividends, the two-year contestable period starts over, an early surrender of a permanent policy can carry surrender charges, and you will probably answer health questions or take another exam.
Finding a Lost Policy in Texas
When a life insurance company learns that an insured person has died but cannot find the beneficiary, it must turn the money over to the state as unclaimed property. In Texas that money is held by the Comptroller and can be searched on ClaimItTexas, the state unclaimed property site. The Insurance Information Institute's tips for finding a lost policy also cover the NAIC Life Insurance Policy Locator, which asks participating companies to search their records.
Coverage for Texas Residents
Texans can apply for term life insurance for the mortgage and child-raising years, whole life insurance for lifetime coverage, final expense insurance for funeral bills, mortgage protection matched to a home loan, and indexed universal life. The other state pages cover Colorado, South Carolina and Michigan.