Preferred risk policies with reduced premiums are issued by insurance companies because the insured has what? Better than average mortality or morbidity experience.
Upon policy delivery, which of the following must a producer have an applicant sign if no initial premium was collected with the life insurance application?
What would be a valid reason why a policy premium would be higher than the standard premium?
The insured does not meet established underwriting requirements.
What is the purpose of the Medical Information Bureau (MIB)?
To help underwriters evaluate risk.
Statements made by an insurance applicant on an application are considered to be what?
Describe the three basic parts of an application.
1) General: general questions including name, age, address, birthday, sex, income, marital status, and occupation.
2)Medical: health and health history of proposed insured and their family.
3)Agent's report: Additional
information bout the applicant's financial condition, character, background and purpose of sale, and how long the agent has known the applicant.
A person who is a nonsmoker, of average weight, and in excellent health would most likely be in which risk classification?
What is considered to be a document that describes the critical segments of a life insurance policy?
When does a life insurance policy typically become effective?
When initial premium is collected and policy is issued.
When does insurable interest need to exist?
Only at the time of policy inception.
In what relationships does insurable interest exist?
-applicant's own life
-in a spouse
-parents in their children
-children in parent/grandparent
-business in lives of
officers, directors, key employees
-business partners in eachother
-creditor to debtor (to extent of the debt)
What is the USA Patriot Act?
An act requiring insurance companies to establish formal anti-money laundering programs.
What does a life insurance policy summary normally include?
What would happen if a life insurance applicant is given a conditional receipt from an insurance agent and then dies the next day?
Claim will be paid if application is approved.
An applicant intentionally lying to an insurance company on an application in order to obtain a cheaper premium is an example of what?
What does a change in an insurance application require?
An initial made by the applicant.
Fair Credit Reporting Act of 1970
Enacted by congress in 1970 which establishes procedures for collection and disclosure of obtained information and to ensure fairness with regards to confidentiality, accuracy, and disclosure.
What is required to complete an application?
Signature of applicant, agent, authorizing investigative consumer reports or medical information.
With payment of initial premium.
What is a "conditional receipt"?
Most common; When applicant pays initial premium, coverage is effective on the condition that applicant proves to be insurable either on date of signature or date of medical exam.
What is a "binding receipt"?
Coverage is guaranteed until insurer formally rejects application, even if proposed insured is ultimately found to be uninsurable.
What is the purpose of backdating?
To use premiums based on an earlier age, making them lower.
A conditional binding receipt is an official paper given to life insurance applicants who have signed
their application and paid their first installment. It forms a conditional contract between the applicant and the insurance company and gives the insurance company time to process the application and determine whether or not it will issue the policy.
Definition of Conditional Binding Receipts
A conditional binding receipt is a common type of receipt issued after the first payment of a new life insurance policy. It creates a conditional contract between the applicant and the insurance company. During the conditional period, the life insurance company processes the application and the applicant completes any required medical examinations or paperwork.
This receipt binds the insurance company to pay death benefits for any applicant who passes away before the full approval is issued, on the condition that they would have met the insurance company’s guidelines for eligibility and passed any required medical examination.
It can take weeks for insurance companies to process applications and make underwriting decisions about each applicant. Without a conditional binding receipt, there would be unnecessary confusion if a prospective insured person died before their life insurance application was processed. These receipts make it very clear whether or not the insurance company is responsible for paying a death benefit upon an applicant’s death.
If the applicant passes away before the policy is issued, their beneficiary may or may not receive a death benefit payout, depending on whether the company would have approved the policy. If the insurer determines that it was going to issue the policy, it would pay out the death benefit. If the insurer planned to deny the policy, it would not pay a death benefit.
Note
An insurability conditional receipt is the most common type of receipt used in life insurance applications. The conditions of the receipt are that the applicant is found insurable on the date of the application.
How a Conditional Binding Receipt Works
Conditional binding receipts go into effect as soon as an individual submits their signed application and pays their first installment. The insurance company will evaluate their application and determine if they’re insurable.
Once this evaluation is complete, the company either issues, changes, or denies the life insurance policy. If the policy needs to be changed, the prospective insured person must be alive to accept the changes.
This conditional receipt protects the insurance company from having to pay benefits for ineligible applicants. It also covers any eligible person who applies but passes away before their policy is officially issued. This way, their beneficiaries can still benefit from the life insurance policy if they were deemed insurable.
Note
The conditional binding receipt typically has a time limit of 60 days. This is the amount of time the insurance company has to decide whether or not to approve the policy.
Conditional Binding Receipts in Practice
Here are a couple of examples to help better explain how a conditional binding receipt works.
Let’s say Mary, a healthy 42-year-old, applies for life insurance on Jan. 1 and is issued a conditional binding receipt. She dies unexpectedly in a car crash on Jan. 10, before the insurance company has finished processing her application. The conditional binding receipt requires the insurance company to finish evaluating her eligibility. Because it determines that she met the requirements before her death, her beneficiaries are eligible for the death benefit.
As another example, let’s say that Josh, who’s also 42 years old, applies for a life insurance policy and is issued a conditional binding receipt at the same time as Mary. Josh’s health is good, but he’s on blood pressure medications. Like Mary, he dies on Jan. 10, before the insurance company has officially decided to issue his life insurance policy.
The insurance company finishes its evaluation of Josh’s eligibility and determines that he would have qualified for a policy, but at a higher premium due to his health condition. Since he didn’t qualify for the policy as written, Josh would have had to review a counteroffer and agree to the changes. But because he died before this could happen, the insurer will not pay out aq death benefit.
Conditional Binding Receipt vs. Binding Receipt
A conditional binding receipt covers you based on the provision that you would have been issued a life insurance policy had you lived. However, it is not the only type of receipt issued for life insurance applicants. Another option provided by some life insurance companies is a binding receipt.
Unlike a conditional binding receipt, the binding receipt has no conditions that must be met. This means that if an applicant dies before the insurance company processes the application and makes a decision, it is responsible for paying the death benefit even if the policy would not have been issued.
What a Conditional Binding Receipt Means for You
The conditional binding receipt gives you and your beneficiaries peace of mind while you wait for the policy to be officially approved. Additionally, it provides a death benefit to your beneficiary if you die before the application is processed, provided that you were insurable when you submitted it. Since conditional binding receipts are standard practice, it’s likely that you’ll sign one when you apply for and make your first payment on a life insurance policy.
Key Takeaways
- A conditional binding receipt is a conditional contract between a life insurance company and a person applying for insurance.
- This receipt gives the insurance company time to process the application and determine whether or not to issue the policy.
- Conditional binding receipts protect insurance companies if an ineligible applicant dies before their application is fully processed. It also ensures that the company does not have to pay benefits in situations where it normally wouldn’t.
- If an insurable applicant dies before their application is fully processed, a conditional binding receipt protects the applicant and their beneficiary.
- If you apply for life insurance, it’s safe to assume you’ll be issued an insurability conditional binding receipt, as this is standard practice. Still, always check your contract or ask your agent for specifics.