Key Terms
- Life Insurance covers the expenses for your dependents that arise when somebody passes away.
- A good life insurance policy can cover your mortgage payments, your child’s education, and even therapy for your loved ones should you pass unexpectedly.
- Hawaii life insurance companies can help you find a policy to suit your needs and budget.
Hawaii is known as the Aloha State and is an island state located in the Pacific Ocean. With a population of 1.42 million people, it’s the 40th-most populous state. The largest city in Hawaii is Honolulu which has a population of 347,397 residents. Honolulu is also the state capital.
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the average life expectancy in Hawaii is approximately 80.7 years which is significantly higher than the national average life expectancy, which is currently around 79.05 years in the United States. Over the past few years, the leading causes of death in Hawaii have been heart disease, cancer, and stroke. The homicide rate in Hawaii is around 3.3 homicides per 100,000 residents, which is much lower than the national average of 7.5.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, in Hawaii, the 90th percentile income is currently $101,340. The median income in the state is approximately $47,700. Most financial advisors recommend purchasing a life insurance policy that covers your loved ones for between 10X and 20X your annual salary. In Hawaii, this works out to around $1,013,400 – $2,026,800 dollars for top performers.
An insurance agency offers a variety of insurance products to meet the life insurance coverage needs of its customers and provide them with the right insurance benefits. Insurance agents can provide potential policyholders with insurance quotes, which outline the insurance premiums and benefits of different insurance policies. Meanwhile, life insurance companies often offer annuities as a way for policyholders to save for retirement and to provide a source of income in their later years. Life insurance products are not FDIC insured so it is important to consider your options.
Life insurance policies can provide financial protection for policyholders and their loved ones in the event of the policyholder’s death. Life insurance shouldn’t be confused with long term care insurance though, which is available to cover long-term care expenses, such as the costs of assisted living or nursing home care. Long term care insurance can help policyholders to protect their savings and assets from the high costs of long-term care.
How life insurance works in Hawaii
In simple terms, life insurance is a contract between you and an insurance company, where you pay a certain amount of money each month to receive a death benefit. You will receive a predetermined amount in the event of your death, paid to a beneficiary of your choosing. Depending on your policy, it may also be possible to borrow money against your death benefit. However, this money needs to be paid back, or your death benefit will shrink.
There are two main kinds of life insurance: term and whole life. Term life insurance is very straightforward life insurance plan: it lasts for a set period of time, such as 20 years. If you die during that time, your beneficiaries get the death benefit. If you live beyond the term, you don’t get any money back. Whole life insurance, on the other hand, is permanent. You pay a set amount every month until you die. Whole life insurance is also called permanent life insurance and universal life insurance. Upon your passing, the death benefit will be paid out to your designated beneficiary. Because of these features, whole life insurance is much more expensive than term life insurance.
Life insurance is a valuable tool for anyone who has a family to support, anyone who is financially responsible for someone else’s care, or anyone who has outstanding debt that needs to be paid off after death. If you are the sole financial provider for your family, life insurance can help provide the financial support your loved ones need in the event of your death. It can pay off any existing debt you may have, such as a mortgage, or it can help with everyday expenses such as your children’s education or your spouse’s day-to-day expenses.
10 Biggest life insurance companies in Hawaii
Hawaii life insurance companies ranked by premiums written in the state.
Rank | Company Name | Hawaii Premiums Written | Hawaii Market Share |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Northwestern Mutual | $88,939,400 | 9.68% |
2 | New York Life | $59,265,067 | 6.45% |
3 | John Hancock | $40,824,758 | 4.44% |
4 | Pacific Life | $40,804,971 | 4.44% |
5 | Guardian Life | $40,441,152 | 4.40% |
6 | Aegon Us Holding | $39,707,855 | 4.32% |
7 | Prudential | $37,300,123 | 4.06% |
8 | State Farm | $31,353,080 | 3.41% |
9 | Mass Mutual Life Ins | $31,211,881 | 3.40% |
10 | Primerica | $30,281,711 | 3.30% |
How much life insurance do you need in Hawaii?
The 90th percentile salary in Hawaii is approximately $101,340. As mentioned, most financial advisors recommend that you purchase a life insurance policy that will cover your beneficiary for at least 10X – 20X your average annual income. In Hawaii that works out to around $1,013,400 – $2,026,800. This amount will ensure that your loved ones can continue to pay their bills, settle your debts, and cover the cost of your final expenses.
You may also want to purchase additional life insurance to cover:
- Your mortgage (if you want your spouse and kids to be able to live in the home without worrying about mortgage payments)
- Children’s education costs (if you want your child’s education to be covered without any additional stress to your spouse)
- Bereavement therapy costs for your spouse and children (if you want them to spend time with a therapist after your unexpected death)
- Any other expenses that may be unique to your family or lifestyle
Hawaii life insurance laws
There are a few unique features with respect to Hawaii Life Insurance Lawsthat have an impact on your specific policy if you are a resident of the state.
Here’s what you need to know:
- Free Look Period: In Hawaii, you have up to 10 days after purchasing a policy within which you can cancel and get a refund for your policy without any penalty.
- Grace period for late premiums: This is the period of time that a policyholder can use without a penalty to pay a missing premium. The insurance policy will remain in force during this period. In Hawaii, you have a 30-day grace period within which your insurer cannot cancel your policy if you are late with the payment. Insurers cannot cancel or leave you uncovered if you do not pay within this 30-day grace period.
- Interest on claims: There is no specific law on how long the insurer should take to pay a life insurance claim in Hawaii. However, your policy will accrue interest daily from the date of the policyholder’s death, meaning the insurer will have to pay more the longer they delay settling the claim.
- Guaranteed claim payments: Hawaii protects life insurance policyholders by guaranteeing up to $300,000 of your death benefit and $100,000 cash value per insured person if your insurance company becomes insolvent. This guarantee is provided by the Hawaii Life and Disability Insurance Guaranty Association.
A lot of us don’t like to talk about life insurance, because it makes us think about our own mortality. However, life insurance is a very important topic that we should all be well-informed about. The main purpose of life insurance is to protect our loved ones financially in the event of our death. It can help cover things like funeral costs, outstanding debts, and other final expenses. It can also provide financial security for our loved ones when we are no longer around to take care of them.
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Joshua Holt is a licensed insurance agent (License #2785989) and founder of Biglaw Investor and Sidebar Insurance LLC, an insurance agency created by lawyers, for lawyers. His insurance expertise lies in the areas of life and disability insurance, particularly covering lawyers, doctors and other high-income professionals. Prior to Biglaw Investor, Josh practiced private equity mergers & acquisition law for one of the largest law firms in the country.