What Does $9.95 A Month Get You With Colonial Penn
What Does $9.95 A Month Get You With Colonial Penn: An Honest Look at the Guaranteed Acceptance Plan
If you've spent any time watching daytime television, chances are you've seen the iconic Colonial Penn commercials featuring Jonathan Lawson promising life insurance coverage for just $9.95 a month. It sounds incredibly affordable, especially for those worried about qualifying due to age or health. But like many low-cost insurance offerings, the details matter significantly.
If you are asking, What Does $9.95 A Month Get You With Colonial Penn, you are hitting on the most crucial aspect of their guaranteed acceptance whole life insurance policy. It's not a fixed death benefit amount; rather, it buys you something called a "unit" of coverage. Understanding this unit system is key to knowing if this policy meets your family's needs.
We're going to break down exactly how Colonial Penn calculates its coverage, what that initial $9.95 premium covers, and what important limitations you need to be aware of before signing on the dotted line.
Understanding Colonial Penn's Guaranteed Acceptance Plan
Colonial Penn specializes in guaranteed acceptance life insurance. This means they will approve almost anyone between the ages of 50 and 85, regardless of their health history. There are no medical exams and generally no health questions asked. This makes it a popular choice for seniors who might otherwise be rejected by traditional insurers.
While guaranteed approval is a huge selling point, it comes with a trade-off, primarily concerning the cost-to-benefit ratio, which is tied directly to the "unit" system. Unlike typical insurance where you select a coverage amount (like $10,000 or $25,000), Colonial Penn sells coverage in these specific units.
The Magic Number: What Does $9.95 Actually Buy?
When you sign up for the highly advertised $9.95 a month plan, you are purchasing one single unit of coverage. Crucially, the monetary value of that unit is not fixed; it is highly dependent on two major factors: your age and your gender.
The younger you are when you purchase the unit, the higher the death benefit will be. Conversely, the older you are, the lower the benefit will be for that same $9.95 monthly premium. This means the answer to What Does $9.95 A Month Get You With Colonial Penn changes dramatically depending on who is asking the question.
For example, a 50-year-old woman might receive nearly $2,000 in coverage for her single $9.95 unit. However, an 80-year-old man might receive less than $500 for that exact same unit cost. Colonial Penn often sells policies in increments of units, allowing you to purchase up to 15 units, but the premium increases by $9.95 for every unit you add.
Limitations and the Two-Year Waiting Period
Because this plan accepts all applicants, Colonial Penn needs a way to mitigate their risk. They do this through what is known as a "graded death benefit." This is the most significant limitation of the policy and something every potential buyer must fully understand.
The graded benefit means that if you pass away during the first two years of the policy, your beneficiaries do not receive the full death benefit. Instead, they typically receive a refund of all premiums paid, plus a small amount of interest (often 7% to 10%).
The full death benefit is only paid out if death occurs after the two-year waiting period has concluded. The only exception to the two-year rule is accidental death, which is usually covered immediately.
Calculating Your Actual Coverage at $9.95
To really drive home the value proposition, let's look at approximate coverage levels for a single $9.95 unit (these figures are estimates and vary by state and current pricing structure):
- A 50-year-old: Coverage likely between $1,800 and $2,000.
- A 65-year-old: Coverage likely between $1,000 and $1,200.
- An 80-year-old: Coverage likely between $400 and $600.
If you determine that $400 or $500 isn't enough to cover your final expenses, you must purchase additional units, which means your monthly payment will quickly multiply far beyond the initial $9.95 sticker price. For instance, an 80-year-old needing $5,000 in coverage might require 10 to 12 units, pushing the monthly premium well over $100.
Why Does Colonial Penn Offer This Rate?
The $9.95 rate is a classic marketing strategy known as a "loss leader" or a "hook." It's designed to be a highly attractive, low barrier to entry that gets consumers to call in or sign up. Once the consumer understands that a single unit provides minimal coverage, they are encouraged to buy more units, significantly increasing the total premium.
The goal is to move the customer from the attractive introductory price to a financially sustainable policy for the company. While the marketing focuses on the low entry cost, the reality of adequately funded burial insurance requires a much higher monthly investment.
Important Considerations Before Signing Up
Before you commit to Colonial Penn, especially if you are attracted by the low monthly premium that answers What Does $9.95 A Month Get You With Colonial Penn, you need to weigh your options carefully. Guaranteed acceptance is valuable only if you genuinely cannot qualify for any other type of policy.
If you are relatively healthy, you might be able to qualify for simplified issue whole life insurance. This typically requires answering a few health questions but does not require an exam. Because the insurer takes on less risk, the coverage you receive for the same monthly premium will usually be significantly higher than Colonial Penn's unit-based plan.
Here are some steps you should take before purchasing:
- Determine your actual need: How much money do you realistically need to cover funeral costs, medical bills, and other final expenses? Burial costs often range from $8,000 to $15,000.
- Calculate the unit math: Based on your age and gender, calculate how many units you would need to meet that requirement and what the total premium would be.
- Compare quotes: Get quotes from simplified issue whole life providers to see if you can get immediate, higher coverage for a comparable price without the two-year graded benefit.
The Rate Increases Over Time
While Colonial Penn promises that the rate for the unit you purchase will never increase, your overall cost can still climb if you decide to buy additional units later. If you buy a unit at age 60, and then decide five years later that you need more coverage, the new unit you purchase at age 65 will offer less coverage for the same $9.95 premium, and your total monthly bill will increase.
It's important to purchase sufficient coverage right from the start if you choose this plan, realizing that the $9.95 rate only provides a fractional amount of the coverage most people need for burial expenses.
Conclusion: Is the $9.95 Colonial Penn Plan Right for You?
When assessing What Does $9.95 A Month Get You With Colonial Penn, the honest answer is minimal coverage—often just enough to serve as a marketing lure. You are buying one unit whose death benefit can range from a few hundred dollars to perhaps two thousand dollars, heavily dependent on your demographic data.
The Colonial Penn guaranteed acceptance plan is a viable option for a very specific group of people: those who are older (over 75) and have significant health issues that make them uninsurable elsewhere. For these individuals, getting any coverage at all, even with a two-year waiting period, might be better than nothing.
However, if you are in decent health or are on the younger end of the eligibility range (50s or 60s), you owe it to yourself to shop around. You will likely find a better value, higher coverage, and immediate full payout from a simplified issue policy that doesn't rely on the complex and sometimes confusing unit structure.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) About Colonial Penn
- Does the $9.95 rate ever increase?
- No. The monthly premium for the specific unit you purchase will never increase. However, if you purchase additional units of coverage later on, your total monthly payment will increase by $9.95 for each new unit.
- What is a unit of coverage?
- A unit is Colonial Penn's proprietary measure of coverage. It does not represent a fixed dollar amount. The death benefit provided by one unit is based entirely on the policyholder's age and gender at the time of purchase. The older you are, the less benefit one $9.95 unit provides.
- What happens if I die within the first two years of the policy?
- Because this is a guaranteed acceptance plan with a graded benefit, if you die of natural causes within the first two years, your beneficiaries will receive a refund of all premiums paid, plus a small amount of interest (typically 7-10%), not the full death benefit. The full benefit is paid only after the two-year waiting period, or if death is due to an accident.
- Is Colonial Penn the cheapest option for burial insurance?
- The initial $9.95 payment is very low, but Colonial Penn is often not the most cost-effective solution when you calculate the premium required to achieve a typical burial coverage amount (e.g., $10,000). Many people find that competing simplified issue policies offer much more coverage per dollar if they can pass basic health screening questions.
What Does $9.95 A Month Get You With Colonial Penn
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