Please comment on the ethics of purchasing life insurance on ailing relatives who have proffered the suggestion that you should purchase life insurance on their lives with you as the beneficiary?
It seems unethical to me.
2007-03-02 18:55:02 · 10 answers · asked by Anonymous in Business & Finance ➔ Insurance
Regarding the issue of insurable interest, they are inlaws, parents of my spouse. So I think that the interest is legitimate.
I don't think I NEED the money, but as someone else in the thread pointed out, this is also a financial decision. I guess I'll talk to my agent and see what he says.
2007-03-03 06:17:35 · update #1
Well the ethnical issue here is whether they really have an interest of purchasing life insurance or not. Base on your description, it seem that they are interested and have a strange reason for wanting it. So there's nothing wrong here if your relatives want to name you as the beneficiary on their life insurance.
I'm guessing you feel that you don't want to make profits in case they do die someday. So have them buy a small policy to cover their funeral expense.
I don't know if your relatives have children of their own. If they do, they should really name their children as beneficiaries instead of you.
2007-03-03 04:49:48 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 1⤋
I guarantee you your agent will tell you that you won't be able to afford the insurance on the people in question. If they are elderly relatives (or even just ailing) no company will take them, unless you buy one of those cheesy plans on advertised on television and they don't offer much insurance for your money. And it seems strange that these so-called ailing relatives would tell you to hurry and buy life insurance on them, with you as the beneficiary. They are obviosuly in the dark too about life insurance costs and conditions. Why would they name YOU the beneficiary? Better think of some other money-making scheme, because what you are proposing is illegal.
2007-03-03 11:19:59 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
One thing you must understand. Insurance companies are not into losing money. If you want to buy life insurance on an ailing relative, they will probably refuse. If they do sell you a policy, the death benefit will be very small, in fact sometimes they limit it to the value of premiums already paid.
2007-03-02 23:06:15 · answer #3 · answered by Report Monkey 2 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Not only potentially unethical, but illegal.
Insurance laws require the policyholder to have an "insurable interest" in the insured, to prevent people from insuring others and bumping them off! This permits parents to insure their children and one spouse to insure anothe spouse. Beyond that there are significant limitations. So the ability to purchase insurance on remote relatives is limited by public policy.
Second, insurance underwriting makes it very difficult to purchase life insurance on ailing persons - period!
2007-03-03 01:13:37 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 2⤋
Sounds pretty unethical to me too. In order to buy insurance on someone you have to have evidence of insurability as well as a viable reason for insuring them. Otherwise anyone could insure anyone and bump them off. I am pretty sure if you could get insurance on them you would have to pay a large premium. If someone is ailing I don't think anyone would insure them anyway.
2007-03-02 19:12:48 · answer #5 · answered by tuxedocat 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
::shrug:: they're ok with it, you're ok with it.
Insurance is a financial tool. It helps you acheive a goal. Maybe they want a funeral to rival Anna Nicole's. Maybe they want to give you a "gift" after they're gone. Maybe they want to use it to avoid paying estate taxes.
There is nothing unethical about this. As long as you're willing to pay the premium (which can be astronomical depending on their ages/health conditions) and they're willing to let you insure their lives, and the company is willing to issue the policy, it's just a straight financial decision.
2007-03-02 20:06:40 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous 7 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Do you have an insurable interest??
For example, if an aunt would die, how would this impact you???
If it wouldn't, it is unlikely a company would issue a policy.
2007-03-02 21:41:48 · answer #7 · answered by Barry auh2o 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
This is a normal practice. I have policies on my mom & dad. You may want to try getting a quote online.
Go to: http://www.insureme.com/landing.aspx?Refby=616164&Type=life
Take care,
Casey
2007-03-05 01:24:43 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
What would be unethical about establishing an estate for one's loved ones?
2007-03-02 19:04:33 · answer #9 · answered by Rob D 5 · 2⤊ 1⤋
My grandma has always said that she doesn't want to be worth more dead than she's worth alive!
2007-03-02 19:15:45 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋