If you purchased life insurance and have received the policy but don’t understand what it all means, here are a few basics tips. The cover page identifies the insurance company and type of plan you have, and it should also offer you the right to return the policy within 21 days. The amount of benefits, your premium and other charges, your name, issue date, and policy number are on the schedule of benefits and specifications page. It should also include information on whether your premium class is preferred or standard. Depending on which kind of policy you have there should be a list of future premium estimations or the guaranteed cash value.

Definitions of the terms used in your policy should have its own section. Another area is the section that explains your rights. Information there should include your right to transfer or assign the policy, or change the beneficiary. Go to this section to find out about your right to receive the cash value or borrow against it if you have a cash value policy.

The settlement section is very important to your beneficiary. In that section they will find information on how to make a claim and what choices they have in regard to the death benefit. If you added/changed the standard policy an attached rider should list all the changes and how they affect the policy.

A provisions page should include things like a copy of your application. This means you have formed a contract and if the insurer wants to void it they have to prove you provided false information. Along with that, the incontestability clause ensures you that after two years your beneficiary won’t have to prove the statements you made on your application were true unless you lied about your age. Adjustments to the policy’s face amount will reflect the amount of insurance that the premium paid would have purchased at the correct age. Typically you have 31 days from your due date to pay the premium and keep your insurance. Most policies, with a few exceptions, exclude suicide during the first two years.