A type of insurance which covers the life of a person is known as Life Insurance. It is a contract between an insured person and an insurance company which may either be a government agency or a private company.

According to this agreement, the insurance company agrees to pay a specific sum of money after the death of the person who is being insured. In return the person who buys life insurance plot pays a premium at regular intervals of time.

Insurance companies pay the agreed sum of money only if the death of the policy holder takes place as per the insured events that have been specified in the contract. The most commonly stated insured event in life policy contracts is serious illness.

Many types of life insurance plans are available for people these days. A feasible plot can be selected by a person according to his needs and requirements and after comparing the various types of insurance plans.

A term life insurance policy or a temporary insurance policy is the one which is very well loved and the most commonly used type of a life policy. This type of a policy covers the life of the person being insured only for a specific period of time; say a period of 5, 10 or 20 years. If the person who has been insured with the plot dies within the term of the policy, the beneficiaries get cash benefit. But, if the policy term expires and the policy is not renewed, no cash benefits are given out by the insurance company.

Another type of a life policy is the whole Life Insurance policy which covers the insured person for his entire life. According to this policy, when the insured person dies, a certain sum of money is paid to the beneficiaries named in the contract.

The amount of premium for whole life time insurance remains the same throughout the life of a person. This is mainly because the cost of this type of insurance is spread over many years. In this type of a policy, cash gets accrued over time and is paid in a lump sum.

Universal life insurance is the type of life policy in which the insured person is covered till his death. The value of this policy is divided into cash and death benefits. The cash benefits in this type of policy do not accrue over time and can be withdrawn as and when required by the policy holder.