Robin Hartill, CFP®, is a freelance writer who covers life, pet and homeowners insurance for NerdWallet. She holds a bachelor's degree in English from the University of Florida. With more than 15 years of writing and editing experience, Robin enjoys breaking down complex financial topics for readers to help them make smart decisions about money. She is based in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Reviewed by Tony Steuer Life insurance expert Tony Steuer
Life insurance expert | Life Insurance
Tony Steuer is a financial wellness advocate, podcaster and speaker, and the author of "Questions and Answers on Life Insurance." His advice has been featured in media outlets including The New York Times, The Washington Post, Fast Company, Forbes and CNBC. He has a bachelor of science degree in finance from California State University and holds the following designations: Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU), Life and Disability Insurance Analyst (LA) and Certified Personal and Family Finance Educator (CPFFE).
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Assigning Editor Lisa GreenLisa Green leads the life insurance team and oversees insurance-focused data journalism at NerdWallet. A professional journalist since high school, she was an insurance writer at NerdWallet before becoming an assigning editor. Previously, Lisa spent more than 20 years as an editor at The Tennessean in Nashville, where she led business and consumer coverage for several years. At The Tennessean, she was part of a 2011 Pulitzer Prize finalist team for coverage of devastating floods in Middle Tennessee. Her work has also won awards from the Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing, Investigative Reporters and Editors, and the Society of Professional Journalists. Lisa is an alumna of the Wharton Seminars for Business Journalists at the University of Pennsylvania. She has also studied data journalism with the National Institute for Computer-Assisted Reporting, business editing with the American Press Institute and writing, editing and news research with the Poynter Institute. In addition to her work at NerdWallet, Lisa is a real estate investor and has taught a seminar on how to earn college scholarships. She is based in Nashville.
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Survivorship life insurance is a type of life insurance policy that covers two people, but it only pays one death benefit after both policyholders have died. Another name for this form of coverage is second-to-die life insurance.
Survivorship life insurance is one of two main types of joint life insurance , which insures two people under the same policy. The other type is called first-to-die life insurance , and it only pays a benefit when the first policyholder dies. Usually, survivorship life insurance is issued as a permanent policy, such as whole life or universal life.
A second-to-die policy is most commonly used by married couples who want to provide a death benefit to their survivors or a charity. It’s a relatively uncommon type of life insurance, but here are some circumstances when a survivorship policy makes sense:
You have a loved one with special needs. Some couples use a survivorship policy to provide for a child with a disability after both parents have died.
You’re concerned about estate taxes. High-net-worth couples often purchase a second-to-die policy to provide liquidity for federal estate taxes , as well as any applicable state estate taxes.
You want to leave a legacy to a favorite charity. A second-to-die policy can ensure there’s a death benefit for a charity after both policyholders die.
With any joint life insurance policy, the age and health of both applicants will be considered during the underwriting process. However, sometimes a survivorship policy can help an older or less healthy spouse or co-applicant qualify for life insurance when they wouldn’t qualify on their own. That’s because the insurer knows it will only need to pay out one death benefit, but it probably won’t need to do so until later on, when the younger or healthier person dies.
Because second-to-die life insurance is a rare type of life insurance, you’ll need to work with a life insurance agent or broker to obtain quotes and apply for a policy.
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