Life insurance with one clear purpose
Most life insurance is bought to replace income or pay off a mortgage. Final expense insurance has a smaller, more specific job: paying for a funeral and the last bills someone leaves behind. Because of that, the face amounts are smaller and the application is usually simpler, which is why it appeals to people from about age 50 to 85.
The policy pays its benefit to the beneficiary you name. The beneficiary decides how to spend it, whether that is the funeral home, a medical bill or something else that needs settling.
Whole life coverage that does not run out
Final expense plans are a type of whole life insurance. Term life lasts for a set number of years and then ends, but a final expense policy stays in force for life as long as premiums are paid. That matters for a policy meant to pay for a funeral, because no one knows when the benefit will be needed.
Premiums are usually level. The amount is set when the policy starts, based on your age, health, tobacco use and the face amount, and it does not rise as you get older. Since age is part of the price, a quote at 60 and a quote at 75 can look quite different.
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A simpler way to apply
Larger life policies often call for a medical exam and lab work. Final expense plans skip the exam. Instead you answer questions, and the insurer often checks prescription history and medical records. The type of plan you get depends on those answers:
Accidental death is usually covered in full from the start, even on graded and modified plans.
- Level benefit: health questions, no medical exam, and the full benefit from the first day if you qualify
- Graded or modified: a reduced benefit for a natural-cause death in the first two or three years
- Guaranteed issue: no health questions, and a limited benefit for a natural-cause death in the first two years
What final expense does not try to do
Final expense coverage is not meant to replace a paycheck or leave a large inheritance. If that is your goal, a different kind of life insurance may fit better. And because the benefit goes to the beneficiary you name rather than to a funeral home, your family keeps the choice of where to spend it.
Because the job is narrow, sizing it is fairly simple. Start with a funeral: according to the National Funeral Directors Association's 2023 General Price List Study, the national median was $8,300 for viewing and burial and $6,280 for viewing and cremation. Then add any cemetery, plot, monument or marker costs, which those figures leave out.
Comparing plans from New Mexico
On the call, the agent asks what you want the policy to cover, your age and tobacco use, and goes through the health questions insurers use. The agent can also explain how a final expense plan compares with the larger policies you may have seen. Quotes from several insurers are compared so you can see which plan type you may qualify for. You can apply by phone, and the quote carries no obligation.
For New Mexico, calls are taken Monday to Friday, 7am to 7pm Mountain time. Eterna's licensed agents compare plans from several insurers for New Mexico residents, and plans, prices and availability vary by state, insurer, age and health. The New Mexico Office of Superintendent of Insurance, at https://www.osi.state.nm.us/, can help you check an agent's license or answer an insurance question.
