The foundation for Life Settlements was established by the Supreme Court more than a century ago (1911) by a landmark decision in the case of Grigsby v. Russell. Here, the Court recognized that life insurance had all the same characteristics as property and, for the first time, confirmed life insurance’s status as an asset for policy owners.
As a result of this decision, life insurance finally stood on the same footing as more traditional investment properties like stocks, bonds and real estate. This was a huge win for policy owners as it now meant that life insurance could be resold at the policy owner’s discretion, just like any other asset.
However, it wasn’t until many decades later, that a marketplace was born that allowed policy owners a way to unlock the hidden value inside their life insurance policies. Early on, few people knew the market even existed and not many buyers were easily found. There was little in the way of regulation to provide a framework for the market, further slowing market acceptance and awareness.
In the past decade, states have worked hard to regulate the industry and establish guidelines for participants. Education has become a focus and consumers are seeing the benefits. Currently, 91% of people living in the US live in a state that regulates Life Settlements(1) and billions of dollars have been paid to policy owners in excess of their policy’s stated cash surrender values.
Additionally, with a very diverse network of institutional buyers that have now entered the space, companies like ours have emerged to help people navigate the market to ensure that they are getting the best value for their policy.
Today, billions of dollars of life insurance are sold annually by policy owners who find they no longer need or no longer can afford to maintain their insurance coverage. The funds they receive are often then used to pay for more pressing concerns like health care, long term care and other retirement needs.
Whether a policy is too expensive to maintain or whether it’s need no longer exists, prudent policy owners now can seek appraisals of their policies before making any final decisions.
In order to find out if your policy is likely to qualify, please complete the following form. If you prefer to speak to someone right away or have additional questions, please call us at 877-778-7991. We can also be reached via email at contact@evergreensettlements.com.