Life insurance when your work comes gig by gig
Production crews, writers, musicians, drivers and independent contractors often earn without an employer behind them. That changes how life insurance fits.
No employer policy to lean on
Many full-time employees get some life coverage through work, often without thinking about it. If you are a freelancer, a contractor or someone hired show by show, you may have none. Some union and guild health plans include a small life benefit, but the amount and the rules vary, and eligibility can hinge on hours or earnings. Read your plan documents rather than assuming.
Coverage tied to a job, or to staying eligible for a plan, can end when the work slows down. That tends to happen at a bad time: between seasons, during a strike or after an injury. A personal policy you own does not hinge on who hires you next.
Size it from what your household needs
Freelance income rarely looks the same two years in a row. A strong year on a long-running show can be followed by months of short jobs. If you size coverage from your strongest year, the premium may stretch you later. If you size it from your slowest year, your family may come up short.
A steadier starting point is what your household actually costs to run: rent or mortgage, food, insurance, school, the car, and any money you send to family. Think about how many years your family would need that support, then set aside savings you would feel safe counting on. That figure is usually a better guide than any single tax return.
A policy that stays with you
A term policy you buy yourself stays in force for the full term as long as you pay the premium. It does not end when a production wraps, when you change representation or when you take a staff job and later leave it. On most level term policies the premium stays the same for the whole term, so a slow year does not raise it.
Uneven income makes the payment schedule worth a thought. Some people pay yearly after a good stretch so the coming year is handled; the quote results show both monthly and yearly prices so you can compare. Others prefer monthly payments that are easy to plan around. Either way, choose an amount you could keep paying through a lean season.
When you apply
The application asks about your occupation and income, since carriers want the amount to make sense for your situation. If your earnings swing from year to year, have a rough idea of what you made in recent years before you start. Some kinds of work, such as stunts or aerial camera jobs, may lead to extra questions.
You can stop the online application and come back to it, which helps if you are filling it in between calls or on a break during a long shoot. If something about your work is hard to describe in a form, call (877) 411-5200 and talk it over with the agency first.
See what term coverage costs for your age, health and the term you have in mind.
See term life prices