Gerber Insurance That Great?

Hi N.,
Our financial advisor (who is also my uncle) told us that you should NOT put any money into life insurance for your child. The purpose of life insurance is to replace the income of your spouse if they should die. Your child is not bringing in any income to the family, and therefore does not need the insurance. If you have the money to spare, then open a savings account for your child or a 529 plan for college. Good luck!

N.,

This is basically a whole life insurance policy for a baby, which is a complete waste of money (ask any honest financial planner and they'll tell you the same). Moreover, with the economic crisis the country is facing, banks and insurance companies are going out of business right, left, and center. There's no guarantee that Gerber's financial arm (or the financial institution that backs them) will even be in existence when your child is an adult old enough to need the life insurance policy.
Save the money for her education; it's a far better, safer use for your cash.

I agree with Lori...My mom took out the Gerber plan for my son. The $10k plan. My husband and I have our life insurance through AIG. good prices on our plans and we took out $250k on each of us. good luck!

The life insurance that my husband and I already have, offered a child rider for almost nothing (I think it's $15 a year per child), but gives us 10K for funeral expenses if god forbid something should happen. When they are old enough they can turn that into a policy of their own, no questions asked. For our family, we were glad we did this because my dtr has kidney disease. It is unlikey she would be able to get life insurance any other way at this point.

Hi N.~
Let me make this perfectly clear! I am a nonpracticing but licensed insurance agent. The only sort of insurance I know of where you get your money back is an annuity. Otherwise, most companies urge you to get whole life insurance, and it's just what is sounds like: you are paying it for your WHOLE LIFE. Term insurance would be best for both you and your husband. It should be enough to pay off your home in the case one of you passes. If you opt for a whole life policy for your daughter, make certain if she decides to keep it, no health questionaire or check up is necessary to renew it. If something should happen ~ GOD FORBID. Let me explain why: your daughter is 9 mo but if a serious illness surfaces (such as heart defect or cancer) she may not be able to get insurance once she actually needs it. I have a 12 y/o cousin who will never be able to get life insurance because he has a serious heart condition and has already undergone several surgeries and there is one last one coming in the next few years. God forbid, but something this serious and life altering can happen to anyone at any time. And if you have it now, it could help out in the future.
Good luck with your decision...
PS~ I'm sorry if you saw this all chopped up but I ran into computer problems and didn't get back to this until today. I didn't mean post it in such a mess so I'm sorry.

The policy Gerber offers is called Whole Life insurance, which basically means you have an investment tied into the policy... the problem with it is the rate of return is usually horrible, and when the person insured passes away you dont get the cash value - not only that if you want to borrow the cash value you have to pay interest to the company to borrow your own money... I believe in Term policy, which is straight coverage for a certain amount of time for a small amount a month.. similar to auto insurance, or health insurance... Buy term and invest the difference.

Technically children dont need insurance because they are not bringing money in that you would need to replace in the event of someone becoming an angel in heaven. Since we all know our birthday and not our death date its always great to be prepared. There is nothing wrong with having something just in case you can pay the expenses involved with someone becoming an angel in heaven.

I personally have a rider for my kids attached to my policy - they are all covered. If I had 20 kids or 2 it would be the same price... See if you can add your daughter to your policy... if its not possible.. feel free to contact me and maybe I can possibly help you out. I do this for a living.. good luck

I purchased this life insurance for my two boys (now two and 2 months) so that they would have life insurance at a low cost when they get older. They may decide not to transfer it over to the policy they offer at whatever age it is, but at the cost of life insurance I wanted to secure a low cost option for them when they are older. If they decide just to get the money than they can use that for college or whatever. I think life insurance is important for those you leave behind and the younger you start it the cheaper it is for life. My husband doesn't have any life insurance because at 44 it's just too expensive to budget. When I was 20 I worked for State Farm Insurance and learned the importance of starting young so I opened a policy for myself that will help my family stay afloat should anything happen to me and I only pay a nominal fee each month because I started so young. That's what I'm hoping to provide for my boys. Hope that helps you make an informed decision for your daughter. Good luck!

N., life insurance is for the person it's taken out on. Real insurance is on an individual, and when they die, the beneficiary that they choose gets that money. Life insurance that either you or your partner take out on yourself is paid when you die. You don't need life insurance on your child - life insurance on your child is money paid to you when your child dies. You take out life insurance on yourself to leave behind for the care of your child. I would speak with an insurance broker about your different options. If what you're getting is what you paid in, there are better ways that you can invest the money, rather than just forking it over and having the Gerber company make interest on your money. Gerber isn't an insurance company. I would only purchase insurance through an insurance company.
Good luck

I have a Gerber Life Insurance policy for both my children. I would definitely sign-up, it is worth it!

I called Gerber to inquire when I started getting the same mail, and finally got out of them that it is in fact insurance in case something happens to the little one (to cover funeral arrangements). I recommend you call them to find out exactly what they are offering to make sure of what you are getting.
best of luck,
M.

N.,
Per the finance instructor at RIT, insurance for babies is a big ripoff. You would do better to take the same amount of money, put it in an account that would go into either money market or another IRA-type account, and let it grow that way. Bonds and CDs are last resort, but better than just putting into savings account. Dr. Manning is his name; he teaches personal finance classes at Rochester Institute of Technology. Awesome teacher, takes time to explain things so the lay person can understand them.
Good Luck!
M.

We got the Gerber insurance when our oldest was born 5 years ago and then again a year later when our youngest was born. We thought that it was too good a deal to pass up. We also got the insurance for ourselves for additional coverage to supplement our other life insurance. I can tell you from experience that the company is very easy to work with. Unfortunately my husband passed away in March and they gave no problem about getting the insurance check and they also helped me and were patient with me about getting the payments to them on our remaining policies. I would recommend this insurance to anyone who is eligible for it.
Congratulations on your baby girl, children really are a blessing.

Hi,
I spoke with a financial advisor regarding this insurance. He said it's basically a total waste of money. Children do not need life insurance, adults do. It is in case anything happens to you or your husband, so that your family can be taken care of. They are using the Gerber name that we know and trust to make money from our guilt. The money would be better spent on a 529 college fund for the child. GL!

N.,

Congrats on your baby girl! As for this insurance - its a waste of money - as one other mom stated - its WHOLE life insurance - you are paying them for something that is not worth having until such time that the policy becomes 'mature' so to speak.

And also, children don't need life insurance - adults do. God FORBID if anything should happen to your child - if you had been paying Gerber for this insurance - you wouldn't be able to get anything out of it because the policy holds no value until a certain time in the child's life.

Term life insurance is the best policy - if anything happens - the money you paid into it - is all yours back.

I had started a life insurance policy with Gerber as well when my kids were small - but once I found out about the 'details' of the policy - I stopped paying it and realized how much money I had just wasted.

Personally - I think that if your child is in good health and there's a good 'prediction' that she will remain this way - then there's no need for life insurance at this time.

I don't think you need life insurance for your child. It strikes me as a big racket. If a parent dies, it affects the family financially but the same is not true if a child dies. Most of the time insurance covers everything for kids if they are sick and so you don't really need to buy insurance just to pay for a funeral. Save your money and get a really good life insurance plan for you and your husband from a reputable life insurance company (not Gerber).

Hi N.,

I got the insurance for my girls (now ages 12 and 13) when they were infants. I figured it was so inexpensive (I only have the $5,000), why not. Unfortunatly with insurance you never truly know how good it is until you need to use it. Gerber Life has been around for a long time so that must mean something.

I bought this insurance and it wasnt was I was thinking it was. and I dont know the technical words for different kinds of insurances... but it if you miss a payment with this type of policy, you lose the policy and the money you paid into it. I would suggest you contact your regular insurance agent and purchase insurance that builds interest and you can borrow against or withdraw money from it. I dont know what it is called. I have had an insurance policy since I was around 2 years old and no one knew about it, my grandparents paid for it. When they passed and the payments stopped, the police paid for it self until someone finally realized that the payments werent beging payed and sent a letter trying to find me. The interest payed my premiums while no one was making payments on it. So it never lapsed. And now its worth a quite a bit because it builds up.

The gerber policy isnt like that.

W. in Watkins Glen
Mom of 3
(Korey_Mikel 16, Whitney 12, Andrea 6)

The gerber insurance is not worth it in my opinion. There are so many other ways to insure your children. The coverage is minimal, the service was lousy, and in the end, I just accepted the fact I had thrown away money.

After that experience I went to State Farm and they were wonderful helping me set up policies on both my boys. In total I pay about $30 a month for them cobined and have $25K on each. Plus, I did each of the policies as 15-year pay plans, which means I only have to pay for these policies for 15 years, then they 100% paid in full for the rest of my boys life. When they are older, they can choose to borrow against them, increase the coverage, or whatever other choices they have. Plus, if anything happened to them now, I would have the funds necessary to cover funeral expenses, plane tickets, etc. It was full coverage from day 1 I believe.
GL!

I thought about getting this, but my mom explained it to me that it is for if something happens to my boy. If he got sick or died. It wasnt for if I died. I would say its a waste of money. Hold on to your money. Once she is old enough to need life insurance it wont be that expensive. I started my plan at 25, its good only until I am 75, but it only cost 13.00 a month. By the time I am 75 I hope my boys will be set in their life and not need my life insurance. I also hope by then that I am out of debt and have funeral services saved for. Save your money!!!!

I N.,

I get them all the time as well. And my job offers it, but I cannot purchase life insurance for my kids. I can't imagine my life without them. So the thought of getting life insurance for children freaks me out. Thats just me. However, I don't see how it could hurt if you want to get it.