Selecting a Life Office
To participate or not to participate in the profits should be one of the first points to be considered by a proposer for life assurance. If a non-profit policy be chosen the selection of the office with which to place the assurance will he mainly determined by the rate of premium charged, having due regard to the security offered, though other matters, such as surrender values, loan facilities and policy conditions should receive attention.
A with-profit policy will generally yield better results than one without participating rights and is therefore more often favoured. _ The selection of an office for a with-profits assurance calls for great judgement and know- ledge of the position and prospects of the various assurance societies. Comparative rates of premium may be largely ignored because the ultimate return will depend on bonuses, which, in turn, will hinge on future profits. Selection is really an attempt to forecast the future. But that is not all. Different offices have different methods of dividing the profits among the policyholders. Some methods are more favourable to one plan of assur- ance than to another, some are more favourable to longer endowment periods than to shorter terms, and some to younger ages than to older. The circumstances and desires of each applicant must be studied, especially his age and the- nature of the assurance contemplated. Broadly speaking, however, the return on a_ with-profits Policy will be mainly governed by the profits available for distribution. - . •
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