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A small business owner has a key employee whose sudden death would cause significant financial loss to the company. The owner wants to purchase a life insurance policy on this employee, with the company as the beneficiary, to mitigate this risk. Which type of life insurance would be most appropriate for this situation?

  1. AGroup Life Insurance
  2. BKey Person Life Insurance
  3. CIndividual Term Life
  4. DCredit Life Insurance
Show answer & explanation

Correct answer: B. Key Person Life Insurance

Key Person Life Insurance is specifically designed for businesses to protect against the financial loss that would result from the death of a critical employee. The business is the policyowner, pays the premiums, and is the beneficiary.

Why the other options are wrong

  • A. Group Life Insurance covers a group of employees, usually with the employees as beneficiaries, not the company for a specific risk.
  • C. Individual Term Life could be used, but 'Key Person Life Insurance' is the specific and most appropriate term for this business use.
  • D. Credit Life Insurance pays off a debt and is not suitable for protecting a business from the loss of a key employee.

Key Person Life Insurance

Life insurance purchased by a business on the life of a vital employee, with the business as the beneficiary, to protect against financial loss if the employee dies.

  • Business is the owner, premium payer, and beneficiary.
  • Protects against loss of income, business disruption, and cost of finding/training a replacement.
  • Death benefit is typically tax-free to the business.

Memory trick: Buy-Sell, Key Person, Executive Perks: Business insurance works.

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