FAQ

Once eligibility has been determined and the underwriting process complete, LIFETRUST will advance a line of credit against the face value of your existing individual or group life insurance policy. The line of credit is secured by your life insurance policy so there are no monthly payments required and you may use the funds anyway you choose.

Not everyone diagnosed with cancer will qualify.  Generally, to meet the medical eligibility requirements, depending on the type of cancer, one or more of the following would most likely signify eligibility:

1. disease recurrence, 
2. development of distant metastases, or 
3. disease that has become resistant to treatment.  

For those with a forecasted life expectancy exceeding five years may not currently be eligible.

When you submit your initial paperwork, you will sign an authorization form to release protected health information allowing LIFETRUST to obtain your medical records from your attending physicians.  Oncologists, independent of LIFETRUST, are responsible for establishing a client’s eligibility. They will conduct a thorough review of your medical records and perform a comparative analysis from data containing others with a similar medical profile. There is no need to undergo any additional physical examination.

Not all lines of credit will qualify, but if you encounter a dramatic change in your medical condition with more rapid disease progression than what was initially projected, you may be eligible to request a medical re-evaluation.  If so, we would obtain updated medical records, resubmit them to the independent oncologists for evaluation and according to their findings, your line of credit amount may be increased.

There are several factors involved in determining the amount of a client’s line of credit:

1. The face amount of the life insurance policy,
2. The future premium amounts of the policy, and
3. The forecasted life expectancy of the insured.

When all of these factors are considered, a client would typically be eligible to receive funds between 35% and 75% of the face amount value of their life insurance policy.

Not every life insurance policy will meet LIFETRUST's criteria for a line of credit.  Some life insurance policies may not qualify due to the face amount of the policy. There are several factors regarding life insurance policies that are required for eligibility.  

1. You must have one or more life insurance policy that is beyond contestability, (generally two years from the issue date).
2. Your life insurance policy must be assignable.
3. Most life insurance companies meet LIFETRUST's requirements regarding a high claims paying solvency rating.
4. Individually owned policies and group coverage are typically acceptable.
5. Your life insurance policy does not need to have cash or surrender value to qualify.

Upon funding of your line of credit, LIFETRUST will pay on your behalf all future premiums to your life insurance company from your line of credit account.

As a consumer lender, we must comply with state lending regulations. Based on your state of residence, certain restrictions may prohibit you meeting all of the criteria.

1. If your state requires a minimum line of credit amount, your life insurance policy face amount may not be enough to support the requirements.

2. Your state may have interest rate restrictions that would prevent approval of a line of credit.

3. Your state may require additional licensing that LIFETRUST may not currently hold.

When you make your initial contact with LIFETRUST, a pre-qualification interview will take place by telephone.   This begins upon you calling us or we receive your application and authorization forms by fax, email or mail.   You may download the forms from the Forms Tab found on this website, or you may place a phone call and speak to one of our experienced staff to get you started.

With receipt of your application and authorization forms, we are then able to obtain your medical records and insurance information needed to establish your eligibility and complete the underwriting process. At the completion of this segment, we will contact you and LIFETRUST will present a line of credit proposal for your consideration.   Once the proposal is accepted, we will send contract documents for you to review, sign and return to LIFETRUST.

The normal timeframe for LIFETRUST to complete the three-step process is four to six weeks. Some of this is dependent upon the response time of your insurance company and physician’s office or treatment facility. While this may seem rather long, we at LIFETRUST are dedicated to getting your line of credit ready as quickly as possible.

There are no application fees. However, if LIFETRUST presents a line of credit proposal and you accept, an origination fee is applied to your line of credit based on the face amount of your existing life insurance policy.   Additional fees for services requested by the client, such as wire transfers or a medical re-evaluation are added to your line of credit.

The origination fee covers the administrative costs of underwriting the line of credit.

There is no personal liability for you, any member of your family or estate. There is no obligation to repay funds or make monthly payments. The line of credit, including principal, interest, origination fee, premiums, and fees are repaid in full when the policy matures.

LIFETRUST only considers your medical history and life insurance policy to determine eligibility. Your employment status, repayment ability and creditworthiness are not at issue.

You decide the best way to use your funds. There are no limitations placed on how you choose to use the proceeds from your line of credit.

The line of credit is set up to allow you to choose whether you receive all of your funds in one lump sum or in increments as you need them.   You also decide if you want to receive your funds by a check or direct wire transfer to your bank account.

LIFETRUST understands your concern about your private health information and urges you to read our Privacy and Confidentiality Agreement found under the Forms Tab located on our website.