This a collection of fact-finder questions taken from various sites and insurance companies' resources. Just pondering these questions will allow you to understand what information the agent is seeking, what kind of picture they are painting with possible scenarios playing out. Some repeat, I left them in because you never know how you phrase a question if it blends well with the agent asking it or the prospect hearing it.
Business Needs
1. Business Protection
Key-Person
-Do you have key people that contribute to the profitability of your business?
-Would your business be financially harmed if you lost a key person to the competition, death, or disability?
-Would your business be as successful as it is today if a key employee could no longer work due to a death, disability or resignation?
-Who in your business is critical to the ongoing success of your business?
-Would your profits be affected if a key employee were to leave, die, or become disabled?
-Would you be interested in a plan that may reduce the risk of a competitor luring a key employee away from your business?
-Are you aware of the business accounting saying "if you can't get a tax deduction, get cost recovery"?
-Have you considered the effect to average annual earnings and the resulting value of your company if you were to lose a key employee?
-Are you or your key-employees limited in the amount you are allowed to contribute to your qualified retirement plan?
-Does your business have owners/employees who are integral to the success of your company?
-Would the death or disability of one of these key employees have an impact on the sales/profits of your company?
-Do your creditors and lenders ask about key person coverage?
-Including you, how many key employees do you have in your company?
-Does your company have a plan to recruit, retain, and reward key employees? (Exec.Bonus162, Deferred Comp., SERP, Split-Dollar, 457(b), 457(f), Disability retirement savings protection, di salary continuation) When was the last time it was reviewed?
Debt Protection
-Do you have any business-related loan expenses? Amount and pay-off date? What percentage of the debt is covered by life insurance on the business owner(s)?
-Does your business have significant debt?
-Have you considered how you would continue to make business-related loan payments if you became too sick or hurt to work?
-What are your current business-related loan obligations?
-Have you considereed how you would continue to make business-related loan payments if you became too sick or hurt to work?
-What percentage of debt is covered by life insurance on the business owners?
Overhead Expense
-If you or another owner became too sick or hurt to work, would your business be able to pay expenses?
-Do you have a plan in place to cover your overhead expenses in the event you or your partner should become disabled?
-If you or another owner became too sick or hurt to work, how long would your business be able pay expenses?
2. Exit Planning
-Have you established a contingency plan for transferring your business to a specific party at an established price in the event of a disability or death of an owner?
-What is the liquidation value of your business?
-Have you considered how this buiness could create a retirement income for you?
-Have you had your company valued by an independent, knowledgeable party?
-Are you able to take a vacation and not call the office for a week or more at a time?
-Do you have a specific plan regarding what you would like to do after you sold your business?
-Have you identified which exit option is the most appropriate for you?
-Do you know how much you would net from the sale of your business?
-Have you documented your office, service, manufacturing, and marketing processes?
-Have you set a date for when you would like to retire?
-How is the outlook for your industry?
-Have you established a contingency plan for transferring your business to a specific party in the event of a disability of an owner?
-Where do you see your business in 10, 20, 30 years? Are you still running it?
-Whom do you see running the business when you leave? 3rd party, key-person, family-member?
-How do you see the business transferring? Lump-sum payment, installment sale?
-If transferring to a key-person, are you interested in helping to ensure they have the liquidity for atleast a down payment?
-Do you know what you could sell your business for today?
-Have you had your business valued within the last two years?
-Have you identified who will buy your business and for how much?
-Do you have a buy sell agreement? (if not) Do you want to set one up for your business?
-Is that buy-sell agreement based on a stated business value- and has that value been reviewed in the last year?
-What plans do you have for the business if you or one of the co-owners dies or becomes permanently disabled?
-What plans do you have for your interest in the business upon your retirement? Third party, family, key-employee, other owners?
3. Employee Needs
-Have you considered offering highly compensated or key employees additional benefits to retain or reward them?
-When's the last time you reviewed your employee benefit package to see how competitive it is in the marketplace and how well it satisfies your employee needs?
-Have you reviewed your employee benefit offering to ensure employees are adequately protected in regard to their income an/or ability to continue saving for retirement in the event of a disability?
-Does your company offer non-medical and voluntary benefits? (dental, life, vision, std, ltd, cancer)
-Does your company have a qualifed retirement plan for employees? (401k, SEP, Profit-Sharing, SIMPLE, ESOP, Money-Purchase, TSA/403(b), Defined-Benefit)
Personal Needs
1. Income Protection
-If you were too sick or hurt to work, would you be able to meet personal financial obligations without draining business profits?
-What personal disability income insurance do you currently have in place? When was it last reviewed?
-Do you have long-term care insurance?
-Upon an accident or sever illness or physical disability, would you be able to meet present financial obligations, both at your business and personally during that time?
-If you were too sick or hurt to work, would you be able to meet personal financial obligations without draining business profits?
2. Retirement Income
-Are you protected in the event you could no longer save for retirement due to a disability?
-Does your business represent a substantial part of your planned retirement income?
-As part of your retirement plan, are you planning on deriving more than the book-value out of your business?
-What are your proposed revenue sources for retirement? --Do you have a qualified plan in place? If so, are you and your key employees limited in what you can contribute?
-Do you anticipate your business will be the primary source of your retirement income?
-Are you concerned the income you expect from your business during retirement will affect the business' cash flow?
-Does your business represent a substantial part of your planned retirement income?
-Have you determined the role of your business in your retirement planning?
3. Survivor Income
-Will your spouse and beneficiaries be able to maintain their desired standard of living after your death?
-When is the last time you did a needs analyssis or reviewed your personal coveraes (life, disability etc) to determine how much your family would need if you were to die?
-Have you thought about using business funds to finance the personal protection your family needs?
-Given the amount of business income used to support your spouse and/or other beneficiaries, would they be able to maintain their desired standard of living after your death?
-Have your life insurance needs been reviewed within the past two years to ensure they are being met?
4. Estate Planning and Wealth Transfer
-Are you planning on transferring your business to your children or your key employee(s) at a discounted amount?
-Have you made arrangements to sell your interest in your business at death and have those arrangements been reviewed in the last two years?
-Are you aware that it is possible to have your business taxed at a higher value than what is sold for at death?
-Recognizing that your business is a big part of your wealth and your estate, do you have family members who are in the business, and others who aren't in the business?
-Are you concerned about "estate equalization" for those who are not active in the business?
-Are you confident in the value your heirs would receive if you die without a buysell agreement in place?
-Are you aware that the value your heirs would receive and the value the IRS determines for tax purposes may be different?
-Do you have a plan to distribute your personal and business assets in theevent of your death? (ILIT, revocable trust, will, family trust, flp) Is the plan funded? When was it last reviewed?
-When was the last time your will/trust(s) were reviewed?
Business Needs
1. Business Protection
Key-Person
-Do you have key people that contribute to the profitability of your business?
-Would your business be financially harmed if you lost a key person to the competition, death, or disability?
-Would your business be as successful as it is today if a key employee could no longer work due to a death, disability or resignation?
-Who in your business is critical to the ongoing success of your business?
-Would your profits be affected if a key employee were to leave, die, or become disabled?
-Would you be interested in a plan that may reduce the risk of a competitor luring a key employee away from your business?
-Are you aware of the business accounting saying "if you can't get a tax deduction, get cost recovery"?
-Have you considered the effect to average annual earnings and the resulting value of your company if you were to lose a key employee?
-Are you or your key-employees limited in the amount you are allowed to contribute to your qualified retirement plan?
-Does your business have owners/employees who are integral to the success of your company?
-Would the death or disability of one of these key employees have an impact on the sales/profits of your company?
-Do your creditors and lenders ask about key person coverage?
-Including you, how many key employees do you have in your company?
-Does your company have a plan to recruit, retain, and reward key employees? (Exec.Bonus162, Deferred Comp., SERP, Split-Dollar, 457(b), 457(f), Disability retirement savings protection, di salary continuation) When was the last time it was reviewed?
Debt Protection
-Do you have any business-related loan expenses? Amount and pay-off date? What percentage of the debt is covered by life insurance on the business owner(s)?
-Does your business have significant debt?
-Have you considered how you would continue to make business-related loan payments if you became too sick or hurt to work?
-What are your current business-related loan obligations?
-Have you considereed how you would continue to make business-related loan payments if you became too sick or hurt to work?
-What percentage of debt is covered by life insurance on the business owners?
Overhead Expense
-If you or another owner became too sick or hurt to work, would your business be able to pay expenses?
-Do you have a plan in place to cover your overhead expenses in the event you or your partner should become disabled?
-If you or another owner became too sick or hurt to work, how long would your business be able pay expenses?
2. Exit Planning
-Have you established a contingency plan for transferring your business to a specific party at an established price in the event of a disability or death of an owner?
-What is the liquidation value of your business?
-Have you considered how this buiness could create a retirement income for you?
-Have you had your company valued by an independent, knowledgeable party?
-Are you able to take a vacation and not call the office for a week or more at a time?
-Do you have a specific plan regarding what you would like to do after you sold your business?
-Have you identified which exit option is the most appropriate for you?
-Do you know how much you would net from the sale of your business?
-Have you documented your office, service, manufacturing, and marketing processes?
-Have you set a date for when you would like to retire?
-How is the outlook for your industry?
-Have you established a contingency plan for transferring your business to a specific party in the event of a disability of an owner?
-Where do you see your business in 10, 20, 30 years? Are you still running it?
-Whom do you see running the business when you leave? 3rd party, key-person, family-member?
-How do you see the business transferring? Lump-sum payment, installment sale?
-If transferring to a key-person, are you interested in helping to ensure they have the liquidity for atleast a down payment?
-Do you know what you could sell your business for today?
-Have you had your business valued within the last two years?
-Have you identified who will buy your business and for how much?
-Do you have a buy sell agreement? (if not) Do you want to set one up for your business?
-Is that buy-sell agreement based on a stated business value- and has that value been reviewed in the last year?
-What plans do you have for the business if you or one of the co-owners dies or becomes permanently disabled?
-What plans do you have for your interest in the business upon your retirement? Third party, family, key-employee, other owners?
3. Employee Needs
-Have you considered offering highly compensated or key employees additional benefits to retain or reward them?
-When's the last time you reviewed your employee benefit package to see how competitive it is in the marketplace and how well it satisfies your employee needs?
-Have you reviewed your employee benefit offering to ensure employees are adequately protected in regard to their income an/or ability to continue saving for retirement in the event of a disability?
-Does your company offer non-medical and voluntary benefits? (dental, life, vision, std, ltd, cancer)
-Does your company have a qualifed retirement plan for employees? (401k, SEP, Profit-Sharing, SIMPLE, ESOP, Money-Purchase, TSA/403(b), Defined-Benefit)
Personal Needs
1. Income Protection
-If you were too sick or hurt to work, would you be able to meet personal financial obligations without draining business profits?
-What personal disability income insurance do you currently have in place? When was it last reviewed?
-Do you have long-term care insurance?
-Upon an accident or sever illness or physical disability, would you be able to meet present financial obligations, both at your business and personally during that time?
-If you were too sick or hurt to work, would you be able to meet personal financial obligations without draining business profits?
2. Retirement Income
-Are you protected in the event you could no longer save for retirement due to a disability?
-Does your business represent a substantial part of your planned retirement income?
-As part of your retirement plan, are you planning on deriving more than the book-value out of your business?
-What are your proposed revenue sources for retirement? --Do you have a qualified plan in place? If so, are you and your key employees limited in what you can contribute?
-Do you anticipate your business will be the primary source of your retirement income?
-Are you concerned the income you expect from your business during retirement will affect the business' cash flow?
-Does your business represent a substantial part of your planned retirement income?
-Have you determined the role of your business in your retirement planning?
3. Survivor Income
-Will your spouse and beneficiaries be able to maintain their desired standard of living after your death?
-When is the last time you did a needs analyssis or reviewed your personal coveraes (life, disability etc) to determine how much your family would need if you were to die?
-Have you thought about using business funds to finance the personal protection your family needs?
-Given the amount of business income used to support your spouse and/or other beneficiaries, would they be able to maintain their desired standard of living after your death?
-Have your life insurance needs been reviewed within the past two years to ensure they are being met?
4. Estate Planning and Wealth Transfer
-Are you planning on transferring your business to your children or your key employee(s) at a discounted amount?
-Have you made arrangements to sell your interest in your business at death and have those arrangements been reviewed in the last two years?
-Are you aware that it is possible to have your business taxed at a higher value than what is sold for at death?
-Recognizing that your business is a big part of your wealth and your estate, do you have family members who are in the business, and others who aren't in the business?
-Are you concerned about "estate equalization" for those who are not active in the business?
-Are you confident in the value your heirs would receive if you die without a buysell agreement in place?
-Are you aware that the value your heirs would receive and the value the IRS determines for tax purposes may be different?
-Do you have a plan to distribute your personal and business assets in theevent of your death? (ILIT, revocable trust, will, family trust, flp) Is the plan funded? When was it last reviewed?
-When was the last time your will/trust(s) were reviewed?
