What is a Viator in insurance?

Asked by: Leonardo Farrell  |  Last update: February 11, 2022
Score: 4.6/5 (71 votes)

'Viator' means the owner of a life insurance policy insuring the life of a person who has a catastrophic or life threatening illness or condition, who enters into an agreement under which the viatical settlement company will pay compensation or anything of value, which compensation or value is less than the expected ...

Who is the Viator in a viatical settlement?

A “viator” is the owner of an individual life insurance policy or a certificate holder under a group policy who enters or seeks to enter into a viatical settlement contract. The “insured” is the person on whose life an insurance policy is written. Usually, the insured is also the viator.

What does Viator mean?

A viator is a person who has been diagnosed with a terminal or life-threatening illness and decides to sell their life insurance policy. ... Often, viators are motivated by the desire to fund costly or experimental therapies that might prolong their life.

What is a viatical settlement broker?

A person who negotiates viatical settlements on behalf of a life Insurance policy holder. ... Viatical Settlement Brokers (“VSB”) work with several financial institutions that buy insurance policies, to find the best prices for their clients. A VSB offering life settlements must be licensed.

When a Viator sells a life insurance policy?

The owner (viator) of the life insurance policy sells the policy for an immediate cash benefit. The buyer (the viatical settlement provider) becomes the new owner of the life insurance policy, pays future premiums, and collects the death benefit when the insured dies.

Understanding Viator

16 related questions found

What does the word viatical mean?

adjective. of or relating to a viaticum. of or relating to a financial transaction in which a company buys life insurance policies from the terminally ill at less than their face value and may sell the policies to investors: viatical settlements.

What is it called when you sell your life insurance policy?

Selling a life insurance policy to a third party is known as a life settlement. The amount the policyholder receives can sometimes be more than the cash surrender value of insurance, but it's usually much smaller than the policy's death benefit. The policyholder enlists a broker who helps them find a buyer.

What does tertiary mean in life insurance?

Tertiary Beneficiary — the third beneficiary in line to receive life insurance proceeds.

Who benefits from a viatical settlement?

Who Qualifies for a Viatical Settlement? Life insurance policyholders who are seriously or chronically ill, have a policy with a face value of a minimum of $100,000, and have held their policy for at least two years will typically qualify for a viatical settlement.

What does Accelerated death benefit mean?

The Accelerated Death Benefit (ADB) is a provision in most life insurance policies that allows a person to receive a portion of their life insurance money early — to use while they are still living. ... People with certain disabling conditions can also qualify for ADB regardless of life expectancy.

What percentage does Viator take?

Viator has a standard commission rate of 20% the advertised price. In addition, you're required to provide them with the lowest price possible because they don't want you undercutting them on your website.

Is Viator a reliable company?

Yes, they are perfectly reliable. They sell the activities and tours of many local Swiss companies. They have quite an interesting portfolio of products, so that's why we link to them frequently.

Where is Viator based?

Company Description: Viator, Inc. is located in Needham Heights, MA, United States and is part of the Travel Arrangement and Reservation Services Industry.

Is a viatical settlement taxable?

Is A Viatical Settlement Taxable? Most of the time, viatical settlements are not taxable. Settlement proceeds for terminally ill insureds are considered an advance of the life insurance benefit. Life insurance benefits are tax-free, and so it follows that the viatical settlement wouldn't be taxed, either.

Are viatical settlements protected from creditors?

A viatical settlement does end with you receiving a lumpsum cash payment, which is generally a good thing. ... Also, the cash you receive will not be protected from your creditors. Cash value within your life insurance is either partially or fully exempt from debtors, depending on the laws in your state.

Who is the owner and who is the beneficiary on a key person life insurance policy?

Under a key person life insurance policy, the business owns the policy, pays the premiums and is the beneficiary. If a key person dies, the business then collects a death benefit. That money can be used to help a business replace lost revenue as they search for a replacement.

How much is normally paid to a policy owner in a life viatical settlement?

In a viatical settlement, a company buys the terminally ill policyholder's life insurance policy, paying the policyholder 55 to 80 percent, typically, of the death benefit. The viatical company becomes the policy's beneficiary, and receives the full death benefit when the insured person dies.

How are lenders costs paid in connection with a viatical loan?

Your viatical lender accounts for those premium payments by reducing the loan amount. ... After you are gone, the lender collects the death benefit, repays your loan including any outstanding interest and fees, and sends the remaining funds to your beneficiaries.

Who should be secondary beneficiary?

In the event your primary beneficiary dies before or at the same time as you, most policies also allow you to name at least one backup beneficiary, called a “secondary” or “contingent” beneficiary. If the primary beneficiaries are all deceased, the secondary beneficiaries receive the death benefit.

Can you have two primary beneficiaries on life insurance?

You can have more than one primary beneficiary; you simply need to designate what percentage of your life insurance proceeds you want to allocate to each of your primary beneficiaries. Haven Life, for example, permits up to 10 primary beneficiaries and 10 contingent beneficiaries.

What is a secondary beneficiary for life insurance?

Your primary beneficiary is first in line to receive your death benefit. If the primary beneficiary dies before you, a secondary or contingent beneficiary is the next in line. Some people also designate a final beneficiary in the event the primary and secondary beneficiaries die before they do.

How much can you sell a $100 000 life insurance policy for?

The biggest advantage to selling your policy is that you will receive a lump sum liquid payout up front. On average, if you have a $100,000 life insurance policy, you will be receiving about $25,000. The next big advantage is that you won't have to make any more premium payments on your insurance policy.

What percentage do you get when you sell your life insurance?

The average life settlement payout is around 20 percent of a policy's death benefit, sometimes up to 30 percent. So, a $1 million policy might provide a settlement officer of $200,000 in cash.

Can you sell your life insurance policy if you are under 65?

You can be younger than age 65 to sell a life insurance policy through a life settlement, but you generally must be very ill. “Life settlements are calculated by understanding your life expectancy, and most third-party buyers prefer to purchase policies with a life expectancy of 10 years or less,” he says.