What exactly does "renewable" mean in term insurance?

My understanding of renewable term life insurance is this:

Coverage that is renewable at the option of the insured, who is not required to take a medical examination.

Regardless of your physical condition, the insured must be allowed to renew the term life insurance policy, and the premium cannot be increased to reflect any adverse physical condition.

But, the premium of each renewal increases to reflect the life expectancy of the insured at that particular age.

It may have been a good idea to review the "Renewal Provision" with your agent before purchasing the policy.

It does seem that your Renewable Term Policy provides an ART, rather than a renewal option for another Level Term period of 5 or more years.

I don't believe this is standard, but I don't actually know how most carriers structure their "Renewal Provision" wording.

Obviously, it's more costly to get an ART at renewal, if you need it for 5 or more years, than getting another level term policy at renewal.

You may want to check at lifehappens.org for further information which may address your issue.

Every term policy becomes annually renewable at the end of the term. The term you purchase, whether 10, 15, 20 or 30, is the period of guaranteed premium. Once the level term expires, you begin paying the actual cost of insurance every year if you choose to keep the policy in force.

Look on the schedule or illustration of your policy and it will show a level premium for your time period then a huge jump in premium the year after you term expires. It will then show the annually renewable premium from then on.

It would be a rare situation to keep it going, i.e. your health is VERY bad at the time, as a new term policy would be a much lower premium.

Hope that helps you. Email me if you need at dhorsey@myclearview.com

Dave