If you have a life insurance policy and you're facing a serious illness, you have more options than you might think. This guide compares every way to access cash from your policy — honestly, with no sales pitch.
Last updated: March 2026
An accelerated death benefit is a rider on some life insurance policies that allows you to receive a portion of your death benefit early if you're diagnosed with a terminal illness. Not all policies include this rider, and it's typically limited to terminal diagnoses with a life expectancy of 12-24 months.
Find out how much you can access — no obligation, no credit check.
A viatical settlement is the sale of your life insurance policy to a third-party investor. You receive a lump sum (typically 50-80% of the death benefit), and the investor becomes the new owner and beneficiary of the policy. Once sold, you no longer own the policy and your original beneficiaries receive nothing from it.
A life settlement is similar to a viatical settlement — you sell your policy to an investor — but it's typically used by seniors (65+) who may not be terminally ill. The payout is usually lower than a viatical (20-50% of death benefit) because the investor expects a longer wait for the death benefit.
If you have a whole life or universal life policy with accumulated cash value, you can borrow against that cash value from your insurer. This is a standard feature of permanent life insurance — but it only works if your policy has built up significant cash value, and term policies don't qualify.
Surrendering your policy means canceling it and receiving the cash surrender value from your insurer. This is typically the lowest-value option — surrender values are often far below the death benefit, and you lose all coverage permanently. Term life policies have no cash surrender value at all.
A Living Benefit Loan lets you borrow against your life insurance death benefit while keeping ownership of your policy. You receive up to 50% of the death benefit as a lump sum, and the loan is repaid from the death benefit when you pass. Your beneficiaries receive the remaining balance. No monthly payments, no credit check, and funding in as few as 3 days.
Every option side by side. No sales pitch — just facts.
| Feature | ADB | Viatical | Life Settlement | Policy Loan | Surrender | Living Benefit Loan |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Keep Policy? | Partial | No | No | Yes | No | Yes ✓ |
| Amount | 25-50% | 50-80% | 20-50% | Cash value only | Cash value only | Up to 50% |
| Speed | Weeks | 2-4 months | 3-6 months | 1-2 weeks | 2-4 weeks | 3 days ✓ |
| Monthly Payments | None | N/A | N/A | Optional | N/A | None ✓ |
| Term Life Eligible? | If rider exists | Yes | Sometimes | No | No | Yes ✓ |
| Credit Check? | No | No | No | No | No | No ✓ |
| Beneficiaries Protected? | Reduced | No | No | Reduced | No | Yes ✓ |
→ Living Benefit Loan. Fastest option (3 days), keeps your policy, protects your beneficiaries. Works with all policy types including term.
→ Viatical Settlement (if terminally ill) or Life Settlement (if 65+). Highest payouts, but you lose your policy permanently.
→ Check your ADB rider first (it's free if included), then compare a Living Benefit Loan vs. viatical settlement based on speed, amount needed, and whether you want to protect beneficiaries.
→ Consider a policy loan first (lowest cost), then a Living Benefit Loan if you need more than the cash value allows.
→ Living Benefit Loan or Viatical Settlement. Term policies have no cash value, so policy loans and cash surrender aren't options. A Living Benefit Loan lets you keep the policy; a viatical does not.
Find out how much cash you can access from your life insurance — no obligation, no credit check, funding in as few as 3 days.
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