A large life insurance policy is a critical investment to protect your family and business during your career, but what if you've managed to retire early or your kids are all independent now? There are certain life situations in which you may no longer need as much life insurance as you bought.

Here are some indications that you may have more life insurance than you need at this time in your life.

1. Your Number of Dependents Has Decreased

The beneficiaries of your life insurance policy should be the members of your family who count on your income for financial stability. This can include a spouse who doesn't work or who has a lower-paying job, any children, and any other family members who are dependent on you (such as elderly parents or family members with disabilities who live in your house).

So when one or more of your kids has graduated from college or you've gone through a divorce and no longer have a dependent spouse, the same level of insurance may no longer be right for you. Now may be the time to consider reducing your premiums by getting a smaller policy.

2. You've Sold Your Business 

If you are a business owner, you need to insure more than just your income. Of course, you'll need business insurance, but you'll also want more life insurance to cover related expenses for your family. For example, in the event of your death, your family may need to handle your share of the business long enough to hire someone to take over your role in the business.

But once you've sold the business, you no longer need that extra coverage. 

3. You've Amassed a Lot of Savings

Life insurance is intended to provide for your dependents when you're no longer able to. However, if you have enough savings and investments put together, you may be able to rely on those assets to provide for your family when you're gone. You may still want to have some life insurance, but you definitely won't need as much.

4. You've Retired Early

Life insurance makes sure that if something happens to you, your family won't lose the financial support they depend on from you. But if you've saved enough money to retire, your assets are basically self-sustaining now (to a certain degree). In this case, your current life insurance policy may no longer be needed.

A small life insurance policy can still be useful (for example, it can pay for end-of-life costs). But you're likely to need much less life insurance than you did during your working years. So even if you don't need the money, this can be a good time to think about what you can get back from your life insurance policy now rather than continuing to pay high premiums monthly.

Reducing the amount of money you spend on premiums you don't really need can be a wise money move in these situations. You've probably heard that you can surrender your policy if you don't want to keep your current policy, but that can result in a financial loss. If you're thinking of getting a loan against the policy, don't forget to consider any interest that will include.

If you'd rather sell your life insurance policy outright rather than borrowing money against it and incurring interest fees, check out our website for more information. Call us during business hours if you would like to discuss your insurance policy and the options we can offer, or send us a message via  our online form , and we'll get back with you as soon as possible.