… 70% of Americans believe they need life insurance, yet only 52% of American adults own some form of life insurance coverage. 1 The disconnect Why such an aversion to life insurance? For … term generally runs anywhere from five years to 40 years, and the $250,000 is payable to the beneficiary if the policyholder goes to the big donut shop in the sky within the term period. For … place for life (provided the premiums are up to date). Using the example from above, the named beneficiaries receive the $250,000 payout when the policyholder passes away. Because of the …