Want a Reason
to Meet With
Business
Owners?
Help Add Critical Illness to a
Business Owner’s Succession Plan
A Reason They
Haven’t Heard
Before?
Did you know…
Want to Offer
a Client’s
Attorney
Something New
and Valuable?
Over half of all business owners do not have a formal written business succession
plan. 1 For those that do, it is very unlikely that their buy-sell agreements cover critical
illness (CI) as a triggering event for a buyout. Why is this important?
 A 40-year-old male is over five times more likely to suffer a critical illness than
an untimely death prior to age 65 (for a female, over four times) 2 ;
 By age 55, this number climbs to over eight times for a male (six times for a female)2.
But, aside from a voluntary event (like retirement) the most common triggering event in
the majority of buy-sell agreements is an untimely death prior to retirement – even
though the odds of a diagnosed critical illness are much higher!
Some buy-sells may incorporate a disability buy-out provision, but this may be
inadequate. Certain critical illnesses (such as a heart attack) may not disable an
owner, but a buy-out may still be warranted or desired by either or both parties.
Now you have a reason to reach out to every current and prospective business owner
client and their attorneys.
Two ways to approach the opportunity…
1. To the Business Owner: “I’ve just been made aware of an important issue
facing most business owners – a situation about which they are likely ill-prepared.
I’d like to meet with you to discuss your business succession plan and the
shortcoming that could put your business and your family at risk. In advance of
our meeting, I’ll forward you an informational flyer that will prepare you for our
discussion.” Email or send the AIG “What if…Critical Illness Buy-Sell” flyer.
2. To the Attorney: “I’ve just been made aware of an important issue facing most
business owners – a situation about which many are unaware. I’d like to meet
with you to discuss an important bulletin that I have just received from AIG’s
Advanced Markets team – a group of experts that provides me up-to-date
planning information. I’ll send you the bulletin in advance.” Email or send the
AIG Advanced Markets “OnTopic” bulletin.
Continued
Policies issued by American General Life Insurance Company.
FOR FINANCIAL PROFESSIONAL USE ONLY - NOT FOR PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION
Why Should I
Do This?
The reasons why…
What Support
Will There Be?
 Very few advisors are discussing this with their business owner clients. This
approach will differentiate you from your competition;
Who Do I Call
for More
Information?
 This approach will get you in front of business owners, talking about their
succession plan – opening the door to numerous planning opportunities;
 The odds are high that this issue has not been addressed by either the business
owner or their attorney;
 You have a new product to sell – CriticalCare Plus®. Don’t let someone else put
this form of coverage in place ahead of you;
 Provides a natural lead-in to a life insurance sale. Maybe their buy-sell isn’t
funded yet. Maybe a retirement discussion leads to other product sales.
The support you need…
We’ve created the pieces you need to get started with this approach:
1. “What if…Critical Illness Buy-Sell” flyer: Targeted at the Business Owner, this
piece lays out the problem and the solution in simple terms and graphics;
2. AIG Advanced Markets “OnTopic” bulletin: Created for you to give to a client’s
attorney, or to build a relationship with a potential attorney referral source. This piece
was written as a bulletin to provide sense of urgency in the conversation and to allow
you to ‘borrow’ the authority of the subject matter experts at AIG Advanced Markets;
3. Critical Illness Buy-Sell Agent Training Presentation: The key elements of this
approach are laid out in a simple-to-understand training presentation.
4. Understanding Critical Illness flyer: Want to know why you should be selling
critical illness insurance? Check out this informative piece.
5. Top 10 Reasons to Sell CriticalCare Plus® flyer: For a quick look at the features
and benefits that make this a great product to help fund buy-sell agreements 3 ;
6. CriticalCare Plus® Playbook: Go to our one-stop location for all critical illness
marketing material at americangeneral.com/illness;
7. Support and Training: More information can be found by calling us at the AIG
A&H marketing support line at 877.399.7747;
8. Got a Case and Need Help? Contact AIG Advanced Markets at 855.323.6923
or advancedmarkets@aig.com.
1
LIMRA Small Business Consortium Study, 2013.
American General Life Insurance Company Critical Illness Actuarial Study of Claims Paid, 2009.
3
Please be aware that additional buy-sell funding may be required, as the maximum face amount is $500,000 for this product.
2
While this information is general in nature, applicable laws and regulations are complex and subject to change. All companies mentioned,
their employees, financial professionals and other representatives are not authorized to give legal, tax or accounting advice. Any tax
statements in this material are not intended to suggest the avoidance of U.S. federal, state or local tax penalties. Policies issued by:
American General Life Insurance Company (AGL), Policy Form Number 05130. AGL is responsible for financial obligations of insurance
products and is a member of American International Group, Inc. (AIG). Products may not be available in all states and product features
may vary by state. AGL does not solicit business in the state of New York. Important Note: All benefits payable are subject to the terms and
conditions of the policy, including benefit durations, limitations and exclusions. Please consult the policy form and outline of coverage for
details. Comprehensive medical coverage may be required in some states in order to apply for or maintain the policy. Advanced Markets
AGLC108162
is a marketing unit of AGL. © 2014. All rights reserved.
FOR FINANCIAL PROFESSIONAL USE ONLY - NOT FOR PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION