Pre-Paid Legal Plans

6 Responses to “Pre-Paid Legal Plans”

1. 1
   Beck Says:
   August 11th, 2006 at 10:03 am

   I tend to think stuff like this is bologna. It reminds me of Best Buy service plans… company X plays off the fear of the unexpected to get you to spend $$$. Is it justifiable? Maybe. Is it necessary? IMO, probably not.

   I don’t think, considering the importance of a will (though with your boys, I would totally have a trust), that $200 is too much to ask to have one made from a firm you trust.

2. 2
   nickel Says:
   August 11th, 2006 at 11:16 am

   I agree on $200 not being too much to ask. Actually, my concern was that it was too little, especially considering that it was going to include a testamentary trust.

   I wouldn’t be using this as insurance, but rather as a tool to get a bunch of legal work done for a fixed fee, and then drop the plan. I typically only insure that which I cannot afford, and legal fees of this sort don’t fall into that category.

3. 3
   Jerry Says:
   August 11th, 2006 at 12:56 pm

   Barron’s ran a story on Pre-Paid Legal Services (the big dog in the industry) back in April. They (and their competitors) are facing criticism and scrutiny. Here’s a snippet:

   “Pre-Paid Legal Services (ticker: PPD) has come under attack for offering less comprehensive coverage than its salespeople may advertise. Indeed, limitations abound on coverage for criminal and domestic matters, though a Pre-Paid attorney might be able to help you beat a traffic ticket.”

   If you want to read the whole thing, you’ve got to be a subscriber. Here’s a link:

   http://tinyurl.com/oqlsw

4. 4
   Scott Says:
   August 11th, 2006 at 3:14 pm

   I figure the will is almost like a one-time gift. The first year you break even because you get the will included, but the second year you don’t need a will so they make their money.

5. 5
   nickel Says:
   August 11th, 2006 at 3:26 pm

   Right, but you can drop it after the first year.

6. 6
   Ryan Says:
   May 5th, 2008 at 1:41 pm

   I have ARAG through work (this is my first year as a subscriber), and it’s actually a little different than a pre-paid legal service. It’s more like the legal equivalent of Health Insurance: I pay them my premium, and then I can use any lawyer in their network, the services on the list are covered 100%, and ARAG foots the bill. I’d agree that it’s great the first year and then debatable after that, but you can always cancel after the first year.

   For us, we were able to choose a lawyer near my work (making sure they accepted ARAG), and then we visited him to set up a basic trust and wills for both my wife and I. I paid nothing extra, since these are covered services, and the lawyer billed ARAG for the services. Since we sold our house this year, we could also have had a lawyer reviewing our contract or be present at the signing to review the paperwork with us (another 100% covered service under our plan), though we chose not to do this.

   The premiums were close to $200 this year, but we’ve easily had $500 worth of legal services, so it’s worked out well. It’s nice to always have a lawyer available, so I’m not sure if we’ll keep it, but it was definitely worth it to get our estate planning done.