Our products and services don’t just help our customers save money — sometimes they mean the difference between a crisis and financial stability. This story Burlington branch manager Robin Callis shared last week is a good example:

In September 2020, I refinanced a HELOC for a couple, increasing their line from $50,000 to $100,000. At that time, they were thinking of purchasing a vehicle, and they wanted to be prepared. They did not carry any payment protection on the original loan, but I mentioned it again and reminded them of the benefits of including it. After declining several times, the husband finally decided it would be a good idea to include life coverage, which would ensure payments continued to be made even in the event of his death. His justification was that the coverage was very inexpensive for the amount they borrowed, and would be available to them on any future purchases using the HELOC. I should note that this conversation took a LONG time, and the customers said no quite a few times.

The wife met with me yesterday to share that her husband had recently passed away unexpectedly, at age 56. She was obviously very distraught. She could not recall if we had included any protection on the loan, and was so very happy and grateful when I confirmed that there was! She kept telling me over and over to use this situation as a testimonial to others. She could not imagine what would have happened if this protection had not been in place, and she hoped her situation could help someone else. She also said it surprised her that her husband agreed to the payment protection, since they have never purchased similar protection in the past.

“Needless to say, it made my heart feel good knowing I was able to offer some comfort to her during this time,” Robin said. “And this is something I will include in my talking points in the future.”

Our payment protection plans from Pekin Life Insurance can cover loan balances if a borrower dies and loan payments if a borrower is prevented from working because of an illness or injury. If approved, coverage goes into effect as of the date of the loan. A medical exam is not required. Payments are made directly to the creditor, benefits are non-taxable, and extend for the life of the loan.

Consumer lending manager VP Chris Boland noted that our payment protection is superior to many other credit life and disability insurance products, because we can extend coverage to customers beyond the normal age cutoff.

“Robin’s story is a great example of the life-changing impact our products can have on our customers,” Chris added. “As she notes, it’s important not to always take their first no for an answer. Many customers say no reflexively, because they’re afraid of being charged more for something they won’t need or use. Make sure they understand the value of a product like payment protection, which provides a lot of peace of mind and real help in the event of an unexpected emergency.”