Most people correctly assume that the main purpose of life insurance is to provide financial resources to your loved ones in the event of your death. But there’s also an intangible benefit that may be just as important. Life insurance eliminates worry.
The peace of mind that comes from having adequate life insurance can be priceless. Life insurance is, after all, the final gift you can give to your loved ones. And that thought alone can relieve a lot of stress.
There’s Enough to Worry About in Life
Some people worry more than others, but worry seems to be a natural part of human existence. This is true because there really is plenty to worry about.
The list is long and can include concerns about:
- Health – both yours and your family members
- Job/income security
- Retirement
- Debt
- Premature death/how your loved ones will survive when you’re gone
- Pending obligations
- Family crisis
- Relationships
- Environmental damage
- War/terrorism
- Personal safety
- Legal troubles
The list is long, and that’s why each of us have an obligation – to ourselves and to our loved ones – to do what we can to reduce or eliminate as much worry as possible.
Life Insurance Will Eliminate One Major Worry
Of course, life insurance won’t reduce or eliminate all of the worries that you face. But it can work wonders with a few. This is particularly true in the case of the thought of your own premature death, and how your loved ones will survive when you’re gone.
Life insurance won’t prevent your death, but it will at least lower or remove many of the financial concerns that are a natural consideration any time you have loved ones who are dependent upon your income and other financial resources.
Not Leaving Your Loved Ones in Financial Distress
Dying is a major worry in itself, but close behind is the concern over the ability of your family to survive in your absence. Life insurance can definitely help with that worry.
At a minimum, you’ll want to have a sufficient amount of life insurance coverage to give your family an opportunity to financially and emotionally adjust to your absence. The first months and years following your death will have the greatest need. Not only will there be final expenses and possibly uncovered medical expenses to pay, but there will also be the loss of your income.
And beyond immediate financial survival, there may also be debts that need to be paid. If there aren’t sufficient assets to pay those debts, your loved ones could be on the hook to pay them, only they won’t have your income to help do it.
In a real way, this makes life insurance even more important to people who are struggling financially. Life insurance can cover for a lack of savings and other assets that might have been accumulated during your life, but weren’t.
If the Worst Should Happen, at Least Money Won’t be a Problem
If you were to die, your family would have enough problems managing the emotional distress of your loss. But if you leave them in financial distress, then money will also be a problem. And this is one that can crop up very quickly after your death.
Having an adequate life insurance policy in place will assure that money at least won’t be a problem on top of emotional distress. That will also provide time for your loved ones properly mourn your loss, without being distracted (or compounded) by financial pressures.
Even if you can’t afford a sufficient amount of life insurance to provide for your family for the rest of their lives, you should at least have an amount sufficient to allow them to adjust after the shock of your death. That should be enough to cover the expenses listed above and provide to enough cash for them to live for at least a year or two.
By then, they will have regrouped, and will be in a better position to carry on after your loss.
The Time to Buy Life Insurance is When You’re Healthy
If you don’t have life insurance, it might be easy to imagine that you’ll get it “someday”. But someday never comes. And should you be visited by the tragic news of a terminal illness it will be too late for last-minute financial maneuvers.
This is particularly true when it comes to life insurance. Very few insurance companies will make policies available to a person with a terminal illness. And when they do, the premiums are prohibitively high, and the death benefits are depressingly low.
The time to buy life insurance is always when you are healthy. Then, should bad news visit your life, you’ll have one less major worry to contend with. And in between now and then, at least you won’t have to worry about what will happen to your family if you were to die. That’s a couple of big worries that you should eliminate if you can. And you can with a life insurance policy.
Don’t let cost be an issue. You can almost always find a low-cost term life insurance policy that will provide you with adequate coverage. Give us a call, and let us help you find the most life insurance for the lowest possible premium.
