Despite the protection and the peace of mind that life insurance brings, there are still millions of Americans who have yet to purchase the coverage they need. For some, this is a result of a conscious decision. For others, it may be a result of a lack of information about life insurance. To help educate people about the benefits of having coverage, Life Happens, a nonprofit organization, puts together Life Insurance Awareness Month during the month of September.
This year, actress, model, and mother Brooke Shields is partnering with Life Happens to reach more people about how life insurance can help them. In an interview with Life Happens, Brooke talks about how she purchased life insurance before getting married because she knew she wanted children. Now that coverage is benefiting her growing family in ways she never would have dreamed.
“Getting life insurance might feel scary or is something that other people do, but once you get it, it’s done. And it’s something most people can afford.” – Brooke Shields
From ensuring the financial freedom of your loved ones after you pass to being able to provide a source of cash for things like college tuition or medical bills, the versatile benefits of a life insurance policy cannot be overstated. However, from either a lack of information or unwillingness, many people are putting themselves and their families at risk unnecessarily by not getting coverage.
In fact, a study performed by LIMRA in 2019 showed that only 60% of Americans are covered by some kind of life insurance, which means that 40% American households would have a very difficult time supporting themselves if the primary breadwinner passes away.
Additionally, 1 in 5 covered individuals would say that they do not have enough coverage. Many people grossly overestimate the cost of life insurance, with more than 44% of millennials assuming that the cost is five times higher than the average.
These statistics show that a lack of awareness is a major factor when you look at how many people are exposing themselves to risk by not being insured. This is where Life Insurance Awareness Month (or LIAM) can do the most good. We seek not only to teach people about the benefits of life insurance, but also to dispel myths about the industry. We answer questions such as:
The more you understand about life insurance, the more you will see that its versatility makes it applicable in almost any financial scenario. Whether you’re young or old, married or single, rich or poor, the protection offered by a life insurance policy should never be ignored.
In 1978, a 21-year-old woman recited her vows at the altar during the happiest day of her life. Five years later, she was a widow with a 9-month-old child. When they first became pregnant, her husband took out a life insurance policy on himself in case something were to happen. After all, as a construction worker, accidents were common in his line of work.
While she initially considered the extra monthly expense of life insurance an unnecessary burden, she went along with her husband’s plan. Plus, she didn’t like thinking about either of them dying so young. Then, months after the baby was born, she got the news that her husband had been killed on the job.
Without her husband’s foresight, she and her child would have been in an extremely difficult financial position at this point. Fortunately, the grief of her loss was not accentuated by the thought of losing her home or being unable to pay basic bills. Even though they were young, her husband knew that life was fragile and unpredictable. Being willing to think about the possibility of an early and untimely death on his part saved his family from hardship after his death.
While anecdotes can often be misleading, stories like these highlight the core concept behind getting life insurance coverage. This step represents a minor immediate sacrifice for the protection of your loved ones. If you are the primary breadwinner of your family and you’re not sure what would happen to them if you passed, now is the time to consider getting a policy. Remember, it’s not for you, it’s for them.
There are too many unfortunate situations where the emotional turmoil of the loss of a loved one is compounded with severe financial difficulties afterward. Not knowing what type of policy to buy or how much coverage to get is no excuse for leaving your family exposed to hardship if you were to pass.
Fortunately, you don’t need to be an insurance expert in order to get a policy that is appropriate for your needs, goals, and financial situation. By reaching out to a life insurance agent like the experts here at LifeQuote, you can ensure that you are getting the right type of policy as well as the right amount of coverage for your situation.
We offer a wide variety of options for your plan including policies that don’t require a medical exam. Half of all potential life insurance customers say that the medical exam discourages them from purchasing coverage. This can be because they think they would be considered uninsurable due to a pre-existing condition or an aversion to medical exams altogether. That’s why we want to make sure that policies without medical exams are offered to all who need them.
We also offer diverse options in both term and permanent life insurance with unique benefits to both, including living benefits with permanent policies. To get in touch with an insurance agent today, you can contact us here or you