Life insurance is becoming a necessity, rather than an option, in today’s world. The many uncertainties we face right now make having sufficient life insurance coverage more important than ever. In the event of your (or your partner’s) death, a life insurance policy will prevent you from worrying about not being able to safeguard the financial future of your loved ones.
Making the decision to get a life insurance policy, however, is still a complicated thing to do. You have a lot of aspects to consider before deciding to move forward with the purchase, including whether your partner agrees to get covered. These next few tips and tricks will make talking to your spouse about life insurance easier.
1. Understand Your Needs
The discussion about life insurance should always start with why you need it. If you have children or other dependents (i.e. your retired parents), you know you have huge financial burdens on your shoulders. Use this burden as a starting point to talk about the need for life insurance.
By understanding the need for life insurance – and developing a mutual agreement on the matter – you are building a strong foundation for further discussions. Both of you know that the steps you are about to take are necessary for protecting your loved ones.
As an added bonus, taking the time to understand the need for life insurance will also help you later in the search for the right policy to get. This is because you can calculate the amount of coverage you need while exploring the financial risks that need to be mitigated.
2. Cover the Basics
The process of understanding the twists and turns of life insurance can actually be a lot of fun. You can learn the differences between permanent life insurance and term life insurance together. You can also go over other details about getting a life insurance policy in a more relaxed way.
Being able to discuss details about your life insurance needs is a huge plus. You can define your requirements in a more meticulous and structured way, which will later make your search for the perfect life insurance policy easier to handle.
While you are at it, it is also a good idea to set a budget for your purchase. Having a predetermined coverage amount in mind is good, but you still need to know how much you can afford to spend on insurance premiums before you start comparing quotes.
Make sure you understand the different types of life insurance before you go shopping for a policy.
- Term life insurance covers a specific term, i.e. 25 years. This type of policy is usually put in place to cover a long-term debt, such as a mortgage, and is more affordable.
- Whole life insurance never expires. It’s more expensive, but as well as a death benefit, it also has a cash value, which can be redeemed at any time. Therefore, a whole life policy is an investment as well as an insurance policy.
- Universal life insurance also has a cash value, but the premiums and death benefits can be changed while the policy is in place, which makes it very flexible.
3. Go Online
Speaking of comparing quotes, getting quotes from multiple insurance companies is easy. You should consider contacting a broker if you want the search to be incredibly simple. Discuss your budget and the other requirements you have in mind to allow the broker to work effectively.
Online life insurance quizzes and other tools are also handy for getting the best quotes on the market. With insurance companies competing in a very saturated market, don’t be surprised to find special deals and offers to look into.
Compare insurance offers before making a decision. Once again, having an open discussion with your spouse is handy here. You can go over the details, talk about the pros and cons of every insurance deal, and decide on the most suitable life insurance policy to get.
For many people, a fixed term life insurance plan is perfect, as it can be put in place while you have dependent children and a mortgage to pay. However, if your needs are more complex and you have other reasons for taking out life insurance, it’s best to speak with a financial advisor who can offer you tailored advice according to your personal circumstances.
4. Make a Collective Decision
The most important thing, however, is making sure that both you and your spouse are comfortable with the decision to get a particular life insurance policy. This will also make buying the policy easier, plus the process will be as transparent as it can be.
5. Don’t Force the Issue
Life insurance is one of those topics that can easily become a sticky issue. If one partner pushes too strongly, the other partner might wonder why they are so keen to insure them for a large sum of money. Paranoia might set in and before you know it, your relationship has taken a steep nose-dive.
Try and raise the issue in a non-confrontational way. Remind the person you can’t imagine life without them, but you would like to know the family is well taken care of in the event something terrible happens.
If you are thinking of buying life insurance for yourself, to protect a partner and other dependents, be upfront about it. Let your other half know that whilst you don’t anticipate being plucked off this mortal coil anytime soon, you’re pragmatic enough to understand that life is finite and who knows when the grim reaper is going to pay a visit.
The truth is, life insurance doesn’t have to be a taboo topic, but it is understandable why many couples don’t really want to talk about it. Take buying life insurance as the right – and necessary – thing to do, and you will find the process to be stress-free.
Once you are both on the same page, start checking out your options. Remember, the older you are and the more health problems you have, the more expensive any life insurance coverage will be.