Although it is a subject many of us do not like thinking or talking about, if you have loved ones, it is inevitable that you will one day leave some of them behind when you “shed this mortal coil”. As the wise Benjamin Franklin once said, "In this world nothing can be certain, except death and taxes." So as to not put too dreary of a mood on this article, I would like to concentrate more on alleviating burden of death rather than the actual act of dying itself.
I happen to operate most of my loads out of an area that is occupied mainly by those living in the upper lower-class and lower middle-class people. These people are not necessarily poverty stricken, but do not have a lot of excess money after the necessities are paid for. This demographic is typically comprised of blue-collar workers just earning enough to survive. This leads me into an observation that I see in this area way too often, where families are forced to come together with things such as car washes and curbside donation collection to raise enough money just to bury their deceased loved ones. In my eyes, the pain of losing someone close they have to feel should not have to be compounded any further with the financial worries of how to now put that deceased loved one to rest. This is something I never want a loved one of mine to have to worry about when I pass, that’s for sure!
Being that the average North American funeral costs between $7,000 and $10,000 (funeral-tips.com), even for the most modest of burials, it should by no means be an unplanned expense. Life insurance is likely to cost you more with age, which is a major deterrent for many from purchasing coverage. Many other factors go into determining your premium rate including lifestyle choices (smoking, drinking, etc.), past diseases and illnesses, family disease history, your occupation, and even your gender. Depending on the issuing company, you may even be subject to certain tests (blood, respiratory, sleep study, etc.) prior to underwriting. So what should one do to decrease their potential premium? My personal recommendation consists of two things; alter your lifestyle to eliminate as many of the negative factors as you can and lock in your policy before the premium outweighs the benefit. A healthy lifestyle is not always the easiest thing to incorporate, but the rewards are two-fold, as you may live a longer life and decrease your life insurance risk. Shopping for a policy while I was young benefitted me personally because I was able to lock in a very low monthly premium for a long period of time.
With all of the insurances that we have to think about paying in case “stuff” happens, a good life insurance policy is one that you know will have to be used for certain one day. Having young children of my own and hoping my wife outlives me in the long run, I know I could not bare to know I left them without a means to survive without me. Being the sole income provider to our household, it was only fitting that I make sure they can continue to live as they have become accustomed to, even if the unfortunate event may occur that I may pass away. The money I pay every month for my policy is not money wasted, which is quite contrary to how I feel about some other insurances I pay, but more a small price to pay for peace of mind when I am gone!