While life insurance is generally something a lot of people don’t talk about often, it should be something that you review periodically. I was reminded of this recently when I received a phone call from my insurance agent checking to see if I had time to conduct a quick annual review of my policy. The first thing that usually comes to mind to most when mentioning changes to policies would be the fact that as we get older, policies generally have higher premiums to consider. Even more important are the actual life benefits that change as your life changes year after year!
As I have progressed my business and underwent changes over the years, it has been important for me to consider those loved ones I am going to leave behind after I am gone. I have to make sure that the life benefits I leave behind will afford my family the type of lifestyle they have grown accustomed to while I was alive, even when I deceased. As I was lucky enough to lock in good rates when I was younger, my policy rates have been relatively low over the past few years. Now that I am considering upping my benefit levels, the rates may go up based on my health tests that I will have to undergo again, but that is my fault for not increasing the benefit level even more on my policy back when I could have locked them in at a lower rate.
Believe me when I say I have insurance for everything! From pet, to auto and home, I pay a good sum of money for “in case stuff happens” policies every month. Although my pets may never get a broken bone and my cars may never be in a loss event, the one thing that is certain is that one day I will cease to live on this earth. Life insurance is the one insurance that is for certain going to be needed and you want to make sure you have enough there for the ones you leave behind. If you don’t have benefits for life, consider getting one with a reputable company. Even basic death benefits are worth considering if you have to just as a minimum, so that the burden of how to deal with post-mortem costs don’t have to fall on your next of kin. Most importantly if you already have a policy, make sure to review it annually to make sure it is on par with your life changes and current circumstances.