Expert Advice for How to Determine Your Life Insurance Needs

Life insurance gets the reputation of being only for people who are in dire need of protecting their family because they’re close to passing away. This can be due to a health issue, or maybe even because of getting older. The irony behind this is life insurance companies often don’t want to give affordable policies to the people looking for them the most.

Folks who are at a higher risk of dying are not the customers life insurance companies want. They want people who are low-risk, healthy, and won’t cash out their policy anytime soon. These are the people who don’t really know anything about life insurance. It’s time to change the way everyone thinks about life insurance policies.

Types of life insurance vary depending on what the customer needs, what companies they go through, and various other factors. We’ll sort through some of the biggest variables in purchasing life insurance so everyone can get the best possible policy to protect their loved ones in case something bad happens.

#1 – High-Risk People Need High-Risk Policies

If you’re someone who is at a higher risk of passing away and you have a spouse and children who depend on you for money, you should think about getting a high-risk or no exam life insurance policy. Let’s give a few examples.

You’re a 55-year-old man who has smoked since high school, you have high blood pressure, and you’re at risk for diabetes. You still have two kids under 18 years old and you’re worried about how they’re going to survive financially if you don’t make it through your conditions until they’re out of the house.

If this scenario sounds similar to yours, it would be ideal to look for no-exam life insurance. If most insurance companies get a look at your conditions, they will probably decide to forgo giving you any coverage.

No exam life insurance policies are for people who want to skip having the doctor look at their health conditions, and in return, you’ll get a pricier life insurance policy. This is often better than having no life insurance at all.

#2 – Look at Your Savings and Retirement Money

One way to avoid having to take out life insurance if you have many health conditions is to have a lot of money in reserve that can make up for the lack of insurance. Financially stable people who have good savings and work for a company with excellent retirement benefits may also provide some basic life insurance policies.

These final expense policies pay for just the burial and the services after someone’s death. If you have a great amount of money in savings, your family can draw on those funds in the years after your death.

This is ideal for people who would be burying themselves in life insurance bills they can’t afford. You don’t want to drain yourself from everything paying for insurance. This is counterproductive to what you’re trying to do in protecting your kids for the future.

If you have multiple people working in a relationship, try to have both of you create a savings account and add to it each month. This will give your family plenty of money if a rainy day happens down the road.

#3 – How can you improve your lifestyle choices?

If you think you need life insurance but you have several risk factors working against you, think about changing certain lifestyle choices you make daily. These changes can help you get the life insurance you need for your family.

Smoking is one of the top risk factors for life insurance companies. Try to talk to your doctor about how you can gradually get yourself off cigarettes. Go to a support group, talk to others who have quit, and find healthier habits so you can qualify for better life insurance.

Obesity is another risk factor. Losing weight and having a healthy BMI is a great way to get better life insurance prices. Cut back on sugar, salt, and other unhealthy food. Try to get daily exercise by doing something you enjoy for at least 30 minutes a day. If you can find a sport or an activity that is active and fun, this is the ideal scenario for you to lose weight.

#4 – Are you upper class?

One of the advantages of being upper class in America is you often don’t need to worry as much as middle-class people do about major expenses when someone dies. If you are the head of a wealthy family, or you have an inheritance set up for your children, life insurance might not be as important to take out.

If you decide you need life insurance or want to buy life insurance, you have many more options than poorer people. You can pay higher premiums if you have a lot of risk factors such as heart disease or diabetes. Just because you have the ability to take out a policy doesn’t mean you should necessarily buy the most expensive one.

One of the price of privilege is not knowing when to stop spending. This is a great way to lose your money, and your kids won’t have as much to fall back on if you succumb to disease or illness.

Wealthy people need to evaluate their needs just like anybody else, and still trying to spend within a certain budget is a healthy skill to have.

#5 – Are you responsible for anybody besides yourself?

If you’re a young person who’s healthy and only financially responsible for yourself, you might not want to take out a life insurance policy. Remember that life insurance is mostly for those who have people in their life who can benefit from the policy.

If you have an elderly parent you’re taking care of, life insurance may come into play again. If you have a pet you’re leaving with someone after you die, they might benefit from a small life insurance policy they can cash and use towards the expenses of the animal.

Life insurance is a topic much people fear talking about, but it should actually make you feel good that everyone you love and care about will still have the potential to flourish after you’re gone. This leaves a legacy of responsibility you would be proud of.

Shawn Laib writes and researches for the insurance comparison site, Clearsurance.com. He wants to help people understand how they can get better life insurance prices for their unique lifestyles.