When Should You Review Your Life Insurance Needs?
There are certain
times in everyone’s life when they need to sit down and review their life
insurance needs. Circumstances change and it’s important to stay on top of your
own individual insurance needs.
Some situations in
which you’ll want to review your life insurance needs are obvious. These may
include:
-
Marriage. When a person marries
their life insurance needs change as they have a partner to consider. It’s
important to think about how your death may impact your spouse’s financial
future and set your insurance policy at a level that will allow them a
comfortable future.
-
The birth of a new baby. When a
couple welcomes a new baby into their family their financial situation changes
and it’s important to consider the fact that their life insurance now needs to
cover additional expenses.
-
Divorce. When a couple decides to
end their marriage, all of their financial ties are severed as well. If they
had joint life insurance policies it’s wise to revert back to an individual
policy and have the beneficiary changed as well if it was your former spouse.
-
A home purchase.
Purchasing a home is one of the most substantial expenses any person
will incur in their lifetime. Because most people have to take out a mortgage
in order to pay for the property it’s important to consider adjusting your life
insurance to cover the amount of your mortgage. This will be a comfort to your
family who won’t feel the burden of having to upkeep the financial obligations
that come with inheriting the home.
-
Leaving or losing a job. Many
employers offer life insurance benefits as part of the employee benefit
package. If you leave a position that offers these types of benefits it’s your
responsibility to seek out life insurance coverage.
-
Stopping smoking. It’s a well known
fact that individuals who smoke pay higher life insurance premiums than
non-smokers. If you have stopped smoking for a length of time you may be
eligible for a reduced life insurance premium.
-
As you age. As people mature it’s a
good idea to review the life insurance coverage that they have. If you took out
a policy when you were in your twenties and you are now in your fifties, the
coverage that you have may not be adequate because of cost of living increases.
Regardless of
whether or not you have any significant changes in your life it’s a very wise
idea to review your life insurance policy every few years. Keeping abreast of
what you need and what you have in terms of life insurance is the best way to
take care of those who will suffer most from your passing.