Do I really need life insurance?

If you are most Jamaicans you work to pay the bills and whatever little is left behind goes to your savings. As a result very little thought is given to paying for an insurance policy.

It’s hard to imagine that we will ever need insurance especially if we are fairly healthy and young.

Why do we need life insurance?

The worst thing would be to realize that you now need insurance but never got around to getting it. It’s never easy to think of the worse case scenarios but life does not come with any guarantees.

The only way we can prepare for the worst is by having an insurance policy that gives a cushion to help us as we deal with the challenges that life throws at us such as severe illness or death. This type of insurance can help provide immediate cash at death.

Insurance proceeds are a handy source of cash to pay the deceased’s debts and funeral expenses. This may be the lst thing you want to think about but it’s a big part of life.

Who really needs  life insurance the most?

There is no way of knowing when you will need life insurance but there are some people who definitely need it more than others. If you have several persons dependent on you and it would take several years for them to be self sufficient then you need life insurance.

If your children are almost out of college, they may not need much additional income. If they’re younger, remember that dependent spouses caring for young children can usually return to work at some point, however  some dependents  may need little additional income from life insurance.

The younger you are when you start paying life insurance the better it is for your pocket.  That’s because you will benefit from lower premiums.  It is important to choose a policy that is a right fit for you. Some policies have a saving option so you can get access to those funds when they mature which is great news. This is a long term saving plan as the funds usually take ten years to mature.

So do you really need life insurance? Let me hear from you!

Teri Ann Renee Paisley
Gleaner online writer