You’ve probably heard countless times already how great insurance is, and why you should get one now. How many calls did you receive from insurance brokers or companies explaining to you the benefits of insurance?
If you’ve received hundreds of offers by now and you still don’t have one, what is stopping you? Are the types of plans available overwhelming you? It can be a news-breaker for some how insurance is more than just a life and death matter.
Since most of the insurance plans that are advertised focus mainly on life insurance, some people are surprised by how vast it is. If you try to go out of your way and educate yourself more about insurance, you might just find yourself applying now.
To help you, let’s discuss in this article the different types of insurance that might fit your current lifestyle needs. You might just find one that will perfectly align with your long-term life plans.
1. Business insurance
Some business owners still don’t see the need for business insurance. Common arguments you’ll hear is that they’re a small business owner and there’s no absolutely need for that! They tend to disregard the thought of insurance because they think that it’s too early for any business-related commitments.
The question should be, how often does a business encounter a problem? Not only big ones but also consider small ones that have the potential to lead to bigger complaints and accusations. There’s often a misconception that business insurance is only for business owners who are well-established already. Well, that’s wrong.
Let’s say, for example, you are a business manufacturer owner. How often do you encounter clients who tell you that some of your items have defects? Or how high is the possibility that a client will accuse you of poor business performance because of a defect in one of your products? In this case, Product Liability Insurance will help you in lawsuits and protect your business in such cases.
Why is it important?
It is very important for business owners, regardless of the size of their business, to assess their business’ potential risks. Not only operationally, but also financially. If you are not that confident in your assessment, it’s best to consult a professional such as an insurance broker.
With the help of someone outside of your business, you get to see your risks from a different and fresh perspective. You’ll be more open to ideas and strategies to adhere to and improve based on an outsider’s perspective. Also, you get to understand certain business policies that you can apply in case you plan to expand your business in the future.
There are lots of business insurance types that cater to every business need. From property to business interruption, you might just find one that has a security plan your business needs. As a business owner, keep an open mind to business insurance. There’s no better way to operate a business but to do it with security and a fall-back net.
2. Health Insurance
If you come to think of it, one of the factors that stand between life and death is a person’s health. It’s either you get to live a prosperous life with good health or a limited life with poor health. If your health is not in good condition, your day to day life is walled into a routine and you are limited to strenuous and thrilling activities.
Unfortunately, aside from the wealthy, the majority of the world’s population is only one illness away from a lifetime liability and bankruptcy. It would only take one earthquake for middle-class families to lose their life savings.
One of the benefits that corporate employees often disregard is their health insurance. It is such a blessing to even have one since not all employers provide health benefits for their employees. Sadly, not everyone utilises their health plan benefit.
One great thing that you can do if your employee benefits include health insurance is to coordinate with your human resources team for an upgrade. Maybe there’s a plan where you can add 50 dollars a month for a better, well-covered health plan. Health insurance has lots of benefits, especially if you start early.
Why should you start early?
If you start early (for example at the age of 20), you get to pay your premiums at a cheaper price. Then, as years go by, you can choose to continuously upgrade it for a better plan. By the time that you reach the age of 40 and you find out that you have an illness (hopefully it won’t happen), your plan can pay for your hospital bills and costs.
Also, the great thing about health insurance is that you get to declare beneficiaries. Either revocable or irrevocable, it’s up to you. If you start early, maybe your declared beneficiaries are your parents. Of course, by the time you’re 30 and married, you can have it changed to your husband instead if you’ve declared your parents to be revocable beneficiaries when you were 20.
If you feel like the current health plans that you know of does not appeal to your long-term plans, it won’t hurt to seek advice from insurance brokers. Just like business insurance, brokers can help you assess your financial plan and long-term goals.
With their help, they can even provide you with better options or maybe a tailored plan that meets your expectations. It’s better to ask for help than to dive into a plan you don’t understand.
3. Life insurance
The most common type of insurance that people know of, life insurance. Among all the other types, life insurance is the one being advertised and marketed by companies the most. And you’ve got it right, this is where money talks come in and the inevitable death.
Have you seen movies where families fight over inheritance after their father or mother’s death? Insurance is surely one of the factors that they’re fighting about. After all, there’s a huge chunk of money that beneficiaries get when the insurer dies.
One thing that pushes people to go for life insurance is their family. Those who will be left behind. If we’re being honest, we can say that life insurance shows the insurer’s love and care for his family. Really, how else can you prove your love when the sole purpose of your life insurance plan is to secure them even when you’re gone.
That’s why insurance tends to be a sensitive topic for most families. Some don’t even tell their families about it until a critical time comes. If you’re your family’s breadwinner, this is a plan that you might consider. Just like the first two mentioned types of insurance, it’s better if you start your life insurance plan early.
Is there a formula when choosing life insurance?
The formula that most brokers recommend when getting life insurance is that you specify a figure of years that you plan to be employed multiplied by your yearly income. The total should cover the amount of your life insurance plan. This way, you have a figure in mind as to how long your plan can benefit your family when you die.
Traditional whole life and term life are the two basic types of life insurance. To make it short, traditional whole life protects the insurer for their entire life. Also, it has a cash value. Term life on the other hand can be limited to 10 to 30 years, depending on the plan chosen by the insurer. You can either renew it or upgrade it once your term finishes. Also, the beneficiaries would only benefit from this when the policyholder dies within the specified term in the contract.
Educate yourself and seek advice if you have to
It is no lie that insurance truly is confusing and overwhelming. It can even be intimidating to inquire for one. All you have to do is to overcome those fears to be enlightened about how insurance can help and benefit you in the long run.
There’s no need to feel intimidated when you plan to hire a broker. The last thing that you’d want is to start a plan that doesn’t align with your goals. Be transparent with your adviser or broker should you plan to consult one.
If there’s any other professional that you plan to seek advice from, tell them your financial stand and what your long term plan is. Most importantly, educate yourself! Read online materials about insurance. Or ask a friend or relative who has a plan about the perks and cons of getting one.
If you inform yourself about the basics, it would be much easier for you to tell and differentiate which type, plan, and coverage will work for you or not.
Bianca Banda is a writer for Lewis Insurance, an insurance company located in Australia, offering wide financial services and management for both business and family matters through proven quality service, trusted support, and expert advice. She is a massive lover of Japanese cuisine and enjoys binge-watching comedies or variety shows.
