
Life insurance, life cover or life assurance as it is often referred to, should form a non-negotiable part of every individual's financial planning. For some reason life cover always gets left to last, especially if individuals believe that they are "too young" to take out life cover.
The reality is that the unforeseen can happen at any time! Have you ever stopped to consider what would happen to your family and children if you were involved in an accident and unable to work and earn a living? Or what if you are a single person with no dependants and you are disabled due to whatever reasons - who will take care of you and pay your medical bills and other expenses?
life cover should not be left for next year, next month, next week or even tomorrow. It is a matter that deserves attention TODAY!
If life cover is still an unfamiliar subject for you, the following terms and explanations should be able to shed some light on the matter.
Beneficiary: The beneficiary is the person designated to receive the life cover. In many instances the beneficiary is the policy holder, but it can also be a loved one, family member or any other nominated person.
Attained Age: If an insurance broker or insurance agent asks your attained age, they are simply referring to your actual age. Your age is one of the main factors that insurance companies use to determine your life insurance premiums. Generally the younger you are, the lower the premiums - that's of course based on the assumption that you are a healthy person without any serious conditions to begin with.
Exclusions: This term will be found on all insurance policies, not only on life cover policies. Exclusions are used to specify instances when your policy benefits will not be paid. Pay special attention to these exclusions as you do not want to hear that your policy is null and void if you try to put in a claim.
Lapse: Failure to pay your policy premiums will result in your policy being cancelled.
Life cover is not meant for the elderly or the ill; make sure that you get your life cover in place from a young age!