It’s National Life Insurance Awareness Month

Find out more about the benefits of this important policy.

September is National Life Insurance Awareness Month, and since 44 percent of American adults are opting to go without life insurance, according to the 2010 LIMRA Trends in Life Insurance study, it might be time for you to consider why life insurance is such an important policy to have.

Benefits of life insurance

Life insurance can be a way to leave money to cover your final expenses or to leave wealth for future generations. In many cases, though, it’s a critical tool to help you provide for your family. For example, if you’re the sole breadwinner in your family, a life insurance policy ensures that, if anything happens to you, your family has the funds and time to recover their footing. That’s especially true if you work in a job or have a hobby that puts you at higher risk for an accident. Or you and your spouse might have a large family that requires two incomes. A life insurance policy prevents a rapid drop in income if something happens to you or your spouse. Here are some other advantages:

• Liquidity of the death benefit
• Easy distribution among heirs
• Predictable value
• Stability
• Tax advantages

When to buy life insurance

When it comes to purchasing a life insurance policy, the younger you are, the better. Life insurance premiums are significantly lower for younger individuals, as the risk of death is lower. Another factor that is taken into consideration is health. Buying life insurance prior to any serious health conditions developing means lower premiums as well. All in all, it is less costly to purchase life insurance at a young age while you’re in good health, as opposed to years from now when you have a family of your own to take care of.