Is there anyone who depends on your financial support? If the answer is yes, you need life cover. If you have a bond and you do not want to leave your loved ones with the burden of paying for it after your death, you need life cover.
Talk to anyone who has lost the main breadwinner in a family and listen to what they have to say.
Use life cover for the right reasons—to cover specific debts or provisions. Remember that the benefit does not increase or keep track with inflation.
How Much Cover, How Long and When?
You do not want to end up paying for cover you don’t need. Because your circumstances change you also need to review your cover once a year. How much life cover do you need? ENOUGH! If you take out insufficient cover that won’t cover your bond, your family may still loose the roof over their heads. You need to consider all the factors such as your age, marital status, dependants, your income and outstanding debts. Don’t forget about estate duty and funeral costs.
Contact Bekker Investments for a in-depth computer analysis.
Life Insurance:
Whole Life Cover refers to the traditional insurance policy as we all know it, you are covered against death and the policy pays out a guaranteed benefit when you die. You have the option of annually increasing the premiums to protect you against inflation. When you purchase a whole life policy you are medically underwritten. Get life cover while you are still young, the older you get the higher your premiums will be.
Disability Cover:
If you are injured or ill and are out of action for an extended period of time, then disability insurance is intended to make up your income. Also known as income protection insurance, disability insurance varies in a great degree. Insurers will make sure you are looked after until retirement age. Either way, if you become disabled, that will greatly impact your potential for income and disability insurance is a way of staying solvent during this time.
Who is a potential candidate for disability insurance?
If you are not financial independent or able to maintain an income in the event of disability or long term illness then you review whether disability insurance is an option for you.
What typically does a disability insurance policy cover?
Disability is a broad term and covers a host of afflictions that could cause you to stop working.
Dread Disease Cover / Critical Illness / Trauma Cover
Take a look at some frightening statistics:
In South Africa, 1 in 3 men and 1 in 4 women will suffer a stroke or heart attack before the age of 60
1 in 6 men and 1 in 7 women will develop cancer during their lives
Alzheimer’s disease primarily affects older people, developing in only 1 person in 1 000 before the age of 65. From age 65 your chances rise sharply to 1 person in 20, and by age 80, your risk will increase to 1 in 5
Your health and ability to earn an income are your biggest assets. By taking out dread disease cover now, while you are still healthy and insurable, you will avoid being trapped financially by life’s unforeseen events.
You may consider yourself reasonably well protected against medical costs associated with a critical illness (such as cancer or a stroke) or a trauma-related event (such a heart attack or head injuries). But have you considered the associated financial costs of such an event?
On average, medical bills only account for one-third of the expenses you are likely to incur as a result of a severe illness. The indirect expenses include loss of income, modifications to your house and your car, alternative medicines or treatments, the cost of hiring a caregiver, rehabilitation therapy and even reconstructive surgery and prosthetics.
Critical illness insurance is designed to ease the financial pressures by paying a tax-free lump sum if you become seriously ill or totally disabled.