Make Sure Your Life is Properly Covered

Should something happen to the main breadwinner of the family like a career-ending injury or even death, the other family members could find themselves in financial trouble if there is no life insurance in place.

According to a recent piece from the Wall Street Journal, 4/10 of survey respondents indicated they’d immediately find themselves in financial straits if the wage-earner died. 3/10 said they’d be in the same shape following a matter of months.

Given these statistics, it might surprise others to know that many American households actually carry some life insurance coverage. Presently, it’s approximately 2/3 of American households (a sharp decrease from the previous peak: in 2004, 78% were insured).

Even though a large number of American families have less to fall back on financially than when the economy started to head south, ownership of individual life insurance has hit a 50-year low, according to a new LIMRA study.

The Trends in Life Insurance Ownership Study reports only 44 percent of U.S. households have individual life insurance. In 2010, 30 percent of households (35 million) do not have life insurance coverage, compared to 22 percent of households in 2004. For those households with children under age 18, some 11 million have no coverage.

Greater than 40 percent of Americans state a prime reason they have not purchased added life insurance is due to the fact they have other financial issues to currently deal with, including paying off debt or saving for retirement.

The decline in life insurance ownership is not because families are not feeling vulnerable. Among households with kids under 18, four in 10 state they would have immediate problems dealing with everyday living expenses if the household’s main breadwinner died today. Another three in 10 would have issues meeting expenses after only a few months.

The survey goes on to point out that half of the households claim they require more life insurance, the greatest level ever.

Moreover, nearly one quarter of households with kids under 18 years want to speak with a financial pro regarding their life insurance needs, while a quarter of all households say they will purchase life insurance in the next year.

If you are one of the many individuals in need of some life insurance quotes and advice, look no further than insurelog.com to assist you.