Life insurance

By Tami Harris

​You have protected them from the very beginning, freely giving of your time, attention and love to your family. What better way to look after your loved ones one last time, than with the ultimate and final gift of life insurance? Life insurance is often referred to as a final act of love and that  could not be more true. Losing a family member is difficult enough itself but the financial burden that can arise as a result of that loss can be crippling for many families. This is precisely why purchasing a life insurance policy is an absolute necessity. Securing your family's future with a life insurance policy can not only provide for them financially, but it can give them the much needed time they will need to grieve their loss without concern for pressing financial matters. 
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It is often assumed that life insurance is all about leaving a windfall for families. While that can certainly be the case in some instances, more often than not, life insurance is more about practicality than some get-rich-quick lottery ticket for your loved ones. It is about providing your family with the ability to handle day-to-day expenses in your absence. It’s replacing your income (for a time) and giving your family the time they need to adjust to that loss of income. It is giving them the funds needed to pay off debts like the mortgage, student loans, credit card balances, unresolved medical bills, etc. By having all of these expenses and debts paid for with life insurance protection, other financial resources can be freed up for the actual support of your family when you are no longer around to support them yourself. You can rest assured that you did all that you could to ensure this transition is as smooth as possible for your loved ones. While you can’t spare them the personal loss, with life insurance you can spare them a financial one.

So, now that we know the importance of life insurance overall, how do you know the type of policy that is right for you? This is where working with an experienced, licensed Insurance Sales Professional comes into play. With so many types of policies and financial protection products to choose from, your Life Insurance Agent will help you navigate the product that is best. Your age, health, current earning potential, surviving family member dynamics and financial situation all play a vital role in choosing the appropriate life insurance products.  Are you in good health? Do you have some pre-existing conditions? Would your policy need to provide for the needs of your young family or is it just you and your spouse? Are you single and want a simpler policy to unburden your adult children from paying your funeral, burial or cremation expenses? The answers to these questions and others like them are key factors in determining the size and type of policy that is best suited for your unique circumstances. 

The process of purchasing life insurance doesn’t have to be an intimidating one like some people may think. A good Life Insurance Agent will walk you through the insurance buying process, making sure you feel comfortable not only with the monthly cost of your policy while you’re still living, but with the peace of mind that policy will one day provide for your loved ones as well. So what exactly should you look for in an insurance agent? Let’s take a look at some key things to consider:

1. Kindness is key. As in life, kindness goes a long way when choosing the right agent. Presumably, your Agent will be someone with whom you may work for years to come, so choosing someone with a heart for people is essential.
2. Communication and follow-thru should be high up on your Agent’s list of attributes. Is s/he easy to get in touch with? Or are you constantly having to track him/her down, waiting days at a time for a response? To be fair, surely your Agent has a life outside of his/her work, but finding one that is reasonably accessible and responsive to your needs will make the process all the more seamless for you as the Client. 
3. There are so many ins and outs of life insurance as a business which is why it is so important to choose an agent that really knows their stuff. A solid agent will be well-informed about the insurance industry in general, but should also be an expert in his/her product offerings. What is perfect for one Client isn’t necessarily best for the next, so having an Agent that is particularly knowledgeable in the field is paramount in providing the best possible service and products for you and your family. 
4.  Honesty and integrity are probably two of the most important characteristics to consider when looking for an Agent. An insurance policy is a binding legal document so entrusting this process to anyone just won’t do. You want to work with an Agent you can truly trust; one that isn’t willing to compromise his or her integrity by falsifying information on your behalf just to get the deal. When your surviving family’s security is on the line, there is no margin for error! Be certain that your loved ones will receive all of the benefits you’ve so carefully and mindfully prepared for them by choosing an upright and honest agent. Frankly, it’s just too important not to!
5. Last but certainly not least, patience is paramount when selecting the right agent for you. Client led customer service goes a long way in this industry because let’s be honest, you’re not always ready to ‘pull the trigger’ on your policy purchase just because your Agent is. Sometimes life, our budgets or other circumstances outside of our control may mean a delay from the time we first speak with an agent to the time that we actually complete our life insurance purchase. Additionally, patience comes into play when you have questions throughout the purchasing process. Is your Agent willing to patiently and completely address your questions and concerns to your satisfaction? Having an agent who isn’t so eager to simply make the sale, but rather works on your time schedule will not only make the experience a more pleasant one for you as the client, but it will also give you the peace of mind that you made a solid, sound decision and not a rushed one. Consider these two scenarios:​

Julia, a 30-something single mother with two school-aged children works 40 hours per week as an Office Manager and also has a part time job as a Server at a local restaurant to help make ends meet. Julia already has life insurance through her full time employer but knows that she can’t take this coverage with her should she ever change jobs. She wants to purchase an additional life insurance policy to continue to provide for her children financially if something should happen to her. Julia reaches out to an agent she was referred to by her neighbor. Her new agent, David arrived 30 minutes late to their initial appointment and seemed quite frazzled upon his arrival. Throughout the appointment David continually suggested the same low-cost final expense policy from a particular carrier despite Julia’s repeated request for more coverage to care for her children.  David’s high-pressure and pushy sales approach ultimately left Julia with a policy that, while well below her limited budget, didn’t meet her family’s needs. She left the appointment feeling unsettled and ultimately canceled the policy only to have to begin the daunting task of finding an agent all over again. Julia’s agent came far from checking the boxes in what to look for in an Agent and her resulting situation was par for the course. Let’s take a look at another, more favorable case…
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Anthony, a married, retired Forklift Operator has prepared well for retirement and is looking for a simple final expense policy to pay for the funeral costs for himself and his wife. He finds a qualified insurance sales agent after searching online and makes an appointment. Before even meeting, his new Agent John asks a series of questions to find out more about Anthony and what his specific needs might be. John shows up to appointment on-time complete with a variety of pre-planned Final Expense coverage options based on their previous conversation. John takes all the time needed to answer Anthony’s questions, leaving him feeling comfortable and informed with the options presented to him. Not quite ready to sign on the dotted line, John tells Anthony he’d like to take a few days to narrow down his decision and discuss the options with his wife, who wasn’t available for the appointment. After a few days, Anthony and John touch base once again and Anthony feels comfortable enough to move forward with his decision and eagerly calls his adult children to inform them that his final expenses were all taken care of. He can continue on, enjoying his retirement without the worry of burdening them and putting them in a tough spot financially.

It’s so easy to see which of the two scenarios is best for everyone involved.
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Choosing the right agent and the right product at a price that is right for you is possible and can be the winning combination in handling this lasting and final gift for those you love the most. Spare your family any unnecessary grief by gifting them with a much-needed cushion to not only grieve their loss and provide for your final expenses, but to look positively toward the future knowing that you cared enough about providing for them, even to the very end. What a gift indeed!