How to meet insurance needs at various life stages

At the risk of contradicting popular belief, I truly think that life is not a series of accidents waiting to happen. Life is full of certainties - the certainty of marriage, having a child, educating the child, retiring, etc. Instead of worrying about things that most likely won’t happen, it’s important to focus on life events that certainly ‘will’.

Life insurance plays a crucial role in achieving financial goals during each of these ‘certain’ life stages. What truly sets life insurance apart is the fact that financial goals are met even in the absence of the individual. In an unfortunate event of an untimely demise, it does not dismiss oneself from financial commitments and a life insurance product ensures exactly that. Life insurance products are arguably the only investment option that effectively helps meet long-term financial goals during each life stage. A few important ones have been listed below.

You will certainly enter the workforce: During this phase, you’re young and have just started working. At the same time, parents are excited that their investment in children is about to reap them returns.

This is the time to protect yourself and protect parent’s dreams by investing in a long-term pure protection plan. The early entry age will ensure that you pay low premiums.

You will certainly get married and have children: This is the most important phase of financial planning because your income has increased during this phase and so have your dreams and responsibilities. It is important to wisely utilise the surplus funds available for various life events.

Do not plan sequentially for one life event at a time. The need of the hour is to intelligently list all critical, high-cost financial goals and simultaneously allot monies whilst increasing the contribution as income rises.

You will certainly retire: At 50, it is important to channelise all that surplus and the future savings into retirement plan. Post retirement, make sure you buy the right annuity that meets your specific need. About two-third of the corpus should necessarily be invested in an annuity plan; the balance one-third should be parked in a low-risk, short-term investment for any emergencies that may arise.

In summary, the life stages may differ from person to person but being financially smart through each life stage is critical. While I understand that some people may choose to have children later in life, a few others might want to retire early. But understanding your financial goals in relation to how you see your life pan out is essential, so that you are equipped to take on the new responsibilities that comes with each life stage. It is important that one doesn’t ‘fail to plan’ unless, of course, one ‘plans to fail’.

BE PREPARED

• When you enter the workforce it's time to invest in a long-term pure protection plan
   
• At the time of marriage it is important to wisely utilise the surplus funds available for various life events
   
• The need of the hour is to intelligently list all critical, high-cost financial goals

The writer is director-sales & marketing, IndiaFirst Life Insurance