06 April, 2007

Planning for the unthinkable

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One cannot help but think about it, especially if one has children. That thing is death. Specifically what happens to those to whom one has a financial responsibility after they are gone. There are a myriad of solutions. Some better than others. For instance, planning on winning the lottery so that one's family will be taken care of in the event of anything horrendous happening, while enticing and, if brought to fruition, quite lucrative, not the best of solutions.

Most decent employers these days offer some type of life insurance with their benefit package. This is usually a nifty benefit, and sometimes less expensive than other types of life insurance. The problem arises when one leaves their current employer. When that happens, the life insurance ceases. Hopefully the new employer will also offer free or discount life insurance. If not, that two or three percent increase in pay just may not be worth it after all.

With the way things are these days, where people change jobs every couple of years and very few people actually work for one company for 20 years and get the gold watch and what-not, it is not the best idea to have one's life insurance tied to an employer. One's best bet is to get life insurance that is independent of any employer. It may cost a little more, but in the long run, it is much more reliable and stable.