3rd April 2017

A recent survey1 has revealed that up to 60% of adults don’t have any form of life insurance. When asked why this is the case, the answers vary.

Some people simply don’t want to think about life’s unexpected events and don’t believe it could ever happen to them. Here are a few stark statistics. It is estimated that every day in the UK, around 500 women become widows2, more than 100 children lose a parent3, and The Telegraph reports that approximately 75 men aged under 50 become widowers.

Insurers pay out

When asked why they don’t have life insurance, people often say that policies don’t pay out in the event of a claim, but in fact, 97.2%4 of protection claims are paid. According to figures from the Association of British Insurers4, UK insurance companies pay out more than £10m every day on protection policies including income protection, critical illness and life insurance.

Costs have come down

Another common misconception is that cover is expensive; many are surprised to learn that life insurance premiums are in fact easily affordable. It’s a small price to pay when you consider that having no insurance could mean real financial hardship, especially for less well-off families.

Cash when it’s needed most

If you were to die, how much money would your family have to live on? Many families would find themselves running short of money very quickly. Your salary would stop, but the household bills would keep coming in.

Even if you are not the main breadwinner, you may still be the primary caregiver, providing housekeeping and other home-based services that are vital to your family’s well-being and would cost a lot to replace.

A pay-out from a policy could make the difference between your loved ones facing a financial struggle at a challenging emotional time, and being able to maintain the sort of lifestyle they enjoyed when you were still around.

1 MoneySuperMarket, 2016
2 National Association of Widows
3 Winston’s Wish
4 Association of British Insurers, 2016