Village 360

Personal Insurances

If you were to become incapacitated or die today, what would your financial position look like?

This whole area of life protection can be extremely confusing. A great way to think about this is to ask yourself the following couple of questions.

Q. Do I want to cover a liability or provide for the financial security of loved ones in the event of my death?

A. Yes - You need to look at taking out life cover. This can be set up to pay a lump sum or a series of regular payments up on the death of a life assured'.

A. No - There's nothing wrong with self insurance. Our aim is to simply help you to identify exactly where your risks lie. Once known a combination of your attitude towards risk and how much you can afford to contribute will be the drivers behind whether you decide to pay someone else to cover the liability in question in full or part.

Q. In the event of becoming either physically or mentally disabled through accident or illness, would I be able to support myself and those who depend on me financially?

A. Yes - Congratulations, you are in an enviable position but you may still wish to consider additional protection to 'ringfence' your financial situation.

A. No - The ability to service financial obligations whilst living is very important although it is an area where the vast majority of clients are under-insured. It is possible to insure yourself against such situations through a combination of income protection, trauma and total and permanent disability cover.

The onset of a long term disability or illness does not mean that you will necessarily die before your time. These policies exist to remove some of the financial issues that would otherwise arise and in doing so will give you time to focus on recovery or long term change if required.

It's amazing to think that people generally are quite happy to fully insure a car but do not even think of implementing cover to protect a financial position. In certain circumstances, the cost of this protection and subsequent peace of mind will be no more than the cost of insuring your car.

Which type of cover is more important to you? If the car is stolen or damaged and uninsured, you'll be rightfully upset about it. But what would you stand to lose if you suddenly were unable to work for a period of time? It may not only be your car on the line. Financially, you'd stand to potentially lose everything. It's a sad fact that relationships are stretched to breaking point and beyond by an enforced change of circumstances. The need for financial support during a period such as this, whether in the form of a lump sum payment or regular income stream is clear.

So what are the different types of life insurance?

To assist in assessing your own needs, consider these four major issues which you and your family could face:

You may be in need of medical assistance and do not want to rely on the health system to provide this.
You are unable to work due to severe and prolonged illness or injury
You suffer an event that changes your life like a stroke or heart attack, and you need time and help to get back on your feet
You leave this world too soon, leaving dependants behind. Whilst we can't predict your future, we can help to ensure that loved ones are both protected and supported in a time of need.