Personal insurance needs may have diminished as your financial pressures ease and your children embark on their own “young and single” life stage. It is still easy to dismiss illness, injury or unexpected death with “it won’t happen to me”. However it is worth considering:
- In 2004 over 1,500 people were killed in motor vehicle accidents in Australia.1
- In 2002 an estimated 30,000 Australians sustained injuries requiring hospital treatment as a result of motor vehicle accidents.2
- One in three men and one in four women will suffer from cancer before the age of 75.3
A recent sample survey of couples in a similar life stage, with household incomes greater than $50,000 found that only 29% had life insurance. This compares with the 87% of the same sample who comprehensively insured their car and the 90% who had their home and contents insured.
4
As you move from one life stage to another your personal insurance needs will vary, change and evolve. Being an empty nester you will be finding that your personal insurance needs will have gone full circle. Now that your children have left the nest you are likely to have a little more cash to spend on activities such as:
- exotic overseas travel;
- a holiday home;
- home renovations; or
- a sports or luxury car.
At this stage in your life you may have acquired a selection of cash savings, financial investments, superannuation and equity in assets such as the family home, all of which have taken several life stages to acquire, grow and maintain.
Whilst it is true that if you lost your ability to earn an income you will have probably acquired enough cash savings and assets to enable your survival through a ‘tough’ financial period, but at what cost?
If the unexpected were to occur:
- You may be forced to sell the family home or downsize to a more affordable place;
- Perhaps you may need to consider early liquidation of investments; and
- You may need to make a change to your lifestyle and forget renovating the house, or buying that sports car.
It is now that you may have financially more to lose and more at stake.
With an array of wealth you have created, protecting your wealth at this point in your life would offer advantages such as:
- protection and security for your dependants and your long term retirement goals;
- protection of wealth that you have created such as cash savings, investments and your family home;
- you can avoid becoming dependant on Government benefits which, may provide relatively low levels of income; and
- you can avoid the need should the unexpected happen to rely on relatives or friends for financial help.
Important note:
The insurance is issued by Allianz Australia Life Insurance Limited ABN 27 076 033 782, AFSL 296559. The information contained on this website is general information only. It does not take into account your individual objectives or financial situation. You should therefore consider the appropriateness of the insurance having regard to your objectives, financial situation and needs. Prior to making any decision you should read the
Allianz Life Plan Product Disclosure Statement and Policy Document (PDS). You should seek advice from your financial adviser before deciding on appropriate insurance cover.
1 Year Book Australia 2006, www.abs.gov.au
2Land Transport Safety Authority 2002
3"Cancer in Australia 2001" Cancer Series no.28, Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, www.aihw.gov.au
4Australia Scan: Quantum Market Research 2004
