Should We Really Just Call It Death Insurance?

You know, I think if life insurance had been called death insurance from the very beginning it would be no big deal. As a life insurance agent I run into those every once in a while who want to kind of get in the last shot by saying about the life insurance policy they just put in force, “oughta just call it death insurance”.

It’s kind of like the old saying, “Call me whatever you want, just don’t call me late for dinner”. You can call life insurance whatever you want. Family Protection Insurance. Spousal Succession Insurance. After Life Insurance. The Left Behind Insurance (I like that one). Mourning Suppression Insurance. Death Insurance. Call it whatever you want, but it you have responsibilities and your death would adversely impact impact the financial future of those you leave behind, last week would have been a good time to take care of whatever you want to call it.

I hate to keep dragging up a guy I worked with several years ago, but bless his heart, he was a classic case for this subject. He was in great health and really considered that his buffer zone. People in good health don’t die right? So we went back and forth for a few years. He would get interested and get quotes and get poised to move ahead and then he would come up with one of those lines like, “I would just be betting against myself”, or “Why don’t you call it what it really is, death insurance”. He found a way to sidestep the action of gettin er done five or six times.

I know you’re expecting me to say he died before he ever got death insurance, but that hasn’t happened yet. The last time he called he was absolutely 100% ready to sign the paperwork and move ahead and I believe he would have paid anything he had to for the privilege.  The problem is he had just been diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor and had, at most, a year to live. He knows I tell this story and he’s encouraged me to do so. When I first started working with him he could have had $500,000 worth of life insurance for about $90 a month. He only has a few months left now and will leave his wife with a social security benefit that won’t quite cover the mortgage on their house. “I don’t care what you call me, just don’t call me late…….”.

Bottom line. You may not die before you get the life insurance your family needs. You may not even become uninsurable like my friend above before you get the life insurance your family needs. You may not even have a health change that will increase your rates before you get the life insurance your family needs. But if you do it impacts those you love in an awful way. Get er done.