The biggest life insurance mistake and how to avoid it

One of the joys of my job is when I become really good friends with a client.  I love when that happens because this job is all about relationships.  That was the case with Tom. I met him at a local coffee shop years ago (I was doing stand up comedy as a hobby) and we really got to know one another. We were both young, single guys, renting apartments, and dedicating extra time to the arts. Tom was a very nice, easy-going guy. He approached me one day for auto and renters insurance.

After talking with him in my office, I asked him if he had life insurance and if ever planned for the future. He told me that he didn’t, that he was young and didn’t need it at the time. I looked at him told him that he did need it and that NOW was the best time to buy it.  He looked at me a bit perplexed as if I was running some sort of special or sale on insurance.  I told him that age and health are the two primary factors when it comes to life insurance premiums and that unfortunately, as time passes, he wasn’t going to get any younger or healthier. 

This right here is the biggest mistake that most people make!  They wait to get life insurance.  They wait until they need it and in some cases, it might be to late.

Tom was young and healthy so I was able to offer him a $100,000 20 year term life insurance policy that would cost him $20 a month.  Because his personal insurance is with the same company, this life policy would give a 5% discount on both his renter’s and auto insurance. After the discounts along with the cost of the new life policy, his total overall cost was only going to be $6 more a month.

Tom didn’t hesitate and neither should you!  He started the life insurance policy which turned out to be smartest thing he might have ever did.

A year later I got a call. It was Tom. He wanted to make sure that his life insurance policy was in order. I assured him that it was fine, and then he broke the news: He had been diagnosed with cancer just a couple months after taking the policy and had been in the hospital ever since. He had to seek treatment at an out-of-state hospital for several months and there had been times the doctors weren’t sure if he would make it.

The good news is that Tom recovered and is doing well. Every time I talk to him, he thanks me for asking about life insurance that day. He knows that now it would be nearly impossible for him to get a policy started. He has the peace of mind in knowing that if something were to happen, he wouldn’t have to worry.

So remember, now is the best time to start a life insurance policy because now is going to be the cheapest price you will ever find it.  The longer you wait, the more it will cost you or even worse the longer you wait the more likely it will be that sometime could happen that will make you ineligible.  Please talk to us about life insurance. The longer you wait, the harder it will be.

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Matthew Perry is an agent and partner at EW Smith Agency in Wyandotte, Mi. He is an independent agent offering home, auto, life and business insurance with multiple insurance companies.  EW Smith Agency is one of the leading provider of personal lines property and casualty insurance in the state of Michigan for Auto-owners Insurance Company.  He can be reached at 734.284.4141 or by email at mperry@ewsmith.com.