Shop Benefits February 2011 Newsletter

This year I had to help three families with life insurance claims. These were relatively healthy, active, good people, gone in an instant. Life insurance is something most people put off. Below, I have listed random thoughts that came to mind after providing assistance to those families.

Take an inventory of your current life insurance coverage. Most people think they own more than what they actually have. Where does one start? First, gather all your active policies. Life policies from work, your spouse's job, since you were a baby, one bought thru an association, accidental death, etc. List them in a piece of paper and include the following information: company name, amount, policy number, and policy type, issue date, expiration date and contact numbers. Total the amount you own. Store them in a secure place such as safe or safety deposit box at your bank. Don’t forget to tell your spouse or loved ones that need to know.

After the inventory, do you have policies that you think need to be replaced? Don’t cancel your old policy until a new one has been issued or you have consulted a professional who can give you advice. Make sure you are not giving up valuable benefit or causing a taxable situation.

Not sure if you have enough? Life Insurance is designed to cover the financial effects of an untimely death or possibly replace income. Consider these:


This year I had to help three families with life insurance claims. These were relatively healthy, active, good people, gone in an instant. Life insurance is something most people put off. Below, I have listed random thoughts that came to mind after providing assistance to those families. Take an inventory of your current life insurance coverage. Most people think they own more than what they actually have. Where does one start? First, gather all your active policies. Life policies from work, your spouse's job, since you were a baby, one bought thru an association, accidental death, etc. List them in a piece of paper and include the following information: company name, amount, policy number, and policy type, issue date, expiration date and contact numbers. Total the amount you own. Store them in a secure place such as safe or safety deposit box at your bank. Don’t forget to tell your spouse or loved ones that need to know. After the inventory, do you have policies that you think need to be replaced? Don’t cancel your old policy until a new one has been issued or you have consulted a professional who can give you advice. Make sure you are not giving up valuable benefit or causing a taxable situation. Not sure if you have enough? Life Insurance is designed to cover the financial effects of an untimely death or possibly replace income. Consider these:
How much of the family's income do you provide? How will your survivors survive without your income? Who else depends on your income? Parents, siblings? How much do you owe on your home? What amount of debt do you carry? Credit cards? Car loan? College Loan? How much are your monthly expenses? Do you want your kids to go to college? What keeps you up at night? What will bring you peace of mind? There are different schools of thought to determine the right figure. The amount depends on the income and age. I recommend you think it thru with your life insurance professional because while it is true that a onetime benefit could be a lot of money, if a person has to survive on that benefit for a number of years it may not be enough. For example if a person gets $ 100K death benefit and the beneficiary is a healthy 50 year old female, she could live to age 80 or longer. Lastly, who is the Beneficiary? The insurance carrier will pay the benefit to whose name appears as a beneficiary. What has happened since the policy was bought? Divorce, separation? To confirm, call the carrier. That can be easily remedied by completing a form. Hope these help you. Don’t have life insurance?There is a process that you must go thru to get issued. Consult a professional. Questions? Call Al Schiebel at 404-256-2171 or email me at al@shopbenefits.com.
Phone: 404.256.2171 Fax: 404.256.2161 www.ShopBenefits.com