Action Line: Single adults have specific insurance needs
BY PHIL MULKINS World Action Line Editor
Thursday, September 27, 2012
9/27/12 at 5:29 AM
Dear Action Line: I will soon be single and want to know what my insurance needs might be in the foreseeable future. - W.L., Tulsa
U.S. Census Bureau data showed that in 2010 that 96 million people in the United States had no spouse; 43 percent of all Americans over 18 were single. The bureau defines single as "adults who never married, are divorced or are widowed." Of these, 61 percent had never been married, 24 percent were divorced and 15 percent were widowed.
Life insurance: Single parents find it crucial to ensure their dependents will be financially secure after the parent's death, making life insurance a key element of their financial plan, says the Insurance Information Institute website. Even without dependents, life insurance is an excellent way to pay your final expenses and leave a significant contribution to nieces' and nephews' college funds. Whole life or permanent life policies create a cash value that, if not paid out as a death benefit, can be borrowed against or withdrawn on the owner's request - tulsaworld.com/IIIlifeinsIndv
Disability coverage: When disabled and unable to work you still need income. Disability income insurance replaces lost income - 43 percent of all 40-year-olds will have a disabling event of 90 days or longer by age 65. Employers offer disability coverage but smaller businesses don't, meaning you need private disability insurance tulsaworld.com/IIIDisabilityIndv to provide up to 70 percent of your income.
Long-term care: Joyfully, we're all living longer but, sadly, long-term care services are pricey. When you live alone and don't have the finances to pay for home health care, nursing home or assisted living care, long-term care insurance tulsaworld.com/IIILongTrmCarIndv is the answer. Buying it before age 60 lessens the chance you'll be rejected, and the younger you are, the lower the premiums.
Health insurance: Employer-sponsored health insurance is the best way to provide for your future medical needs. Premiums are generally lower than individual health insurance plans as they are group rated and your employer also contributes to paying its cost. If your employer gives you a choice of plans, you need to understand your choices and pick the plan best suited for you.
If your employer offers no such plan, or you are unemployed, self-employed or decide to return to school, you'll need an "individual health insurance" policy tulsaworld.com/IIIHealthInsIndv
Homeowners and renters insurance: Singles are more likely to rent than own their homes and the Census Bureau says 20 percent of owner-occupied homes are single-person households, while close to 40 percent of rental households are occupied by lone, single people. If you rent a house or an apartment, your landlord's insurance will cover only the building replacement costs after a fire or disaster and not the cost of replacing your belongings. You need renters' insurance tulsaworld.com/IIIrentersIns, to protect your own belongings.
See also homeowners insurance tulsaworld.com/StandardHomeInsurance and condo or co-op insurance tulsaworld.com/IIICondoCoopIns
Original Print Headline: Single adults have specific insurance needs
Submit Action Line questions by calling 918-699-8888, emailing phil.mulkins@TulsaWorld.com or by mailing them to Tulsa World Action Line, PO Box 1770, Tulsa OK 74102-1770.
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