When Do Seniors Need Insurance? 3 Scenarios Where You May Require One
As the person enters retirement life, insurance needs may gradually decline but in some cases, they may still need adequate insurance cover.
As the person enters retirement life, insurance needs may gradually decline but in some cases, they may still need adequate insurance cover.
Insurance for senior citizens
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Usually, seniors can’t take as many risks as younger people can take. So, they need adequate and appropriate risk mitigation tools to lower the impact of various risks. After retirement, seniors normally spend their lives using their retirement corpus and they can’t afford to take any risk that can erode their retirement corpus earlier than their expected remaining life. Here are some crucial situations when the insurance need of seniors increases.
After retirement, normally the financial obligations of senior citizens come down because they don’t have any financially dependent members except their spouse in some cases. However, if they still have dependent family members who require financial support from the senior person, in such case the need for insurance products increases. Senior people must continue with their life and health policy without disturbing them.
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Senior citizens are more prone to health risks compared to young people and if they already know about their deteriorating health condition, it becomes highly crucial for them to take a health insurance cover. Seniors who have pre-existing health ailments such as diabetes, BP, heart-related issues, etc. are at high risk of hospitalisation. Seniors can’t afford unexpected expenses such as a hospitalisation bill that may ruin their retirement plan. So, they need a health policy of adequate size and with appropriate coverage to mitigate the impact of hospitalization risk.
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Seniors may need loan support to meet some of their financial goals. In some cases, they may enter retirement with an existing loan obligation such as a home loan or a car loan.They have to repay the equated monthly instalment (EMI) if they have an outstanding loan that increases their financial obligation. If the senior member dies before paying the loan, it may put theirlegal heirs or the beneficiary into financial stress. However, if the senior citizen takes an adequate size of life insurance plan, the outstanding loan can be paid using the claim amount and their dependent family member doesn’t have to worry about its financial implications. So, seniors who have an existing loan or plan to take a new loan must get an adequate size of life term insurance cover.
Ideally, it is better to take the insurance plan early in the career and one who couldn’t take it may still take the appropriate insurance product at a later stage by paying a little extra premium.
Insurance needs may vary from person to person depending on their lifestyle, financial position, risk perceptions, health conditions and other factors. One must consult a financial advisor or an insurance expert to know about the appropriate insurance product that suits to their need.
The author is an independent financial journalist
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