Life cover

Death is a fact of life. It's probably not the topic of choice to discuss, but the simple fact is none of us can escape it. The great uncertainty is when and how it will happen. Being prepared for it can have a major positive implication for those we leave behind. Conversely, behaving like the proverbial ostrich (burying one's head in the sand) and pretending it's not going to happen any time soon, can have major negative implications for our loved ones.

Ask yourself the question: "If I were to die tomorrow, how would my family cope financially?" 
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Will there still be a mortgage on the family home? Will my family continue to be able to stay there? Will they have to move to a "more affordable" area, and what does that mean for schooling, support networks, transport etc? Are there other debts that might be a burden to them? Will my partner be able to stay home and raise the children, or will that not be possible? And what are the implications of that? Will my children still be able to go to tertiary education? Will my partner still be able to retire? Will my family have the future we were all hoping to have?

Insurance is not what it's all about. Rather it'about the value insurance can help bring to you and your family. It’s designed to replace the economic value of a person to the household. If someone dies it can pay off debt and let the surviving family members continue to live comfortably. That’s why it’s important to get it right.
There are certain times in your life when you have to think about it again, for example:
  • if you've taken out or increased a mortgage,
  • changes to marital status, 
  • if you've had a child, 
  • changes in employment.
Each time an event like this happens, it changes whatever plans you may have in place. That's why it's important to regularly review (at least annually) the plans you do have in place. So if something like that has happened recently in your life, or if you would like to chat about how much life cover you may need, click here to email us or call us on the numbers below. We can help you put a plan in place.

So what are the chances?
One person dies every 18 minutes in New Zealand. In 2012 that amounted to 30,099 people (1).

The leading cause of death in New Zealand for both males and females is cancer- accounting for nearly 1/3 of all deaths. The number one cause of cancer deaths for both is lung cancer. For males that's followed by colorectal and prostate cancer. For females it's followed by breast and colorectal cancer (2).

Coronary heart disease causes the death of one New Zealander every 90 minutes. Consider also that 1 in 20 adults are diagnosed with coronary heart disease- that's 176,000 New Zealanders (3).

The picture for females in particular is not good- under age 50 females are twice as likely as males to die from a heart attack. And whereas 24% of males are likely to die within 1 year of having a heart attack, for females it's 42%. This does not just emphasise the importance of life cover, but also the need for good trauma cover.

Stroke is the 3rd largest killer in New Zealand- accounting for about 2,500 people per annum.
What does this mean to you?

Having the right cover in place can make an enormous difference to the quality of life to your loved ones post such a catastrophic event happening to you. There is no reason to put you and your family at risk, when a solution could be simple. If you would like help to see what you can do click here to email us, or call us on the numbers listed below.

(1) www.stats.govt.nz (2012)
(2) Ministry of Health 2012. Mortality and Demographic Data 2009
(3) www.heartfoundation.org.nz (April 2012)