Nearly 40% of Americans say their families would face financial hardship within six months if a wage earner died unexpectedly, and 30% would struggle with finances in only one month.1 Is your family safeguarded from these potential hardships?
The advantages of having life insurance extend far beyond protection from immediate financial struggles. Let’s look at five ways this critical coverage shields and assists your loved ones.
Life insurance helps cover final expenses, such as funeral costs, which average $8,300, according to the National Funeral Directors Association.2 It can also help pay for medical expenses related to illness or accidents at the end of life, so your family isn’t weighed down by those unplanned costs.
Replace your income with life coverage to help your family maintain their standard of living. This can prevent them from downsizing, moving to a different neighborhood or drastically changing their quality of life. It can also allow a stay-at-home parent to remain home instead of being forced to find outside employment to support the family.
The average consumer debt in the U.S. is over $100,000 (including student, car and personal loans, credit cards, mortgages and other types of debt).3 Debt is often a heavy burden for a family to manage with the loss of a primary wage earner. Another advantage of having life insurance is creating a safety net to help reduce or eliminate these debts.
Life’s greatest milestones often involve significant expenses. Financial resources from life coverage can help your children with their first car, college tuition, wedding or other long-term goals. Being able to assist in these memorable events — even in your absence — is one of the many reasons for life insurance.
In addition to spouses and children, life insurance can offer provision for other loved ones. Do you have aging parents who may need financial assistance as they enter retirement? Or a sibling or other relative who may struggle without your financial support? Life coverage can help fill those critical gaps.
Ready to fortify your family’s future? The first step is to determine how much coverage you need. Use our life insurance calculator to get an estimate.
At GuideStone®, our vision is that every servant of Christ finishes well, so we’re here to help you in all areas of life with health plans, life coverage, disability coverage and more. For more information, contact us at Insurance@GuideStone.org or 1-844-INS-GUIDE (1-844-467-4843), Monday through Friday, from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. CT.
GuideStone welcomes the opportunity to share this general information. However, this article is not intended to be relied upon as legal advice, medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.
1LIMRA.com/siteassets/newsroom/liam/2023/0859-2023-liam-fact-sheet-2023_final.pdf
3Statista.com/statistics/1281667/average-consumer-debt-usa
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