Suggested ad (Ladder Life)
40% of all households with children under the age of 18 include mothers who are either the sole or primary source of income for the family. Yet when it comes to life insurance, moms are often significantly under-insured, or not insured at all. In fact, it’s estimated that only 52% of US women have life insurance coverage — and that those who do actually have life insurance commonly carry only a quarter of the coverage they actually need.
Let’s back up a little though, and talk about why life insurance is so important for moms. Here are five of the most compelling reasons:
Single moms are the center of their family’s universe
More than half of single moms don’t have life insurance, but if you’re the only parent of a dependent child or children, then having life insurance in place is nothing short of essential to secure their future. If something unexpected were to occur, your life insurance could provide for your children and could cover everything from everyday expenses to a college education.
Getting life insurance in place can also provide you with another serious benefit: the peace of mind that comes with knowing that your family will be fully taken care of, no matter what.
Stay-at-home moms do the work of multiple people
Life insurance isn’t only for the family breadwinner – it’s a smart move for stay-at-home moms to get covered too. Taking care of your family is more than a full-time job, and salary.com has estimated that with all of the roles moms play, their household contribution is equivalent to a $162,000/year salary.
If something unexpected happened to you, and your family needed to hire a housekeeper, childcare professional, driver, or cook to take care of even just a fraction of all you do (didn’t someone once say “it takes a village”?), it would be very costly. That’s why having your own life insurance is such a wise decision.
Married women working outside the home may actually need more life insurance
Most families need two salaries to pay the bills these days, so it’s more important than ever for women to be covered. When discussing life insurance with your partner, you should consider whether or not your family would be able to maintain its same standard of living on just one salary. If the answer is “no”, then that’s a strong indication that full coverage is the right approach for both adults in your family.
Even if your employer provides life insurance, it may just be 1-2 times your salary, which simply isn’t enough for the long-haul. As much as 10-20 times salary is sometimes needed if you forecast out the costs you’d need to cover, especially with young children. If the life insurance offered by your employer is free to you, you should absolutely take advantage of it, but don’t let that stop you from getting what you really need to be fully covered.
Family caregivers need to provide for their special people
If you someone provide care for elders or special needs family members, you’re a candidate for life insurance. If you weren’t able to care for your family member, your life insurance could be used to cover the costs of their care, including things like adult day care, wheelchair-enabled transportation, occupational therapy, out-of-pocket medical expenses, and more.
The cost and logistics of caring for someone who needs a little more attention can be significant and the caregiving relationship can be difficult to replace. If you want your loved ones to be well taken care of, should you not be able to play your caregiving role, it’s important to have a financial plan on which you can rely.
Life insurance is cheaper for women
A fun, little known fact to keep in mind is that life insurance policies are usually significantly less expensive for women than men. On average, women have a longer life expectancy than men, which makes them less risky for life insurance companies to cover. Lower risk translates to lower payments, and the younger you are when you buy life insurance, the lower the payments will be.
Life insurance is important, and it’s especially critical for moms, who play such an important role in their families’ lives. Get an estimate and see for yourself how affordable it can be to have life insurance in place. Plus, you’ll be surprised at just how easy it is to fit the monthly payment into any budget.
Ladder provides expecting moms with a decision on life insurance coverage in just a few minutes, entirely online. It’s the simplest way to purchase important financial protection for your family. Tap below to get started.
This ad is brought to you by Ladder
Wang, W, Parker, K, Taylor, P. “Breadwinner Moms.” Pew Research Center. Pew Research Center. May 29, 2013. https://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2013/05/29/breadwinner-moms/
Jordon, S. “Gender gap: Fewer women than men have life insurance, leaving families vulnerable.” Omaha World-Herald. Omaha World-Herald. August 27, 2015. https://www.omaha.com/money/gender-gap-fewer-women-than-men-have-life-insurance-leaving/article_9c0276cf-2e6e-57c8-a45c-32af51c30c6f.html
“Moms: We know you’re worth it. But how much is ‘it’ really worth?” Salary.com. Salary.com. May 9, 2018.
https://www.salary.com/articles/stay-at-home-mom/
