Life insurance for women is not drastically different from life insurance for men. If a woman family member is insured and unfortunately she passes away, her dependents or other family members will get a one-time payment from the carrier. This sum assured will help them maintain the lifestyle to which they were habituated when that woman was alive.
Since an increasing number of women are working now and they are the breadwinners of many households, the importance of life insurance for women is paramount. When you are not there, your near and dear ones will face difficulties in paying off the mortgage and meeting other day-to-day financial needs.
In spite of this, a large number of women don’t understand the importance of buying life cover for them.
Types of life cover available for women
The policies available for women can be classified into whole life and term life policies. Term life is meant for a particular time period. On many occasions, term life policies are offered with mortgage loans. This creates a sense of security in the minds of mortgage lenders.
Term life policies can be broadly categorized into level term and decreasing term policies. In case of level term, the payout remains at the same level for the whole term of the policy. In contrast, the payout diminishes throughout the period of the policy for decreasing term since the mortgage payments are made out of it. As the payout diminishes, the amount of premium also diminishes.
A major disadvantage of term life policy is that the cover remains in place for a particular period and if you survive that period, you will not be receiving any benefit. Your family members will only receive the payout if you die within that period. Hence, it is ideal to get the term policy for a period which is equal to the tenure of the mortgage.
Can life insurance be bought during pregnancy?
There is no particular difference between life insurance during pregnancy and life insurance purchased when you are not pregnant. However, you have to answer particular questions based on which the premium of your policy will be decided. Some of those questions are given below:
1) What is your weight?
It is quite natural that pregnant mothers put on a lot of weight. So, in answer to this question, you need to mention the weight you instantly had prior to pregnancy.
2) Do you drink or smoke?
Pregnant mothers normally don’t indulge in smoking or drinking but they can at other times. Therefore, this should also be taken into account. If a recommendation has been given to you to quit smoking or alcohol, then it may have a significant impact on the premium rate. Carriers are also interested to get an idea about how much alcohol you consumed for the last five years.
You must not suppress any fact and furnish all the necessary details to the carrier in a frank manner. If you don’t, your policy might turn void.
Is there a difference in cost of premium for men and women?
Traditionally, it was assumed that the lifespan of women is higher than men and therefore, they used to pay a lower amount of premium in comparison to men. Nonetheless, the European Court of Justice since the month of December 2012 has issued a directive that carriers can’t calculate premium exclusively on the basis of gender.
Can the cost of life insurance for women reduced?
Obviously, it can. The techniques are similar to those which are used to lower the cost of life cover for men. You need to modify a few risky elements to reduce the premium expenses.
For instance, if you are too fat and you shed some kilos, the premium is bound to go down. If you start leading a healthy standard of living and you have given up smoking and drinking, then also you can lower your premiums. On the other hand, if you smoke and drink and you are obese, then get ready to pay a huge amount of premium every month.
If at any point of time, you have suffered from diabetes or hypertension, you need to mention it candidly. These conditions will be taken into consideration while calculating your premium.
How to apply for life insurance during pregnancy
If you are a pregnant woman and you wish to apply for life cover, the procedure for applying is not so different. You have to provide all the crucial details about your health condition to the carrier. Questions about your height, weight, smoking or drinking habits, and drug abuse will be asked and you need to answer all the questions precisely.
What after pregnancy?
After you have kids, you can also think about availing a joint life policy in order to ensure that if you or your spouse passes away, the dependents get financial support.
It is always more affordable to purchase joint life policies in comparison to purchasing two separate single life policies.
There are options like joint life first death and second death from which you can choose.
In case of joint life first death, the payout will be disbursed when the first policyholder passes away. For joint life second death, payout is disbursed when the second policyholder expires and it is quite uncommon.
Is there a chance that the premium of life insurance for women will increase?
There is no specific guideline whether the prices of life cover for women will go up or not. For customers who purchased prior to the month of December 2012 and who have been paying premiums at a fixed rate, there is no possibility of a hike due to the amendment in the statute.
Since premiums are a fixed cost throughout the duration of the policy, it is always prudent to purchase life insurance prior to becoming pregnant.
However, if you have become pregnant already, just ensure that you have gone through the small print of the policy document. Always remember that getting pregnant means new family members and increased responsibility on your part.
Sam is a blogger with a lot of zeal. He has written many articles and blogs on a broad variety of topics including family income benefit policy and other insurance policies.
