It is that time of year again, September 2013 for Life Insurance Awareness Month. This is a month set aside by Life Insurance and Market Research Association or LIMRA back in 2003 and is now in its 10^th anniversary year. It was created to raise awareness among consumers and producers about the need for life insurance. With disposable income at an all-time low, American families have to make difficult decisions to determine their financial priorities. Unfortunately, life insurance is not at the top of the list. Yet, many American families say they could not last a month without the breadwinner’s salary. Now more than ever, it is vital that consumers protect their financial security. Life insurance has been providing this kind of protection to Americans for more than 200 years. Let’s take a look at just how the statistics stack up.

According to LIMRAs research, over 30% of US households do not have life insurance. A staggering 55% of US households or 58 million people admit they do not have enough life insurance and need more.  Not only are average US families not buying enough life insurance but those households that do have life insurance have had their face amounts decrease over $30,000 average since 2004. The most alarming number comes from a survey stating that 70% of US admit they would have serious financial problems if the primary breadwinner were to die within just a few months including 30% of households admitting their problem would be immediate.

What can life insurance do for a family? It can buy loved ones time to grieve. It can pay off loans and provide surviving family members with the chance to move on with a clean slate of debt. It can keep families in their homes and pre-fund a child’s college education. It can keep a family business in the family or allow options for the surviving family members. It can provide a stream of income for a family to live on for years. Life insurance can do all of these wonderful things for your family, but there’s just one small catch. You need to own life insurance first.

Now the reason for Life Insurance Awareness Month or LIAM, is quite simple, with 70% of US households admitting they either do not have life insurance or do not have enough life insurance, every American should be aware of the availability and affordability of a good life insurance policy. I suggest reading Life Insurance 101 to learn about the different types of policies and determine which may be the best fit for your unique situation. I also recommend using an experienced qualified life insurance agent or broker. According to LIMRA only about 16% of US consumers purchase their life insurance online. The remaining 84% would like some professional guidance. We highly urge you to contact a life insurance agent in your area to sit down and explain all of your options. Life is too short and too precious to gamble with your family’s future. Be aware during September of Life Insurance Awareness Month.

“I don’t want to tell you how much insurance I carry with the Prudential, but all I can say is: when I go, they go too.”—Jack Benny

Photo courtesy of http://www.limra.com/liam/

yourfriend4life.com

Tim Wilhoit is owner/principal of Your Friend 4 Life Insurance Agency in Nashville, TN. He is a family man, father of 3, entrepreneur, insurance agent, life insurance broker, salesman, sales trainer, recruiter, public speaker, blogger and team leader with over 26 years of experience in sales and marketing in the insurance and beverage industries.