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Do Women Need Life Insurance?

If you’re a woman with financial dependents—others who rely on you financially—it’s likely that life insurance is something you may consider. This guide can help explain why.

Life insurance is an insurance policy designed to help provide financial protection to the loved ones you’d leave behind if you’d died. This often includes:

  • Parents
  • Couples
  • Single parents
  • Homeowners
  • Renters
  • Self-employed people

Generally speaking, your family and household circumstances can determine whether or not you may need cover (and how much).

In most cases, anyone with financial dependents may benefit from life insurance. Often women with children and partners consider taking out life insurance to help ensure their loved ones are financially taken care of when they are no longer around. This can include women who are single, married, or self-employed.

Whether you’re married, in a civil partnership, or raising children on your own, life insurance can help provide financial security if you were to pass away. For some women who have children, their income may pay a vital role in supporting the household. If you were to unexpectedly pass away, life insurance could help ensure that your family wouldn’t have to struggle financially.

Single mothers often carry the full financial burden of raising children. If you’re a single parent, life insurance can become even more important. It can provide a lump sum that can help support your children’s future, helping to make sure the cost of their guardianship can be taken care of – so you’d know there can be a lump sum payment that can be used for life’s essentials until they reach an age when they can financially support themselves.

Owning a home could often be a significant financial commitment, particularly with a mortgage. In the event of your death, life insurance can help ensure your mortgage can be paid off, helping your loved ones to remain in the home. Helping financially secure your property and your family’s living situation with life insurance can be a practical step. You can even get what’s known as ‘decreasing’ life insurance, so the level of cover you have in place typically decreases in line with your mortgage.

You may think you do not need life insurance because you do not have a mortgage, however there may be other living situations that could require life insurance. If you share your living space with a partner or have children, your rent may represent a major financial commitment. If your income were to suddenly disappear, life insurance could pay out a lump sum that could help your family cover some of the rent.

Self-employed women may not have the benefits that come with being employed, like “death in service” cover. If you’re self-employed or the primary earner, life insurance can offer a financial safety net for your family. It’s one way to ensure that if you pass away, your loved ones could be financially supported.

  • Women with financial dependents may need life insurance — because typically they have people who rely on them financially in some way
  • Life insurance can be a way of making sure the loved ones you leave behind could cope financially without you
  • Your life insurance needs might change as your life changes, so it can also be a good idea to review the cover you have in place after particular life events (like getting married, buying a house, or becoming a parent)
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