Insurance is one of the things that no individual can afford not to have. Every insurance product that you plan to buy needs some amount of research and thoughts before you can decide on getting one. But often you can end up making the wrong choices and in this piece, we will point out the top 5 mistakes people make with insurance planning.
5 Mistakes People Make with Insurance Planning
Insurance planning can get overwhelmingly difficult. Especially if you have no prior knowledge of the market, the insurance terms and jargon will sound like Hebrew to you. To top it up you have unscrupulous agents and sellers who will try to sell insurance products that are going to be a sheer waste of money for you. It is therefore important that you plan your insurance meticulously and avoid mistakes and pitfalls. Let’s find out what these common mistakes are:
1. Buying from Captive Agents
When you decide to buy from a captive agent, the chances are you will buy only from the product options that his company offers. Thereby, you are deprived of exploring the whole market and other better options that may be available with other companies. It is therefore recommended that you rely on independent insurance agents who can give you options with many companies. Independent agents will listen to your goals and will line up the products that are best suited to your needs.
2. Skipping Annual Review Sessions
Locking the rates at your current age shall work the best so that the rates don’t change as you get older. But if you have had a change in income or some other financial indicator you may get a discount and you will not know about these offers unless you sit for your annual reviews with your insurance agent. Changes in your income, residency type, health, etc can help you get some discounts and reduced prices.
3. Not Disclosing Your Health Conditions
Your current health condition is a prime indicator of your help insurance costs. You need to ensure that you have disclosed all information about your health history to your insurance agents because that will help them design your insurance plans better. If you have had any improvements in your health, you have to notify that to your insurance providers so that they can reduce the insurance premiums accordingly. Withholding health information can later lead to circumstances where your claims being denied and you would certainly like to avoid that. Withholding information such as having HIV and its comorbidities can affect your insurance plan. This can in turn affect the way that you’ll be able to age with such conditions like HIV. With the proper insurance plan, you can keep up and maintained covered if anything new does happen with what you’re diagnosed with and more. Hence why it’s important to keep up with news about HIV and other conditions.
Similar instances apply for physicians who don’t know what disability insurance is and what it entails.
4. Paying Way Too Much
Do not be ready to pay for anything and everything you see. The insurance team you work with should be able to help you with the structure and break up for things you need and for things you do not need. So you would no what is add on and what is the main product. If you see some additional features, purchase them only if you feel that is going to be helpful to you in the long run and you will be using it. So keep only what you need and put the rest to your savings.
5. Not Being Bothered About the Insurance Plans
Many times amidst all that you will have to do, your job, personal life and other preoccupations you fail to take care of your insurance plans. It is recommended that you opt for a plan and an insurance team that stays in touch with you about your insurance plan, annual reviews, and future offers and discounts. Those ways they take the pressure off you and making your life easier and secure.
Conclusion
So, these are the 5 mistakes people make with insurance planning. Now that you know about the mistakes you know how to avoid them. If you need further assistance or have additional questions, it’s best to reach out to your insurance agent.