Mainstream Media Starts a Debate Over Life Insurance
- Author: Jessica Williams
- Posted: 2024-09-18
If you have ever watched television for more than an hour, then you have likely witnessed some sort of life insurance commercial that preaches all about the importance of having a policy. Your family is going to need money for burial expenses, and to handle bills, etc. It seems like something people need to know, since most people live in a country where death is often more expensive than life. The average cost of a funeral in the United States is well over $10,000, and that's a number that continues to increase at a massive rate. Though, in order to find a topic that was newsworthy, CBS News printed an article that asks the question, "Is Life Insurance Worth It?" This has sparked a lot of backlash, and a debate from both sides of the aisle. Many have been pointing out how the entire "death" industry is nothing but a scam and a way to predate upon grieving people who are backed into a corner with no other choice but to spend thousands of dollars. Others point out that it's just part of a natural economic process and thus the onus is on individuals to be insured. What is the truth of the matter here?
Is life insurance an expense that's actually worth the premiums you will pay? There is a lot of truth spoken by people who claim that the industry is predatory and exists in its entirety to pry money out of people. This is absolutely true, and it can be traced back to its origins. America used to not have funeral homes and such expenses. People held wakes in their houses and buried their loved ones on their own property, or on state property if they did not have land. Whatever happened to make things how they are today, the fact is that the teacup cannot be unbroken in that regard. Things are what they are, and being morally against the industry does not change the fact that you will need this industry. In today's America, it's illegal in many locations to handle funerals at home, not to even mention it may bring people under investigation of wrongful death and other laws. So your individual feelings on the topic do not really change reality.
Yes, Life Insurance is Worth It
The reality in America is that death is going to cost a small fortune. Any hospital that declares a person dead will then ship that body out to a funeral home eventually, and the funeral home immediately starts running a tab. Embalming and preparing a body, situating a body in the proper clothing, doing hair and makeup, placing the body in a casket, etc; it all rings up thousands of dollars of expenses. And that's before you even get into having to purchase a plot of land, a tombstone, the services, etc. By the time it's done, it's not unusual for people to spend $15,000 or even much more on basic funeral expenses. Just simply burying your loved one and having a small service and a small, basic tombstone is going to run you an outrageous cost. So, yes, having life insurance is more than worth it.
Of course, this is still pretty much up to how well off you are financially. For people with a lot of money, this isn't such a big deal. Thousands of dollars for burial expenses can be covered, and their bills don't start becoming too hard to handle. So, for these sorts of people, life insurance isn't that big of a deal. For everyone else, however, there's no question about it at all; life insurance is a must-have insurance policy for you and your family. Being able to cover those expenses, and hopefully to have some money left over, will help to ease this process and not make things worse.
Competitive Rates Lead to Better Policies
The industry is what it is. Nobody is going to change this any time soon. As such, this at least means that you do have a lot of options available to you. You won't have to go with one particular company and one particular policy. Because there are so many different insurers out there offering life insurance policies, you can shop around and find something that's right for you and your family.
It's a little scary to think about, to be sure, but life insurance is something that you're going to need so that you do not saddle your loved ones with such a burden.
