15. In Harzardous Occupations.

“Every man has problems that only life insurance can solve.  In the young man’s case, the problem is to create cash; for the older man, to conserve it.” - Ben Feldman

By virtue of their occupation, some people face greater risks than the average man in the street. Pilots, firefighters, divers, construction workers, jockeys, oil riggers and policemen may be just a few of such. Are they conscious of this? You bet. In their daily work, they are constantly reminded of this. While they do not allow the increased risks to paralyse them into inaction, they do the prudent thing and pay a slightly higher premium to enjoy a peace of mind.

Taking precautions costs a small amount extra; but it's always worth it.

Recently even schoolteachers face greater perils than often thought to be associated with that fine profession. A teacher in the UK was stabbed to death by an enraged student - something unthinkable as little as a decade ago. With the recent SARS epidemic in this part of the world, people in the noble healthcare profession are faced with the sudden-ness and unpredictbility of similar ttacks. No one is apparently immune, not even office workers.

14. For Funeral Expenses.

"Life insurance is time. The time a man might not have. If he needs time, he needs life insurance." - Ben Feldman

Some people buy a $20,000 or $30,000 policy just to take care of funeral expenses. They recognise that when it comes to the crunch, ready cash specifically for this purpose is most handy for those who survive them.

Sometimes this is referred to as a ''Clean Up'' Fund or 'Last Expenses'' Monies. Whatever the name is given, it is a thoughtful act to leave no small item unattended or unprovided for.

Is this too much to think about? Some people feel that the collection from those who came to pay their last respects may be sufficient. In actual reports on the amount collected, seldom does the amount exceed $10,000. On very few occasions have I heard that the amount totaled beyond $20,000.

Your final moments on earth would not be a good time for your survivors to discover that your thoughtfulness did not include this event. With so much grief and sadness around, it would be a good gesture to take care of the costs ahead.

13. Of Prestige And Status.

"Life Insurance is the only tool that takes pennies and guarantees dollars."  - Ben Feldman

Some pople regard life insurance like ''branded'' goods. Not everyone can afford to buy life insurance. Apparently, in 1993, in Malaysia, only the top 10% of the population had life coverage. In Singapore, it was closer to 50%, which i presume must have been the top 50% of society.

While the motive to buy may be driven wrongly, the end result is mercifully correct.

So, we get people to buy because this comp[any ''A'' is listed on the Stock Exchange. Another chooses a company because it is internationally well known. A third person fancies a company, which has its headquarters in some exotic part of the world. Be as it may, they feel that buying life insurance sets them apart from the common people. A little snooty perhaps but there are right on one score - most people who posess life insurance have recognised the value of life insurance and followed through with purposeful action.

One agent had reasonable success with his prospects because he offered them life insurance as if it is a form of membership. He said: ''You become a member of an exclusive club. If anything happens to you, all the other members share in ensuring that your family gets a certain agreed amount of money. By the way, all these members belong to the better class of society. Would you like to join?'' Life insurance, like certain women's handbags, should be bought on their own merits. But people being what they are see ''branded'' goods as being worth the additional value.

12. For Peace Of Mind.

 

"You haven’t done anything wrong. You just haven’t done anything, and that’s what’s wrong."  - Ben Feldman

Death comes everyday to everyday to someone and someday to everyone.

It is the only certainty in life (of course, modern wags have added ''tax'' and bills as the other certainties). When a responsible person knows that he has made adequate preparation for a foreseeable event in the future, he has a sense of peace within himself and peace within himself.

Yet there are people who prefer to worry. Or worse still, take a risk. To be uninsured is the greatest gamble you can take. And it is a particularly tragic one, for if you lose, it is not you but your loved ones who lose.

Why worry when you can insure? In fact, why worry when for a small regular sum you can let the insurance company do the worrying for you?

11. A Security Against Creditors.

"The basic purpose of life insurance is to create cash…nothing more or nothing less. Everything else confuses and complicates." - Ben Feldman

''Mr Prospect, this bag of money can only be opened by your wife and children. Nobody else can touch this.'' Thanks to the provision of Section 75 (Singapore) and Section 23 (Malaysia) the proceeds of the life insurance policy is protected from any creditor.

Many people think that they do not have any creditors at the moment. But one may never know when a creditor may turn up. And when he comes, usually this will be at the worst possible time when the family can afford it. How sad to see houses and all types of assets being taken away because creditors have a legal right to them.

No business venture is guaranteed of success. Businessmen know the value of setting aside a guaranteed amount for their family, just in case things do not work out for the best. And if things do work out well, what a bonus is in store for the whole family. It becomes additional savings!

No widow should suffer the additional indignity of having her assets possessed because provision was not made for some money to be creditor free! Surely it is the honourable intention of every sensible provider to ensure the family continues to maintain the standard of living they have been used to.

10. Building A Retirement Fund.

“The biggest asset you have is your earning capacity, and that depends entirely on your attitude.”
  - Ben Feldman


How important is it to make more than adequate provision for retirement? How often do we see senior citizens still scrounging around to eke a survival-level existence? One elderly person summarised bitterly his situation: ''If there is no money to retire, you may as well expire''.

The average man-in-the-street may feel that between some savings, CPF and the family, retirement is not a serious problem. He may even say: ''I have enough for retirement''. The unsetting question is: ''For how long do you plan to retire?''

This is a question that is not easily answered. Nobody knows for how long one will retire! Its correct to work hard all your life. Its prudent to work smart and let life insurance help you answer this question in the affirmative: ''Why not arrange your affairs so that working after age 62 or 67 is optional?''

One commonly quoted guide is to consider that you should have 70% of our last drawn income to live on in your retirement. Even though most of the large ticket items would have been paid for, provision for escalating cost of living must be uppermost in mind.

Today, if a person is alive at 60, he has a very good chance of living till 80 or 83 (if a woman). Before you retire, you think it will be 90% about money and 10% of what you do. When you've become an ''active retiree'', its actually 10% about the money and 90% about what to do! If retirement is adequately planned for, you can adopt Richard Bolles'colourful prose and instead call it ''the fourth movement in the symphony of our lives''.

Recall: People who retire with money have decisions. People who retire without money have problems.

9. An Expression Of Love And Care For Family.

"No one ever died with too much money." - Ben Feldman


This is life insurance at its best. On Valentine's Day, a stalk of red rose may be an appropriate declaration of undying love. But a thoughtful policy bought for the sole benefit of the spouse and family puts it in a class of its own.

The average person may feel that buying various household items is a good expression of love and concern for the family. So, he buys a set of encyclopedia for the children... on installment. He buys a car so that they will have a more convenient form of transportation... on installment. He orders a piano for the musical benefit of the children... on installment. All well and good provided he lives long enough to see the end of the payments. But should something untoward happen to him, then every item on hire purchase will be taken away, leaving broken dreams and unfulfilled wishes.

It is true that those items mentioned earlier are tangible and may be of immediate use and enjoyment. But the wise parent-provider makes provision beyond immediate gratification. In itself it is a lesson to the family that:

''Its a mistaken kindness or misappropriated affection, to provide so well today that inadequate provision is made for tomorrow.''

Children are told today to study hard, not just for today, but to be ready for tomorrow. By buying life insurance, the parents have demonstrated a ''live case study'' for the children: that by taking care of tomorrow today, the future will take care of itself.