4 key reasons why you should make your own insurance decisions

This article is brought to you by Aegon Life.

For a large chunk of the Indian population, insurance is more of an afterthought, a means to save taxes or a “safe” investment made on the advice of others, on the lines of ‘buy that property’ or ‘invest in this company’. People tend to avoid giving serious thought into the long-term implications of buying insurance and its advantages or disadvantages.

However, letting others decide your future is an uncalculated risk that should be avoided at all costs. Here are some reasons why:

People will try and tell you what you should do and what you shouldn't. Suggestions about investments and other plans will pour in from all corners. But only you are aware of what kind of financial security your family requires, based on a number of factors you need to take into account while choosing your insurance plan.

KS Gopalkrishnan Managing Director and CEO, Aegon Life Insurance, says, “The first products should always be a term insurance, a health insurance and a critical illness insurance.” Once you have these, a life insurance or a retirement plan can be bought. It all depends on your family’s needs. Will it make more sense to get a health insurance or will a pension plan suffice? You have to weigh in everything and pick the right plan that’ll work for you and your loved ones.

Often people don’t buy an insurance till someone or a situation forces them to do it. They tend to forget that planning early is the key to a secure financial future. In fact, even when people get health insurance, it’s usually after they turn 40, when realisation of impending ailments hits them. Ideally, one should first get insurance when we start working or get married.

If you look at the numbers, a recent global study estimates that India is under insured by over 92 per cent. This is mainly because people delay getting themselves insured. According to KS Gopalakrishnan, “Nobody wakes up and says I want to buy life insurance today. So, they simply delay it.”

But if you’re educated and aware, you’ll know when it’s the right time to invest in a policy.

Insurance is a security blanket for your family’s future. This is why it is important to study and understand well which plan will suit you best. Do you need a life insurance plan or should you just opt for a retirement plan that your uncle also bought? It depends entirely on your requirements. You could need the proceeds to pay off taxes, or maybe to fund your spouse’s dream restaurant. There are plenty of plans that you can choose from and you need to pick the one best-suited to you. No one else can decide that for you.

Who doesn’t want a peaceful retired life? While the future may be uncertain, the one thing that everyone desires is a comfortable life after retirement. You may have a significant amount of savings, but they will not be enough to get you through your entire lifetime. You will end up outliving your savings by a huge margin.

However, there is always the option of investing in a retirement or pension plan to avoid such a situation. Again, this solely depends on how much you want to invest and what your future plans are. Tour the world, buy a beach house, go to concerts, or anything else that you may have in mind – do any of it or even all of it, but only because YOU made the decision to invest in a comfortable retired life.

A secure financial future is everyone’s dream come true. Making smart decisions about your financial future is of the utmost importance. When you have the power of making your own financial decisions, protecting the people you love becomes simpler. Insurance is a solid protection against uncertainty, which is precisely why everyone should invest in a good plan. However, buying insurance because someone told you to or because it seems like a trend is not your best bet. In fact, buying insurance for the wrong reasons may lead to drastic consequences.

Aegon Life Insurance’s iDecide emphasises just that - and educates the customer about making smart financial choices. So YOU decide to secure your family’s financial future