Insurance and the Single Parent

Life Insurance

As a single parent you are the only adult shouldering the responsibilities of caring for, and protecting, your family. Your biggest challenge is keeping the household going, whilst making sure that if anything happens to you, your children are financially protected.

That is where Life Insurance plays a key role.

A Life Insurance policy is designed so that it can help you to replace lost income, and can provide funds to care for surviving family members. Should anything happen to you, your policy can help legal guardians to support your children.

What To Do

• Ask the children’s other parent about his or her insurance status, even if they are not contributing child support.
• Choose legal guardians for your children. Take your time over selecting individuals who are willing, and capable of taking full responsibility of your children on a full-time basis. Make sure they are fully aware that this is a legal responsibility and also a financial burden, and not simply an honour.
• Arrange to review your insurance policy. Contact your insurer for an appointment.
• If you haven’t done so already draft a Will. Verbal instructions carry no weight at all in probate court, so you will have to issue written confirmation of your requests. If you die interstate – without a Will – everything involving your children, and estate, will be decided a probate judge.

Disability Income Protection

Unexpected medical problems can occur at any time. If this happened to you, and you were unable to work, how would you cover your bills and support your family? Disability Insurance will cover a portion of your salary, if you become ill or disabled and are not able to return to work immediately.

It is important to check the details of your Income Protection policy, so that you know if any exclusions apply. It is also worth knowing if your policy provides you with basic medical, basic hospital or major medical insurance.

Single Parent Family Health Insurance

This provides choices when an illness or injury occurs. Private Health Insurance gives individuals the freedom to decide when they are treated, where and by which specialist. This type of insurance policy can cover in-patient and out-patient care, and can also include alternative/complementary therapies, rehabilitation and psychiatric care benefits.

Many insurance companies will offer single parent families a discount for annual premium payments.

Travel Insurance

Having to foot the bill for a fortnight away, as a single parent, is a hefty amount to have to deal with. Single Parent Families are penalised in many aspects of travelling abroad, and Travel Insurance is one of them. Many insurance companies charge single parent families as much as a two parent family because they have, as yet, failed to realise that a family does not have to consist of two adults.

On a positive note however, more and more companies are wising up to the fact and are now offering Single Family travel coverage. Shopping around will enable a single parent family to find worldwide travel insurance coverage for one adult and up to 3 children. Grandparents can also use this deal, and can add their grandchildren on their travel insurance policy for free.