Managing your family's financial risk

There are many types of insurances to help protect your family.

An important part of financial security is ensuring that your family’s insurance needs are met. Insurance is one way to prevent devastating financial consequences for your family when unexpected life events happen.

There are varieties of insurances available to help you and your family guard against risk. Financial risk is the chance that your family may experience a loss of income or overwhelming expenses when something unexpected happens. The best way to prepare for such risks is to choose the appropriate kind and amount of insurance coverage. Understanding and exploring your options is a way to plan for potential future risks.

When you and your family are cutting back on expenses, you might consider discontinuing insurance coverage as an area where you could save money. Michigan State University Extension recommends that you reconsider this action and instead, look at possible ways to decrease the cost of your insurance coverage.

Six tips for reducing the cost of automobile, homeowners, health and life insurances
  1. Multiply policy discount: Many insurance companies will offer discounts based on the number of policies you have with them.
  2. Install safety equipment: Ask your insurance company what safety feature will provide you the most discounts on your policies. Many times the cost of these features will deliver you a larger return in insurance savings over the cost of purchasing them.
  3. Long time policy owner: The longer you stay with an insurance carrier; this will often provide you an opportunity to lower your insurance premiums. Companies do not like to lose customers and if you have been a loyal patron, they often will negotiate to keep you.
  4. Stay healthy: More health insurance companies are rewarding customers that maintain a healthy lifestyle by lower health insurance premiums.
  5. Increasing deductibles on policy: This will lower your premiums but in return, you need to make sure you have saved the money to cover your share of the cost. One consideration to save for deductibles is by using health saving accounts.
  6. Search for discounts: Many associations, unions and credit unions offer their members opportunities to qualify for discounts on insurances. Typically, it is a percentage discount but definitely worth investigating.

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