Why Life Insurance Is Necessary For Blended Families

As the holidays approach, the idea of taking care of our family means more to us. Having our loved ones get together for a nice meal and gift giving leaves us with great memories. 

However, when we think of the "traditional family" we think of a husband and wife and their two or three children, who all live together in one home until the kids become adults and move out. Even though there are still families in this situation, there are many people who have changed that concept. With social norms changing and people living longer, the family structure has been altered dramatically. 

Now we have parents raising children who are not theirs, biologically speaking. Think of the old Brady Bunch TV show where two parents who had their own kids remarried. Of course, on the show everything was great. The fact that Marcia was not Mike Brady's biological daughter was never brought up as a topic. 

There are those people who do love their step-kids or other children who have been brought into the home, like nieces and nephews . I know of one person in particular who is raising his wife's nephew because his sister-in-law had a drug problem. 

There are those who begrudgingly raise a spouse's children from a previous relationship to "keep the peace". And when problems arise, the kids want to move back to their other biological parent or some other option. In other words, tensions can, and in some cases, do get escalated to the point where children are going back and forth between parents or other adult family members. 

With all of this in mind, it's important to keep an even keel when it comes to estate planning with a blended family as it creates a whole set of issues. A will may seem like a good way of planning, but in fact, life insurance could be a better option to make sure those who are intended to benefit will be taken care of in the eventual death of a parent. And in the flexibility of naming and changing beneficiaries, as well as listing primary and contingent beneficiaries, makes it incredibly easy to take care of the family's estate planning needs. 

As an attorney friend of mine says, "A life insurance policy trumps a will because it's a legally binding contract." The "yours, mine and ours" scenario can be very confusing for most families when it comes to estate planning, and life insurance can be the answer that is needed. It can help avoid a long and drawn out estate process and keep the peace within a family. 

Chris Castanes is the president of Surf Financial Brokers, helping people find affordable life, disability, long term care, cancer, accident and other insurance coverages in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee and Georgia. He's also is a professional speaker helping sales people be more productive and efficient, and has spoken to professional and civic organizations throughout the Southeast. And please subscribe to this blog!

What The Heck Is An Elimination Period?

As you may know, I often refer to the "Holy Trinity Of Insurance", which consists of major medical insurance, life insurance and, of course, disability insurance. Many people have a disability insurance (DI) policy through their work, but unfortunately, not enough people who are contract employees, business owners and otherwise "self-employed" people (like myself) have an individual DI plan. That's a discussion for another day. 

I often speak to groups of employees when I am enrolling benefits, and when I discuss the DI plan, many of the employees ask what the elimination period is when they see it. 

Simply put, the elimination period is the time, usually in days, before the policy actually begins to pay out benefits. There are typically two numbers with a comma between them, such as "0,7" or "7,14". The first number is the number of days that need to elapse before the policy will pay for an accident, while the second number is the waiting period for the benefits to trigger during an illness.

In other words, the elimination period is like a deductible, but measured in time instead of dollars. So a 0,7 elimination period means that the policy will begin to pay benefits on the first day after an accident and the eighth day after a sickness.

Just like your deductible on your car or health insurance, the higher the number, the lower your premium. If you think you can "self-insure" for a month or two, your premiums can be reduced significantly. 

When one thinks of a disability, injuries from auto accidents come to mind. But consider that almost 90% of DI claims are for illnesses, like cancer. Treatment can last for months and can easily keep someone from working.  

If you have questions about Disability Insurance or other insurance products we offer, feel free to book a short phone appointment with us to discuss. In the meantime, please stay healthy!

Chris Castanes is the president of Surf Financial Brokers, helping people find affordable life, disability, long term care, cancer, accident and other insurance coverages in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee and Georgia. He's also is a professional speaker helping sales people be more productive and efficient, and has spoken to professional and civic organizations throughout the Southeast. And please subscribe to this blog!

We Only Sell You What You Need! (and some humor)

We have all heard the adage that a good salesperson can sell ice to an Eskimo. But a salesperson with integrity will ask, "Does that Eskimo really need ice, and if not, why are you selling it to him or her?"  The question implies that sales people, entrepreneurs, contract employees and business owners must do their absolute best to come off as honest and not shady.

Think about those TV commercials for attorneys. There are two types - the ones who try to act sincere about how they really want to help, and the ones who scream and boast about how much money they get their clients. Neither is awesome, but the latter comes off like a used car salesman. Integrity? I'll plead the fifth. 

Selling on need means that there needs to be a discussion (short or long) to find out what the client's needs are. And everyone has different needs, despite what some of the financial "gurus" in the media assume when they give generic advice. That discussion will let everyone involved in the sales process know that we are doing our best by our client. 

The Funny Part

I was speaking to the Regional VP for Disability Sales at one of the insurance carriers I represent. We were discussing a YouTube video I had made a few months earlier titled "Can Zombies Get Life Insurance?" In that conversation he asked if vampires could get Long Term Care insurance. "Well, you certainly wouldn't sell them a policy with a lifetime benefit because they don't die. A company could go broke paying that claim!" Once again, this guy showed me why he's a lot smarter than I am.

But the conversation made me think. For several weeks, I have considered the "vampire market" and wondered if there were suitable products for such a niche market. My list looked like this.

1. Life insurance - Vampires don't die, unless by a wooden stake or sunlight. Life coverage may not be necessary.
2. Accident insurance - Most accidents will cover severe sunburns, as well as wooden stakes that accidentally pierce the heart. 
3. Long Term Care insurance - I'm not sure if being "undead" is a chronic illness.
4. Disability insurance - Tricky, because we are assuming that vampires have incomes to protect.  
5. Medical insurance - Assuming vampires need to be hospitalized, what doctor would know how to treat them? 

Let us make sure you are purchasing what you need and not what pays the highest commission. And if you aren't sure what you need, you can book a quick conversation with us from our website. We look forward to hearing from you.

Chris Castanes is the president of Surf Financial Brokers, helping people find affordable life, disability, long term care, cancer, accident and other insurance coverages in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee and Georgia. He's also is a professional speaker helping sales people be more productive and efficient, and has spoken to professional and civic organizations throughout the Southeast. And please subscribe to this blog!

Is Life Insurance Through Your Work Enough?

Many of us who are self-employed don't always get to enjoy the perks of group benefits, like medical coverage and paid time off. But for those who do have jobs where the company pays for extra perks, those perks may be good, but not awesome.

One of the issues I run into quite often with people who have "bennies" through work is the idea that their group life insurance program is all they need. For some it may be, but for many people that coverage is much less than what they actually need and it more than likely won't be there if these people leave their jobs.

One of my first real jobs was working for a large company that did offer life insurance. They offered me coverage of my annual salary, which was next to nothing, and I could buy additional coverage, like 2 or 3 times my salary for a few dollars each month. There were no exams or health questions, and I got as much as I could for the price of a coffee at Starbucks. I was single and didn't have much debt, so I figured that if something were to happen to me, my family would have enough to pay for a funeral and maybe even have some hor d'oeuvres. In other words, the life insurance plan was appropriate for my needs.

However, there were co-workers of mine who were married and had children. These folks also had mortgages, car payments and other expenses that I didn't have. I seriously doubt that the small amount of life insurance offered was enough to give their families the safety net they needed if they were to die. And when the company was sold and employees started to jump ship like rats, they lost the little coverage they had.

Having life insurance coverage through your work is good, and most agents will take that into account when trying to determine how much you actually need. There are several other items to consider when you calculate your family's needs.

1. Outstanding debt. Mortgage balance, credit cards and car payments should be included.
2. Final expenses. Funeral costs and other costs associated with dying. For instance, many people will spend time in the hospital before passing away, and those deductibles may need to be met.
3. Replacing lost income. Your survivors depend on your income to take care of everyday expenses, as well as those bills that happen to pop up unexpectedly, like repairs for appliances and vehicles. 
4. Education costs. If you have small children, you may want to include the costs of higher education.

Having life insurance through work is good, but making sure you have enough coverage is even better. If you aren't sure how much you need, Our life insurance quoting tool has a built in calculator that will help you out. Give it a try and in the meantime, stay healthy!

Chris Castanes is the president of Surf Financial Brokers, helping people find affordable life, disability, long term care, cancer, accident and other insurance coverages in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee and Georgia. He's also is a professional speaker helping sales people be more productive and efficient, and has spoken to professional and civic organizations throughout the Southeast. And please subscribe to this blog!

Does The Non-Breadwinner In The Family Need Life Insurance?

Recently I was reading an article on all of the reasons people fail to buy life, disability and other types of insurance. Apparently there are a lot of misconceptions floating about and I wanted to take the opportunity to hopefully correct these ideas. Taking them one at at time I hope to explain these misconceptions over the next few posts.

Last week I was talking with a couple who were doing okay financially. They realized that they were fortunate enough that one of them could stay home with their small kids while the other was the main breadwinner. In this situation, the wife worked and the husband stayed home and had a small consulting business, which by their estimation was "more of a hobby". I took that as meaning he didn't bring a lot of money into the household.

We discussed life insurance for the wife and ran the numbers to pay off the debt and replace her income for a few years. They both agreed that she needed to be covered. When I asked about the husband, there was a bit of confusion. "He really isn't contributing to the bills, so I don't think he needs a policy," the wife said.

The husband, who I thought would pipe up and say something, sat there nodding in agreement. I asked a couple of simple questions: If he were to die unexpectedly, how much would she need to pay for childcare? Or would she want to take time off from work to stay home with the kids?

This was obviously something neither had considered. Especially when neither of them had family nearby. The kids were young and only one was enrolled in school, so the other child would need to either be enrolled in a daycare or preschool, or they would need to have someone come into the home, like a nanny. 

When I explained what that kind of care costs, they were taken aback a little. I tried to ease their concern and let them know that a term life insurance would be much less expensive and, in the event of the husband's death, could cover the expenses for childcare plus his funeral costs, which they also failed to plan for. 

When a family member is not the breadwinner, it doesn't mean that they don't need life insurance. As a matter of fact, we even offer a disability policy on stay-at-home parents to help replace the costs of daycare. 

What are your thoughts? Leave us a comment below.

Chris Castanes is the president of Surf Financial Brokers, helping people find affordable life, disability, long term care, cancer, accident and other insurance coverages in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee and Georgia. He's also is a professional speaker helping sales people be more productive and efficient, and has spoken to professional and civic organizations throughout the Southeast. And please subscribe to this blog!

What Are You Buying Online? 2023

When I originally got into the insurance business the internet didn't exist. Agents would carry rate books with incredibly small print and have to calculate the premiums and fees by hand. Needless to say mistakes were a common occurrence, and I was one of the biggest culprits of quoting someone an incorrect price. 

At that time (back in the 1980's) we were taught a method of prospecting which involved networking and learning verbiage to ask for referrals. The networking part was not as bad as it would seem because I am comfortable talking to strangers. And I found out later that most of the people I was trying to connect with were not as comfortable as I was in that situation. On the other hand, though, the referral part was hard for me.

Let's face it, most people don't like to give referrals. When I have asked for referrals in the past I can sense the tension build and the wheels turn in my client's head. I understand the trepidation because I have been on that side of the situation as well. You give a friend's name and the next thing you know your friend calls you angrily. "Why did you give that insurance agent my name?"

Unfortunately, things haven't changed much since then. There are still companies out there trying to teach their new agents the old school ways. This is because they believe that insurance selling is built upon a relationship of trust. There's nothing wrong with that, but people in general, and younger people specifically, don't feel the need to have that relationship anymore. 

From an insurance agency standpoint, we still do some of the same "old school" things, but with the internet available, we can now market to a wider geographical area without having to be physically able to see and talk to our clients. Zoom and other tools have given agents access to people who need our products and services from multiple states.

This is evident by the increasing numbers of people who are buying financial products on the internet. Things like auto insurance, life insurance, investments and banking were handled in person by an agent or advisor, and they still are. However many people feel they no longer need, or want, to deal with someone for these types of services.

Personally speaking, I began purchasing my car insurance online years ago, as well as my small investment portfolio. By doing this, it keeps more money in my pocket and I don't have to wait for someone to return a phone call or be in their office. Convenience is the name of the game.

With that in mind, we have done our best to make available more products on our website that clients can look at when it is convenient for them. And if someone wants to speak to a real person, we have made our calendar available for a phone appointment accessible too. 

Check out our website and run a quote, and if you see a rate you like that fits into your budget, you can even start an application. We want to make things as convenient for our clients as possible. In the meantime, please stay healthy!

Chris Castanes is the president of Surf Financial Brokers, helping people find affordable life, disability, long term care, cancer, accident and other insurance coverages in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee and Georgia. He's also is a professional speaker helping sales people be more productive and efficient, and has spoken to professional and civic organizations throughout the Southeast. And please subscribe to this blog!

The Basics Of Dental Insurance

One of the most popular benefits people want to discuss when enrolling for their benefits is their dental insurance. I have always felt that the reason they ask about dental coverage is because they know they will use it, even if it's just for the preventative benefits. And in the back of everyone's mind is the scenario of breaking a tooth while eating popcorn or a candy bar. 

Dental insurance, like health insurance, is typically supported by networks of doctors, who agree to fees for certain services. This can help dental patients with the fees for "basic" services such as fillings or extractions, or "major" services, like root canals or crowns.

There are plans available that will allow one to go out of the network for these services, which may mean paying more out of pocket, but they still cover the bulk of the costs. For those who live in rural areas where finding a doctor in a certain network can be difficult, this is a still a good option.

And there can be waiting periods, depending on the plan. I have seen some plans that only cover preventative (cleanings and x-rays) for the first year, while others may offer basic services. 

There is a good reason for this. Many people will tell me "I need a root canal, so I better get some dental insurance." The insurance carrier doesn't want to receive a couple of months of premiums (let's say $200 for the family) and have to pay out a $2000 claim right off the bat. Makes sense.

At Surf Financial Brokers, shopped around and looked at several plans that our clients would want. So now we offer a plan that includes vision and hearing coverage as well, and allows clients to receive services in or out of the network. If you are interested in such a plan, you can go to our website and run your own quote for you or your whole family. And if you see a plan you like, you can even start your own application. 

Dental coverage is an important way to avoid unforeseen situations that are painful, inconvenient and expensive. And our teeth are important for our quality of life, as well as part of a great smile.

Chris Castanes is the president of Surf Financial Brokers, helping people find affordable life, disability, long term care, cancer, accident and other insurance coverages in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee and Georgia. He's also is a professional speaker helping sales people be more productive and efficient, and has spoken to professional and civic organizations throughout the Southeast. And please subscribe to this blog!