When you take out a life-insurance policy, you are choosing to protect your family should the worst come to pass and you die prematurely. Life insurance is an important aspect of financial planning, and many people decide to purchase a policy for their peace of mind.
However, when you buy life insurance, you may not be thinking too much about the way in which you actually die. And, it has come as a surprise to many that Virgin Money is now providing a life-insurance policy that covers some rather unusual ways of passing away.
Death By Loch Ness Monster
Virgin Money is now providing coverage for a number of causes of death that you may not typically think of as risks in your day-to-day life.
These include being killed by the Loch Ness Monster, a Dalek, a Sharknado, a Transformer and a giant marshmallow man, to name a few.
It is certainly providing coverage for every eventuality, which is welcome, but it may seem just a little bit odd for anyone considering buying insurance.
Method to the Madness
Despite seeming ridiculous, Virgin Money promises there is a reason for its strange causes of death, which is to highlight the seriousness and importance of life insurance.
Jeremy Creyer from Gocompare Life Insurance commented “We love this campaign from Virgin Money, it’s a great example of using fun PR to highlight a serious issue. Many families do not have any life insurance cover which could leave a large amount of debt if a family member dies”.
By bringing more attention to life insurance, the company is hoping to convince more people to see it as a serious form of coverage. After all, although the causes of death are unlikely or impossible, the chances of dying in an accident are very real—and perhaps greater than most people realise.
Time to Worry About the Real Dangers in Life
Virgin Money Director Darrell Evans has said that the light-hearted idea of covering strange causes of death was being done to “highlight the importance of life insurance.” He said that our sense of risk is “skewed” and that we spend a lot of time “imagining the things that will never happen” when actually the chances of dying in an accident are very real.
The fact is that many people simply don’t think about the possibility of dying and the financial effects that death could have on those we leave behind.
Most People Do Not Have Life Insurance
So, how many people actually have a life insurance policy in place? The Daily Mail took a poll and found that just 23 percent of British adults have life insurance. The poll questioned 16,000 people across the UK and found that, in London, the percentage of people with coverage went down to just 15% (compared to 31% in Northern Ireland).
Why Get Life Insurance?
Despite the low numbers of people who actually have life insurance in the UK, it should really be seen as one of the most important types of coverage. While it is true that, if you do not have any dependents, the coverage may be less useful, people who do have dependents may want to think more carefully about having coverage in place.
The main question to ask yourself is, “What would my family do if I was not around to support them? Could they survive without my income? Which expenses would they not be able to afford, including the mortgage, school fees and childcare costs?”
Your partner may have to work extra hours, which could increase the amount you have to spend on childcare. These are all things to consider because, in addition to the trauma of losing you, they could find themselves in a bad position, financially.
By investing in life insurance, you could help them to avoid such financial hardship if something happened to you. This can give you all peace of mind that even the most unexpected cause of death will not lead to unnecessary financial suffering, while mentally suffering from their loss of you.
Find Out Whether Life Insurance Is Suitable for You
If you have never thought about life insurance before, use the example of Virgin Money’s strange methods of dying to start thinking more seriously about what would happen if you were no longer around. Your chances of being killed by a Martian death ray may be low to none, but more everyday accidents and illnesses are real risks that can affect you and your family.
Start by having a look at what is covered by various life insurance policies, and look at the various types of policies available to find one that may be suitable for you. You may be pleasantly surprised to find that many policies do not have particularly large premiums, making this an affordable type of coverage that can provide you and your family with peace of mind, no matter what happens in life (and death).
James Hendrickson is an internet entrepreneur, blogging junky, hunter and personal finance geek. When he’s not lurking in coffee shops in Portland, Oregon, you’ll find him in the Pacific Northwest’s great outdoors. James has a masters degree in Sociology from the University of Maryland at College Park and a Bachelors degree on Sociology from Earlham College. He loves individual stocks, bonds and precious metals.