Comments on: A Life Without Debt: Insurance Helps

By: Tony

Tony — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 04:14:51 +0000

Insurance is necessary at times of course, but I personally believe in keeping it at a minimum. I look at it this way. The insurance companies are able to pay their staff and other expenses while making money for a reason. They take in more than they pay out.

Therefore, I believe in skipping insurance on anything you can pay for yourself if at all possible and investing the money on your own.

By: Gail

Gail — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 21:00:27 +0000

Emily, if you mean you are looking for long term care insurance for your father who is already elderly and has had a stroke, it is probably already too late as the premiums would be out of sight if they would write a policy for him at this point anyhow. My in laws had long term care insurance policies and had to drop them as they finally couldn’t afford the premiums any more and they are basically healthy. If you think your father is going to need nursing home care soon, you should talk with the social workers at several nursing homes and they will be able to give you the scoop on nursing home costs, what Medicaid and Medicare will pay, etc. as each state and circumstance is different.

If you are looking into long term care insurance for yourself, I can’t answer that as it is something we can’t afford for ourselves and so haven’t actually looked into it.

By: Emily Booth

Emily Booth — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 20:35:20 +0000

I’m curious about your long term care insurance. It’s something I’m looking into after caring for an elderly father who had a stroke. How did you decide on which long term policy to get?

By: getforfree

getforfree — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 15:50:20 +0000

It’s ok to pay for all those insurance if you have high and stable income. But if you are going into debt just to keep all these policies, it’s not worth it. Even if you insure yourself for all the bad things that might happen to you, you will end up spending tons of money and might get nothing in return. That’s how the insurance companies make their profits.

By: Gail

Gail — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 14:33:56 +0000

When I got sick almost 8 years ago, my short term disability policy was a very handy thing to have. It eventually paid out $10,000 to me and the premium had been only about $30 a month for a couple of years. Unfortunately no long term disability was available otherwise I would still be collecting it. Having a sudden illness that knocks the socks off you is much easier to take when you still have the equivilant of your paycheck coming in less taxes (and there is no income tax on disability insurance that you paid for). On another frugal board a woman my age thought short term disability was worthless as she felt she could ‘self insure’–well if that is how she wants to spend her savings, I didn’t have it saved so the insurance was a God send.

By: Monkey Mama

Monkey Mama — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 01:45:11 +0000

The average American is definitely WAY under-insured. Though paying more is not always better, I *get* where you are coming from with this article.

I think to take it a step further – it is always good to insure for catastrophe. Insuring for little things that can be saved for in cash makes little sense.

Reminds me, though, we moved into a 100-year-flood-zone and immediately got flood insurance (I grew up in a 100-year-flood-zone – never flooded, but came close). Anyway, they downgraded us to a 10-year-flood zone or something (long story) and the government was offering a discount (one that lasted for many years) for people who got mandatory insurance before the deadline. The statistics on who does not have flood insurance here is insane – it’s been compared to the next New Orleans, for many years – and like only 10% of people here had flood insurance. Anyway, flood insurance is now mandatory here – a lot of people still don’t have it. OF course, during this time all sorts of people were trying to sell us flood insurance. Um, had it ten years? Thanks?

By: M E 2

M E 2 — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 16:35:12 +0000

Adequate insurance doesn’t guarantee squat.

I wish I could remember the exact figures, but, I am fairly sure it said that most of health-related bankruptcies were filed by people WITH health insurance.

By: anonymous

anonymous — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 16:33:40 +0000

How much are you paying for the various insurances? What percentage of you income is that?

By: Jay Gatsby

Jay Gatsby — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 13:30:26 +0000

I absolutely agree that adequate insurance is essential. You’re better off skipping your annual family vacation than failing to having sufficient insurance. If you think you’re paying too much for insurance, then shop around a bit for lower premiums. Consider consolidating your insurance with one carrier for a volume discount.

In the end, it’s better to let an insurance company pay the costs of a major liability than you.