My husband has a $250,000 policy, and I have a $100,000 policy. We are strongly considering taking out a policy for each of our 3 children. Any recommendations at all? I'm not very experienced with this and am looking for any info AT ALL that you guys can offer. Thanks so much in advance

By Marg on Thursday, February 12, 2004 - 03:23 pm:

Lots of plans out there Amy. We have life insurance on all 3 dds because if something would happen the funeral costs. Terrible thing to think about isn't it.

Maybe look to who you have dh and your policies through. That's how we have ours set up.

By Colette on Thursday, February 12, 2004 - 03:25 pm:

I don't have life insurance on any of my dks. We have 500k on dh, nothing on me (if I died we have enough to bury me and his relatives would insist on stepping in w/the childcare and I do not contribute financially) we have enough to bury the dks if we had to so I don't see the point.

By Mommmie on Thursday, February 12, 2004 - 03:28 pm:

I think life insurance for kids is only necessary to cover funeral expenses if you don't already have the extra funds. Otherwise, there's no point really. What income/work hours would it be replacing?

By Cat on Thursday, February 12, 2004 - 03:36 pm:

Amy, my dh has the standard military policy, too. The kids and I all have variable policies through Prudential. They increase in value the longer you have them. You can also take money out of them (after a certain amount of time) if you need to. Like when the kids turn 18 if they wanted they could cash in on their policies (and then we'd beat them to within an inch of their lives! lol). All you really need on children is enough to bury them if the unthinkable should happen. Funeral costs today are outrageous. Whole life policies are cheaper, but don't increase in value. We have $100 taken out of dh's check every month automatically to pay for the kids and me (theirs are each just under $30 a month and mine is just under $40 a month). Dh is looking for something for him because he's going to be retiring next summer (yeah!). He'll probably end up getting a whole life policy because policies cost more as you get older and a variable policy for someone his age would be very expensive! Our kids were both locked in before they were 1yo and I was only 23 when I got mine. Eventually we should be able to stop paying monthly for ours because they should earn enough interest to pay for themselves. They just won't increase as much in value. Anyway, I'd check out some different companies. Do you guys have wills (while we're talking about unpleasant subjects)? You can get that done at the legal office on post. We need to update ours (did it when Robin was a baby--10 years ago!). Just my 2cents.

By Trisa on Thursday, February 12, 2004 - 04:33 pm:

WE have a policy on both our kids.
Its very cheap if you get it when they are young.

By Ladypeacek on Thursday, February 12, 2004 - 05:02 pm:

yeah we have policy for 5k on each, just enough to cover funeral, we decided to so that if that something, god forbid, did happen that we could take care of that so it would not be any more stressful than something like that would be already. I know it feels like a bad thing but it does give you the piece of mind that you would be able to grieve without worrying about money at a time like that.

By Kaye on Thursday, February 12, 2004 - 05:21 pm:

I just want to ditto the cost of funerals! Although we hope nothing would ever happen, the last thing you want to deal with during a crisis is finding money. In general it cost about 10K to have a funeral. They want paid when services are rendered, so coming up with that cash is often difficult. Certainly we would have enough to cover it if something were to happen, but what if somethign happened to all three? I think it is a wise thing to have small policies on children.

By Mommyathome on Thursday, February 12, 2004 - 05:41 pm:

My DH's work insurance covers our kids at $5K each (I think).
When I was growing up my parents had insurance on me...I can't remember the name right now, but I will look it up if you would like me too. It was only like $15 every 3 months. When I turned 21 the policy switched into my name and the premiums increased to $20.00 a month. The coverage was for $10K until I turned 21 and then went up after that. It also has a cash value, but I'm not sure how that works.
I think having life insurance on kids is a good idea.

By Ginny~moderator on Thursday, February 12, 2004 - 06:55 pm:

There is no reason to take out life insurance on your children. The only reason for life insurance is to provide protection for the people who are dependant on you and who would have extraordinary medical expenses if you died. Unless your child/ren make major contributions to your household income that is not an issue other than, as some point out, burial expenses.

For insurance on myself, I carried term insurance when my kids were at home and had not yet finished school - an amount that, combined with dependant Social Security, would see them through college. When my mom was alive and we bought a house together I carried term insurance that would pay off the mortgage and a hunk left over if I died. Now that Mom is dead and my kids are (mostly) independent, the only life insurance I have is what my employer pays for, which is one year's salary. That would cover all "final expenses" and pay the mortgage until the house was sold, which is all that is needed. I pay for the protection on my credit cards so that any balance is paid off if I become disabled or die. I don't think I need anything else. I paid $25 many years ago to be a member of our local burial society. When mom died, through the society cremation was about $800; my church has a columbarium and I bought a niche for $250 plus getting a small brass plate engraved, and it is there forever. My brother is in a niche, and my mom and dad share a niche. My kids know that they should do the same for me. We had memorial services for my brother, dad and mom at my church, rather than funeral services.

Personally, I agree with Consumer Reports. Carrying whole life insurance that has a cash value, rather than term insurance, is a very expensive way to save. If you view insurance as savings (for the cash value), don't, unless you are simply unable to save in any other way. Buy term insurance, which is a whole, whole lot cheaper, and bank the difference until you have enough to buy a CD, and keep that up.

Cat, do look into term insurance. Variable policies are usually much costlier. I know Consumer Reports runs an article in life insurance every couple of years - check at your library for back issues.

By Ginny~moderator on Thursday, February 12, 2004 - 06:59 pm:

Collette, I suggest you and your dh think about term insurance on you - something that would pay for child care and housekeeper until the kids are reasonably grown. I know and you know your relatives would step in, but your dh might like the option of being able to manage without relatives who will undoubtedly help tremendously but might then want a voice in decision making and discipline. I say term insurance because what you need is something to cover until the youngest is about 16, and then you don't need insurance.

Term insurance is really cheap - I see ads frequently from very highly rated companies at something like $400 a year or less for a 35 year old non-smoker. Of course, it goes up every 5 or 10 years, but after a certain point you won't need it or will cut back on the level of coverage.

By Marcia on Thursday, February 12, 2004 - 07:17 pm:

We have term insurance on all of us. Stephen and I have enough to cover all expenses and them a bunch, if either of us died.
Burial is enough of a reason to have coverage on your kids. It is very expensive, and I'm sure not many of us have that much spare cash lying around!
Our kids are riders on our policies, so it costs next to nothing to cover them for $10,000 each.

By Mommyathome on Thursday, February 12, 2004 - 07:23 pm:

I agree Marcia. If, heaven forbid, something happened to one of my kids there is no way we could pull together enough money for a burial. With the insurance, it's already taken care of. One less thing to worry about in such a difficult time.

By Renee on Thursday, February 12, 2004 - 07:51 pm:

I have insurance on my 4 children. Its only enough to cover burial but I am so glad we purchased it. Not only do we have money to bury our child if anything were to happen to a child, but also one of our children was dx'd with a condition after the insurance went into effect and now would not be easily insured in the future. His policy will convert when he is an adult so I am happy he will at least have something then.

By Texannie on Thursday, February 12, 2004 - 08:08 pm:

I buried my mom last year, and she hated everything about funeral expenses so we really went the budget route and it was still almost $8,000!!

By Tonya on Thursday, February 12, 2004 - 08:31 pm:

I pay under $10 a month for a $15,000 policy on Timmy and when this one is born I will add her to it drop Timmy's down to 10K and puts hers at the same that way we will cover all expenses if we had to for a funeral. At 21 they convert over to the child as adult coverage and it is all through Gerber.

By Pamt on Friday, February 13, 2004 - 09:30 am:

I agree with Ginny. Life insurance is not necessary for children and term life is MUCH better that whole life for young adults. There was a big write-up a few years ago about some scam involving the Gerber life insurance policies that I remember reading. I think funerals are a huge racket anyway. We plan on being cremated (after all of our organs are donated) as neither DH and I can fathom spending thousands of dollars on a burial. Plus family incurs the "guilt" that they have to keep up a grave plot, take flowers on holidays, etc. We might look at buying a columbarium to inter our ashes, just so family has a place "to visit," but we are largely nomads and home is wherever we happen to be at the time, so I have no idea what state even to be interred in. Maybe we'll just be scattered and done with it all. I don't care where my body ends up, since I know where my soul will be.

By Texannie on Friday, February 13, 2004 - 11:30 am:

Pam, do you realize you still have to buy a casket if you get cremated? It's such a racket!!!
My bil was cremated for the same reasons.

By Ginny~moderator on Friday, February 13, 2004 - 11:34 am:

Texannie, depends on the state. In Pennsylvania, no casket is required and I opted against for both my mom and dad. When my brother died in NC, a casket was required and I got the cheapest pine box, and the cost was still outrageous - something like $4,000 for pine box and cremation and urn and shipping urn to Pennsylvania. But cremation is not very popular in NC and it was the only crematory for some miles.

Pennsylvania, and especially the Philadelphia area, has more choices. And has a significant orthodox Jewish population whose beliefs require a pine box, no preparation of the body, and burial within 24 hours.

My sons know I am an organ donor, and if that is not feasible (depends on the cause of death), my body goes to a medical school if at all possible. Cheapest cremation, memorial service, niche at my church.

By Ginny~moderator on Friday, February 13, 2004 - 11:35 am:

Mark it on the wall - Pamt and I are in agreement - again. It does happen, but not often. However, when we disagree we do it in the best of good manners and good humor.

By Marcia on Friday, February 13, 2004 - 11:37 am:

Don't fool yourself into thinking cremation and a no frills funeral won't cost you a bundle. Sonja died only a month ago. She had a rented casket, because she was cremated. The funeral home didn't do any work on her, because her dad didn't want them to. Her ashes will be buried in the back yard, beside her grandfather's. It still cost a ton, because that's what they charge.
If you can afford it, that's wonderful. We sure can't.

By Mommyathome on Friday, February 13, 2004 - 08:02 pm:

No casket required in my state for cremation either. I didn't know that some places you still had to buy a casket regardless. That's nuts. We won't be cremated for "religious reasons" (for lack of a better, short explanation!), but like Marcia said I think it is still quite expensive. It costs a bundle just for the mortuary to pick your body up from the hospital. They charge for every little thing.
We have EXTREMELY nice morticians when my parents died. They were the best they could be. I am glad that I really liked them, because if I didn't, I'm sure I would have had a huge fit over the charges! But, my parents were worth it