We have all seen movies on TV where there are two different endings to a story.  It is usually a family ghost or an angel from heaven that has been sent to show a person the consequences of their decisions in life!

There is a happy ending & a not so happy ending, with the person having a second chance to go back & make things right.

This of course is make believe as in real life, we sometimes only get one chance to get things right.  For some people, they don’t even get this chance as an unexpected event occurs which leads to grief.

This is particularly true in relation to life insurance!

Here are two stories outlining a family scenario below, highlighting the financial impact both with & without adequate Life insurance cover!

As they also say in the movies, “the following story is based on true events”.

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Unless you have been living under a rock for the last year or so, you would be aware that momentum is starting to build in the risk insurance space!

Whether you have insurance or not, very few of you can deny the value or importance of financially protecting both yourselves & family.

As important as it is, it has been found that only a small percentage of our population have adequate cover in place to financially protect against serious illness, injury or premature death.

The reluctancy for Australians to adequately protect themselves through personal insurance has created a huge market in the risk insurance space!

For any of you who have recently taken a sick day, it’s almost impossible to watch TV without a life insurance advertisement coming on.

It’s bad enough that we have to be exposed to the horrors of such shows as ‘Ellen’ or ‘Oprah’ while we are recovering, let alone tacky life insurance ads!

The bulk of these ads are created by the direct insurance providers who promote the process of quick & easy insurance.

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I would like to share with you a typical scenario that I come across regularly, working as a risk adviser in the industry.

There is nothing unusual about Mr & Mrs Jones.  Mr Jones is a self employed electrician, while Mrs Jones is a stay at home mum, primarily involved with maintaining the home & looking after the children.

Mr Jones had noticed over the last couple of months that health-wise, something wasn’t right.  He booked an appointment in with his GP who referred him on to a specialist for further tests.

Unfortunately a malignant cancer was detected & even though it was still at it’s early stages, treatment was necessary.

The doctor confirmed that there was a very good chance that he would recover, however he would need to spend at least 3 or 4 months away from work during the treatment & recovery phase.

This news provided some reassurance medically, however their thoughts were now focused on their situation financially.

Being the sole income earner & realising that they only had savings to assist them for about a week or two, how would they meet their financial obligations?

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If I had a dollar for each time the words ‘I don’t need personal insurance’ were mentioned, I would be relaxing on a tropical beach right now instead of writing this blog!

What scares me the most is that these words are coming from people who are financially responsible for their family or business!

It’s vital that we don’t associate a lack of enthusiasm or need for insurance with a genuine belief that it isn’t necessary!  The majority of the people that I come across as an adviser are educated & intelligent.

Even so, I find myself having to paint a picture of what can go wrong, in order to convince them of the benefits of personal insurance.

Here’s an example.  Mr Smith, “I take it your income or ability to earn an income is important to you right now?”  “Well yes, I need my income in order to pay our bills & go on holiday each year”.

Mr Smith, “If you got hit by a bus tomorrow, what would the financial impact be on your wife & children?”  “Well…am…I haven’t really thought about it”.

“Mrs Smith doesn’t work, so I guess she would have to move in with her parents as the home would have to be sold.  Our parents may also have to look after the children as I assume my wife would have to look for a job!”

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I think by now, we are all familiar or becoming familiar with the term ‘risk insurance’.

We are constantly being reminded through the media about the importance of financially protecting our income or our family!

You may feel that these messages are becoming a little repetitive, however unfortunately it’s in our best interest if we are serious about tackling Australia’s underinsurance problem.

There seems to be a lack of urgency in relation to implementing personal risk insurance.  Unfortunately this does not assist you when an insurable event occurs!

In order to take the first step in the right direction, proper advice needs to be sought from a financial adviser.

Sure, you can quickly organise your cover online or over the phone through a direct insurance provider, however you won’t experience or have access to the benefits listed below, let alone the quality of the cover!

So what do I actually do as a risk adviser?

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