Life insurance, average life expectancy has increased markedly in recent years. Men live an average of 78 years and women 84. Also in Spain, according to the latest study by the Higher Council for Scientific Research (CSIC), published in 2019, there are more than 8,900,000 people over 65 years of age. Insurers have had to adapt to this new reality and offer life insurance to seniors and retirees as well. To be able to hire him they will have to pass some medical check-ups so that the company determines the risk. Obviously, the cost of the fees will be higher than if hired by a forty-year-old person.
But this does not mean that it is no longer advisable to hire it, especially in those cases in which the insured is still paying a mortgage or if they are professionals with risky work or simply want to guarantee economic well-being for their family, in the worst case. of the scenarios, either because it still depends on him or because they have a high net worth. In these cases, having life insurance may mean having an advance of the capital for the payment of inheritance tax, at the time of receiving the inheritance.
Whatever your case, there is something that does not change: life is unpredictable and we never know what can happen to us. A life insurance policy therefore guarantees financial peace of mind for the insured and their loved ones, in the worst possible scenario, but also protection against an accident with serious consequences for everyone, such as permanent and absolute disability. In addition, according to the company, hiring life insurance can mean having support in legal matters. Having a second medical opinion service and other interesting advantages.
Important coverage in Life Insurance for the elderly
As we mentioned at the beginning of this guide, it is very common for life insurers to establish 65 years as the age from which. It is not possible to take out insurance with them. And although they continue to provide coverage in guarantees such as death from any cause past this age. Other guarantees are not accessible to them.
For example, the Prebal Combined Individual Death, Accident and Disability Insurance expire once the insured reaches the age of 70. But disability guarantees expire when you turn 65. This is very common in life insurance.
It is important, therefore, to know in depth the conditions offered by each life insurance policy. But in any case, it is even more important to know what coverage can be found in this type of policy. When you are over 65 years old. The main coverage in any life insurance is the payment of the insured capital in the event of death. Each company offers maximum limits on this amount. In some, it is also possible to choose between different amounts. But life insurance can be so much more. It will depend on the optional guarantees that the company allows you to choose.
Thus, you could choose between these guarantees:
- Repatriation: if the insured dies outside his place of origin, the company will bear the expenses generated by the transfer. It is a coverage that may be of particular interest to migrants who do not reside in their countries of origin. Adding this coverage (if it does not come as standard), in addition to having certain expenses guaranteed. The family has the support of the company for all procedures.
- Disability due to traffic accident: if the disability occurs in this way, the policyholder will receive an additional amount to that contracted in the policy. The usual thing, both in the case of death and disability, is to distinguish between accident and traffic accident.
- Death due to a traffic accident: in this case, the beneficiaries will obtain additional money to the amount of the insurance itself.
- Death of the policyholder and the spouse in an accident: it is the advisable coverage in a life policy for a person with children who are still minors. Because in the worst of scenarios, it responds by ensuring the economic well-being of the children. These will receive an amount of the same amount as stipulated in the insurance for death in another situation.
- Psychological advice: to get through those hard times that every family suffers at some point with a little more comfort, nothing better than having the help of a professional. Thanks to this guarantee, the first-degree relatives of the insured will receive psychological support.
Is Life Insurance the same as Funeral Insurance?
It is true that both are responsible for facilitating the situation for family members. When the insured person dies, but the purposes are different. And this influences the insured capital because life insurance is responsible for financially compensating the beneficiaries. So that their status changes as little as possible, at least in economic terms. It also responds to a situation as serious as the permanent loss of income due to permanent disability. For all these reasons, we are talking about hundreds of thousands of euros to be insured in a life policy.
So amounts much higher than those guaranteed by death insurance. Because this is intended only to cover the expenses of the funeral of the insured. It is also usual that in addition to paying for these expenses. They take care of all the paperwork and procedures necessary for its celebration. There are even companies that complement these insurances with psychological support and other extra coverage.
