Life Insurance for Married Couples in 2024 - Family Guide
Why should a couple have life insurance? Life insurance for married couples is the best financial foundation for couples that rely on the spouse's income to pay bills or debt.
- By Willi Olsen
- Updated
Find the Best Life Insurance Plan for You
Get free quotes and compare life insurance policies.
Life insurance is tax-free and pays out if you die or become terminally ill and is designed to replace your income.
When you marry someone, you give a vow “till death do us part.”
Getting married is an exciting and busy time. In front of family and friends, we vow to commit our lives to each other for the rest of time.
Death can be financially devastating and especially so if your love for each other has resulted in a baby.
Do I need to update my life insurance when I get married?
You should review your life insurance coverage once you get married. Being married means you are likely to share financial responsibilities, assets, and possibly children. Although it may be difficult to consider the worst-case scenario during the initial stages of your marriage, it’s always a good idea to ensure that your insurance policies are appropriate for your current situation.
Keeping your insurance broker across your major life changes, including marriage, births, property purchases, or deaths, means that they may be able to help you adjust your cover to suit your changing circumstances.
For instance, you might want to make your partner a beneficiary of your policy or increase the benefit amount on certain policies.
Some insurance policies offer the option to increase coverage after significant life events, such as marriage, without requiring medical information.
But these features usually need to be exercised within a specific time after the life event, so it’s a good idea to check early so you can leverage the feature before the window closes. This can ensure your loved ones are in a position to continue their lifestyle should the unforeseen happen.
Life insurance for de facto and married couples
Do both you and your spouse need life insurance? Most often, the answer is yes.
Whether you’re married, partners, or simply sharing a life with someone you love, taking out a life insurance policy can provide both financial security and peace of mind.
The first big question to ask is whether you and your spouse both need life insurance?
- Is one spouse’s life insurance policy sufficient, or should both of you get cover?
- Do you both need life insurance if you’re still in your 20s?
- If you don’t plan to have children any time soon or if one of you is studying?
Life insurance lays the financial foundation and gives you peace of mind knowing your (future) family is protected and cared for.
Do couples need the same amount of life insurance?
I often get this question from married couples looking for life insurance.
How much life insurance should a de facto married couple have?
Should you sign up for the same amount of cover, or does one of you need a more significant life insurance policy?
The most logical reasoning is that both partners take out the same amount of cover. But is that the right solution?
First, we have to consider the context.
Financial mapping takes the guesswork out of it.
Our life insurance advice process helps you get a visual understanding of your ‘now’ financial situation and how you and your family would be financially impacted in the event of the death of your spouse.
Why life insurance when getting married
Marriage is one of those special events in life, that allows you to step back and consider what really matters in life.
“The future belongs to those who prepare for it today” said Malcolm X.
Life insurance gives you the peace of mind of knowing that whatever may be around the corner, the person you hold most dear to you will be protected financially.
It means that despite the devastation of losing a spouse, they will be taken care of, able to keep paying the mortgage and not forced to sell the marital property.
Planning for your family
The beautiful smile of a newborn baby often prompts bigger questions in life.
Raising and providing for your new family becomes priority number one and your family income may lessen while one parent chooses to stay at home and care for your offspring.
It is often at this stage that couples get in touch with our life insurance experts to talk about life insurance cover for the family.
Family Protection
With the family reliant on the earnings of a working parent, it’s essential to know how your family would manage financially, if a catastrophe happened.
If your partner becomes terminally ill and dies, how will that affect the family finances?
Could you still work and take care of the children?
How would the expenses such as the mortgage get paid?
Without life insurance, your family is vulnerable.
A life insurance policy takes away the worry and you can focus on raising up a successful family for many generations to come.
Protecting your financial future
A life insurance policy can mean the difference to your children and grandchildren’s future.
And your financial legacy will stand for generations to come.
A life insurance policy could pay for your children and grandchildren’s education. Allowing your partner to pay off debt or buy a property debt free, granting your spouse to to age without financial worry.
Life insurance for married couples takes the stress out of the unknown.
Options for life insurance for married couples
Once you’ve decided to buy life insurance, the question becomes what kind of cover to buy and how much you need.
Your decision generally depends on what financial obligations you want to cover, how long those obligations last and how much you want to spend.
We can help give you clarity with a financial picture of your situation, that says more than a thousand words.
Then we look at how insurance might help you. And lastly, we adjust the cover to fit your budget.
Our service is free of charge – if you buy from us, we get paid a commission from the insurer. Therefore our service to you is free of charge.
Life insurance advice for married couples
Moving in with a partner or getting married is a major milestone
Get some life insurance quotes, see what it costs, and priorities your financial protection.
It’s a product you pay for, but never want to use.
It is a financial safety net.
Help reassure your loved ones that they will be taken care of now and in the future.