Source: asiainsurancereview.com

Forty-one percent of American adults feel that the COVID-19 pandemic has changed how their family handles finances and nearly one in four (22%) will consider increasing their life insurance coverage this year, according to a recent survey by disability income provider group Unum.

The online survey was conducted between 25 August and 2 September 2020 among 1,002 US adults. While 22% of the people covered said the pandemic caused them to consider adding additional life insurance coverage, the numbers are even higher among several groups, including households with children (34%), black adults (36%), Hispanic adults (38%), Gen Z’s (38%) and millennials (30%). The survey found that in nearly half (48%) of households, the death of a family’s primary wage-earner would cause financial strain in less than three months.

“For most people, the ability to earn an income throughout their life is the biggest asset they have,” said Unum executive vice president of group benefits Chris Pyne. “The pandemic has changed our lives, and it’s not a surprise that more people are thinking about how they are protecting their families with life insurance.”

The survey also revealed that 45% don’t have or know if they have life insurance. Most Americans don’t understand how much life insurance they need, more than one in three (36%) of respondents said they need the equivalent or double their annual income and another 28% believed they need three or four times their income.

However, non-profit organisation Life Happens recommends that people should have 10 to 15 times their annual salary in life insurance coverage for funeral expenses, household bills and future financial obligations, like education or retirement, should a wage earner die.