How Much Do You Know About Life Insurance?

A life insurance policy pays out a sum of money upon your death to whomever you name as beneficiaries. As hard as this is to talk about, life insurance can help provide security for those who financially depend on you. You pay for this policy monthly, twice a year or annually, depending on the plan. Life insurance helps replace the income that you’ll no longer be able to provide, and can help pay for expenses such as your own funeral expenses or even your child’s college education. You decide how much insurance to purchase based on your family’s ability to be financially independent in the years to come.

You may be able to easily answer “yes” or “no” to this question, but do you know how much life insurance you actually have? If you only have life insurance through your current employer, do you know how much your policy covers, and what happens if you leave your job?

You may think you don’t need to worry about this right now. You’re too young. Or you’re healthy. But if people are financially dependent on you, it’s important to have a policy that can help keep them secure in the event of your loss. 

What you may not know is that NEA members have access to NEA Complimentary Life Insurance, a life insurance policy that’s available to eligible members at no cost. It just takes a few minutes to name your beneficiary, or beneficiaries, and secure this benefit for your loved ones. 

You also have access to a variety of NEA life and accident insurance options—plans open only to NEA members. Plans meant exclusively for educators like you.

“Death benefit” sounds so morbid, doesn’t it? But it’s a simple, yet important, term to know. All it means is the amount that’s paid upon the insured passing (and that’s you…). It’s up to your beneficiaries to decide how it’s used. The money can help in many ways: help pay for your burial, help pay off your mortgage and other bills, help pay for college tuition or pay off student loans and more. It’s meant to help take the financial stress—whatever form that takes—off of your family and make their lives easier.

You may THINK you know how much you need, but while it’s easy to guess, guesses are often wrong. You’ll probably either guess too high or too low. 

Did you know that you may need seven to 10 times your annual income? That’s typically way more than most school districts currently provide as a benefit. 

Everyone’s situation is different, however, so it’s best to start here, with this calculator, so you can figure out the right amount for your own family.