Determining Your Insurance Needs

Overview/Description
 If you suddenly became disabled, would you be able to provide for yourself, or meet your family's financial requirements? Life insurance can protect you and your family in times of need, but do you know how much life insurance coverage you should have? Would you be surprised to learn that, generally, your insurance coverage should be four to six times your annual salary? Understanding your insurance needs is an important step in planning your personal finances. You can use insurance to provide your family with an important financial resource to help pay the mortgage, run the household, and ensure that you or your dependents aren't burdened with debt in the case of a death, disability, or disaster, such as fire. This course will help you to determine the proper type and amount of insurance coverage to suit your needs, and the tax implications associated with the type of insurance you choose.

Target Audience
 General American Audience.

Expected Duration
2.5 hours

Lesson Objectives:

Life Insurance

  • recognize the benefit of learning about life insurance.
  • match each policy to its advantages and disadvantages.
  • calculate a family's life insurance needs, given a scenario.
  • identify the best method for minimizing the impact of life insurance death benefits on estate value, for a given scenario.
  • identify the guidelines for buying life insurance.

    • Disability Insurance

  • recognize the value of understanding disability insurance.
  • match the features of disability insurance policies to definitions of each.
  • choose the appropriate features of a disability insurance policy for a given individual.
  • indicate whether given insurance benefits are taxable or non-taxable.
  • calculate a family's disability insurance needs, given a scenario.

    • Medical and Long-term Care Insurance

  • recognize the benefits of understanding medical insurance.
  • match the different types of health care plans to their characteristics.
  • use the guidelines to determine if medical insurance benefits or premiums can be deducted in a given scenario.
  • select examples of what to look for in a long-term care insurance policy.

    • Property, Casualty, and Liability Insurance

  • recognize the benefits of understanding the different types of insurance available for specific circumstances.
  • identify examples of the differences between what a homeowner and a renter may claim.
  • select options for protecting a home business.
  • identify factors that insurance companies take into consideration when selling auto insurance.
  • calculate the maximum coverage under an umbrella policy, given a scenario.
  • choose which individual can make a professional liability insurance claim in a given scenario.

    • Course Number: PD0144