Why You Need to Have Life Insurance When You Divorce

28 Jun Why You Need to Have Life Insurance When You Divorce

When getting divorced, some things come to mind immediately. Your property, your children, and paying child support. Something that might not be front of mind, however, is life insurance.

Life insurance is an integral part of financial planning. Many get life insurance once they are married or have kids. Others don’t consider it a necessity. 52% of American adults have life insurance, a percentage that saw an increase when the pandemic hit.

How does life insurance play into your divorce? It becomes even more important. Let’s discuss it below.

What Will Life Insurance Do?

Life insurance comes into play with spousal or child support if something happens to you. The policy is for the benefit of your child or ex-spouse. It helps to protect those payments if the spouse who is obligated to make the payments dies before all the payments are due.

We can never predict how life is going to turn out. Having life insurance can give you peace of mind that no matter what happens, your child is going to be taken care of.

Life Insurance and Child Support

When getting life insurance for your child support, it is important to note that the money must be used for childcare. The beneficiary in this situation is generally your ex-spouse, a third party, or an agency. You must make it clear that the proceeds go for the care of your child. 

In figuring out how much you want the policy to be, there are a few things to consider:

• Whether your child has special educational needs
• Whether your child has special medical needs
• General healthcare coverage costs
• Educational costs – whether it is a private school or post-secondary education

There should be enough money in the policy to help the surviving parent raise the child. The policy should cover the gap from premature demise until the child is of age.

Life Insurance and Spousal Support

There are two types of alimony or spousal support in Texas: rehabilitative, temporary, and permanent. Rehabilitative alimony helps your former spouse receive education and training until they are able to work. Permanent alimony is, as the name suggests, permanent and long-term.

In figuring out your life insurance policy, it should cover what your payments would be. Note that you can adjust your life insurance policy as time passes, since the amount your spouse or child would need in support decreases over time.

How an Attorney Can Help

Regarding life insurance, the assumption might be to converse with a life insurance agent for policy options. While this is true, speaking with a divorce lawyer is also beneficial. Divorce attorneys understand that there are many facets to divorce. Even when everything like property, custody, and support is settled, matters such as life insurance matter.

Divorce attorneys can help you assess what you need to do when the unexpected arises. They can also help if there are any difficulties in regard to your life insurance. If your health makes getting life insurance coverage difficult, there are other ways you can make sure your support payments are covered in an unfortunate situation. Divorce lawyers can help discuss ways to set aside assets in case this happens.

Navarette Bowen P.C. has a team of experienced divorce and custody attorneys ready to help you navigate everything that comes with a divorce. Our office is located in downtown Denton.  A confidential consultation with us is free, and you can come into our office or schedule one online. Contact us today.