Although retirement can be a joyous occasion, there are many things that you will need to figure out before leaving your place of employment. One of the most important things is proper insurance coverage.
Health Insurance
Even those who qualify for Medicare will want additional health insurance since basic Medicare has many gaps. If you have already checked with your former employer and learned that there is no insurance extension through them, you will want to start looking at insurance quotes.
This will no doubt be one of the most daunting retirement hurdles for most people who previously had their insurance needs provided by their employer. There are many plans out there and each one of them has different options so do a lot of research before your retirement date to avoid a period with no insurance.
Life Insurance
Although the original purpose of life insurance was to provide income to a surviving spouse and children, it can have a new meaning after you retire. If both spouses are receiving retirement benefits and there are no other dependents, seniors may choose to maintain a life insurance policy for the benefit of their children or grandchildren.
It can also be used for funeral and burial expenses for those who have not invested in preplanning.
Anyone can be the beneficiary of a life insurance policy. If you are married, the other spouse can be your beneficiary or the money can go to a good friend or a caring neighbor.
Home Insurance
Home or condo owners can actually save money on home insurance after retiring. Special discounts for seniors are available through many insurance companies. One of the reasons retired people can get discounts is that they tend to be home more than those who are still employed full-time.
The idea behind this is that those who are home will quickly detect things like fires and leaks and be able to prevent or reduce some of the damage that might have occurred.
Some insurers also roll in benefits like identity theft, since seniors are often the targets of scams.
Auto Insurance
Unfortunately, auto insurance rates tend to increase for senior drivers. While high rates for drivers in their teens and twenties is typical, these rates tend to go down until about the age of 65. This is because insurance companies feel that mature drivers with lots of experience will be in fewer accidents.
Unfortunately, it is assumed that drivers over 65 will become more accident-prone. Unfairly, this can happen even if your previous driving record was perfect and you made no insurance claims.
The reasons auto insurance rates increase with age are the beliefs that seniors have poorer vision and hearing, they have slower reflexes and limited mobility such as the degree to which they can turn their necks. Another belief is that any medications taken can cause poor driving decisions.
Although you may not be able to change this tendency, you can do some rate comparing and settle on the best possible rate.
Another possibility if you live in a retirement community or close to a town center is to give up your vehicle and use a bicycle or public transportation instead. Some retirement communities even have vans that will transport members to appointments and shopping.
A further choice for seniors who belong to a senior center is Uber Health, which allows seniors to ride with Uber for free. Uber has also started multiplying the number of drivers with accessible vans so there will be no more long waits for government-sponsored rides.
Seniors who plot out their insurance requirements well before their last day at work will have plenty of time to explore their many options. Since by the year 2030, one in every five Americans will be over 65, there is plenty of information and help to navigate the insurance seas. Then all you’ll have to do is enjoy your leisure.
