New Baby, New House, New Marriage?

NORTHBROOK, Ill., Sept. 3, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- More newborns arrived in August 2013 than in any other month of that year.¹

For families with new babies arriving in August – or any other month – it's a good time to consider life insurance. The birth of a child and other life events motivated 41 percent of adults surveyed to begin shopping for life insurance, according to LIMRA, a life insurance research group. Other life events include adopting a child, marriage, divorce, purchasing a house, retiring, inheriting substantial assets, and the death of a relative or close friend.

"Life events often cause us to think carefully about how to protect what matters most to us. There isn't a one-size-fits-all solution to address the needs that arise as our lives change," said Don Civgin, president and chief financial officer, Allstate Financial. "That's why Allstate recommends taking the time to work through a 'needs analysis' that will help you develop a plan that meets your long-term financial objectives and addresses your life insurance needs." 

Prompted by September's Life Insurance Awareness Month, Allstate agents and exclusive financial specialists are offering a complimentary insurance needs analysis. They will ask questions about your personal situation and goals to help you assess your insurance needs. For example:

• Your risk profile. Based on your income coming in, expenses going out, and savings, do you have risks that would be difficult or impossible for you to cope with financially? These risks could include death, a serious injury or sickness, a car crash or home fire.
• Your safety net. Are you likely to be able to improve your financial situation by paying down debt, changing your spending habits or increasing your emergency cash fund? Are you single, divorced or married? Double income or single income? How stable is your employment situation? Do you have life insurance through work?
• Your needs. What are your needs over the next few years and in the long term? Do you want to fund college, vacations and/or retirement? Is it important for you to provide for elderly parents or leave a legacy to your adult children?
• Your wants. What are your dreams? A second house, a round-the-world trip, starting a business?

The answers to these questions can help you determine whether you need life insurance – or more life insurance – as well as what type and how much to buy. Life insurance can help you meet your financial needs in four ways:

• Immediate expenses. The insurance's death benefit can help cover unpaid medical bills and funeral expenses.
• Ongoing needs. Life insurance can help replace your income, pay off the car, and enable your family to make the mortgage or rent payments if you pass away.
• Future big expenses. Life insurance may help cover the future cost of a child's college tuition, or fund day-to-day living expenses for your children or parents.
• Your overall financial situation. Some life insurance products are employed as part of an estate plan, as a source of retirement income or to pay estate taxes.

"Life is full of uncertainty. How we plan for the unexpected can impact the people that matter the most in our lives," Civgin said. "Life insurance – like any type of insurance – helps protect you and those around you so that you can feel more secure about your future."

For more information:

• Take a life insurance self-assessment at www.myallstatefinancial.net to learn more about life insurance in light of significant life events, such as a change in marital status, milestone birthday, buying a home or expanding your family.
• Visit www.myallstatefinancial.com/life-insurance.aspx for general information about life insurance.
• Click on http://allstateagencies.com/agentlocator/searchpage.aspx to find an Allstate agency near you. 

The Allstate Corporation (NYSE: ALL) is the nation's largest publicly held personal lines insurer, protecting approximately 16 million households from life's uncertainties through its Allstate, Encompass, Esurance and Answer Financial brand names and Allstate Financial business segment. Allstate is widely known through the slogan "You're In Good Hands With Allstate^®." The Allstate brand's network of small businesses offers auto, home, life and retirement products and services to customers in the United States and Canada. In 2013, The Allstate Foundation, Allstate, its employees and agency owners gave $29 million to support local communities. Allstate employees and agency owners donated 200,000 hours of service across the country.

Life insurance is issued by Allstate Life Insurance Company, Northbrook, Ill.; Lincoln Benefit Life Company, Lincoln, Neb.; American Heritage Life, Jacksonville, Fla.; and in New York, by Allstate Life Insurance Company of New York, Hauppauge, N.Y.

¹ Provisional data from the National Vital Statistics System, National Center for Health Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

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SOURCE Allstate Insurance