A week before Christmas, 2017, I was nervously waiting for hours for my first-born to come out of surgery. It was certainly nothing life threatening but never-the-less, the first surgical procedure I had endured with my three kids and something I was not familiar with. This procedure was to have a processor and cochlear implant inserted in her skull! Thankfully she was in very capable hands and everything went perfectly.
That day I got a small glimpse into what it feels like as a parent to have a child in a medical situation where you are totally not in control.
Something I do in my day job is talk to my clients about insuring themselves and the ones they care about, their children. It sounds dry as a subject but I’ll tell you why it’s so important and this one is just dedicated to your children.
In many household nowadays we have two working parents contributing to the finances of the family. It’s hard to make ends meet on one income for most of us so two incomes makes it far more manageable, and often both parents are working full-time jobs once kids are in school. Imagine then…. when life is going pretty well to plan, you have worked your way up the property ladder into a beautiful big family home with a yard for the kids to muck around in and you are working hard to cover that big fat mortgage. You also have a fair whack of expenses including but not limited to kids school fees, sports, instruments, never ending clothes and shoes and the mountain of food that seems to vanish the day after you’ve bought it. It costs a lot to run a household, I know.
You are working so much that you don’t really think about savings or insurance because you are busy and it’s just low on the list of priorities even though you know you should give it some attention.
Then the unexpected happens. One of the kids comes down with a weird virus they can’t seem to shake. They are tired all the time, a bit pale, seem to be bruising easily and you just feel like something is a bit off. You take them to the doctor and after a series of tests you get the awful heartbreaking news that they have leukemia. Your heart stops for a minute. You then have to put on your brave face for your baby and you deal with what is to come next.
What comes next, especially for those of us living in the south-west, is that often treatment is performed in Perth, a few hours away. Your baby may have to live in hospital or nearby for extended periods of time. Other than the emotional challenges of this experience, what often gets overlooked are the financial challenges. Suddenly one parent needs to stop working to be by the child’s side, or both parents do a bit of a shuffle so they are basically both working part-time instead of full-time.
Either way, it could go on like this for a few months or a few years. The financial burden to a family can be huge and often underestimated. I have clients who have personally been through this situation and you might know someone who has been through or is going through something like this right now.
So that is why I recommend children’s trauma cover, for a very, very small cost you can put some protection in place for your children to help your family financially in the event of a medical event such as this. It’s not only kids too, adult trauma cover (or critical illness and crisis recovery are some other names for this type of insurance) is just as important and one of the most valuable forms of risk protection available because the benefit is paid in a tax free lump sum. I won’t go into detail here but you can always contact us if you wish to find out more information.
The last thing any of us want is for our children to get sick, but at least knowing there is a safety net in place in the event something does go wrong, makes you feel somewhat in control and prepared financially.
Don’t let life get in the way of attending to important things like this and make sure you seek help from an expert. It’s really not that difficult and something that could make a significant difference to you and your loved ones some day.
Shonel x
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Unless specifically indicated, the information contained in this blog is general in nature and does not take into account your personal situation. You should consider whether the information is appropriate to your needs, and where appropriate, seek personal advice from a financial adviser.
Shonel Vuletich is an authorised representative of Synchron, AFS Licence No. 243313.
The Business of Life 