http://www.bankrate.com/nltrack/news/insur...nsurance_a1.asp

14 useless insurance policies

1. Accidental death insurance - Yeah, I got one of these.
2. Automobile collision - Yeah, got this.
3. Automobile medical - No.
4. Cancer/dreaded disease insurance - No.
5. Credit card fraud insurance - No.
6. Credit card insurance - Not no, but hell no!
7. Extended warranties - Rarely. Usually no, but occasionally, depending on circumstances.
8. Flight insurance - No.
9. Flood insurance - Was 'required' where I used to live, but I still didn't get it.
10. Life insurance for a child - No.
11. Mortgage life insurance - Yeah, diabetes makes regular life insurance hard to get and more expensive, so this is my replacement. Plan to cancel it after my equity reaches a certain percentage, though.
12. Optional group life insurance - No.
13. Rental car damage insurance - No. Used to before I knew better, though.
14. Scheduled property - No, not indivually, though they know I have far more camera equipment than the avereage person.

I think I have accidental death/dismemberment, but it's free.

I do have collision on my car--required since it's gotta loan.

My grandma has cancer insurance. It's been paying her ever since she took a leave of absence from work to start chemo. but I don't have it.

I did get an extended warranty on my front loading washer/dryer combo.

My renter's insurance covers flood.

I, personally, don't think life insurance for a child is necessarily a waste. I know we'd never be able to afford the funeral costs if, God forbid, something happened to DD. (we don't actually have it though)


The rest are no's for me.

Generally, only people who don't know someone who's lost a child say life insurance on a child is senseless. Once you've seen someone "pass the hat" for funeral costs for their child, your opinions change.

the issue is the cost versus benefit. it would be better for people to have savings.

Really. And what happens when people don't? I'm speaking from experience, not theory.

anecdote is not data.

sorry you disagree with my general notion here.

Silly argument. A plentiful amount of term life insurance on an infant or child is supremely cheap, probably $5 a month for 50k. Maybe less.

The primary purpose of life insurance is to make a sum of money materialize upon someone's death. If that would be helpful in case of a child dying and you're willing to part with $5 a month to insure against it, that's a perfectly legitimate and intelligent use of money. Saving $5 a month instead would obviously never accrue to be more than a miniscule fraction of that death benefit.

It's not a question of whether to use save that $5 or pay a premium with it. Such a tiny amount of savings is useless for the purpose at hand. "Savings" loses that argument. It's only a question of whether the parent feels they need to mitigate that risk or else completely ignore it.

Show me someone, if you can find them, who doesn't waste $5 a month on far more trivial things.

I can understand a parent not wanting to buy insurance on the kid if that's their preference, especially if they are finanically able to handle the costs of burial, etc. But to actually advise another parent never to do this is profoundly stupid and irresponsible, because sometimes children die, and sometimes that's a terrible financial burden on the family. Would you like to be the person who persuaded that family to make a ruinous decision?

14 useless insurance policies

1. Accidental death insurance - Yeah, I got one of these.
2. Automobile collision - Yeah, got this.
3. Automobile medical - Yeah I have this but very small cost
4. Cancer/dreaded disease insurance - Have this as well and AFLAC is paying me generously since I did hit the number on the roulette wheel
5. Credit card fraud insurance - No.
6. Credit card insurance - Not for me
7. Extended warranties - Never had it never will
8. Flight insurance - No.
9. Flood insurance - No and I live in hurricane country right next to a large body of water
10. Life insurance for a child - Yes through work and it costs me nothing
11. Mortgage life insurance - No
12. Optional group life insurance - No.
13. Rental car damage insurance - No.
14. Scheduled property - No

silly argument when you consider costs versus probability of the event being insured.

Fantastic Hege, you have an opinion. We're all proud of you.

insurance is about hedging the risk of events. you seem to think this this thread is a reason for you to get snippy with me? is this how you always respond when someone disagrees with you?

Please be polite. Snark isn't really necessary - we're all adults, aren't we?

My two cents - if you add in the issue of insurability, it may make a significant change in your statistics. My niece became virtually uninsurable when she was still young and uninsured. this is why the rates for children are a little higher. I sell it. I agree, it's better to save for everything, but most people don't.

14 useless insurance policies

1. Accidental death insurance - No
2. Automobile collision - Yes...hubby keeps saying if someone totals our car we'd be screwed. I think I could get a decent loan if I had too.
3. Automobile medical - Yes....full insurance does that.
4. Cancer/dreaded disease insurance - No
5. Credit card fraud insurance - No
6. Credit card insurance - No
7. Extended warranties - Once...on my laptop....2 year accidental...my hard drive went out last year and I had to use it.
8. Flight insurance - No
9. Flood insurance - No
10. Life insurance for a child - No.
11. Mortgage life insurance - Yes....you never know when some idiot is going to total my car with me in it.
12. Optional group life insurance - No
13. Rental car damage insurance - No
14. Scheduled property - No.

I took heg's meaning to be that saving for "life's unexpected events" was an overall thing, not a one-item thing like one particular type of insurance. You could probably pick almost any single subject and make the case for or against it, but savings is more global or all-inclusive in scope, and the chances of every possible negative thing happening at once is pretty slim.

I still say that as soon as I win the lottery I'm posting a bond so that I no longer have to pay auto insurance, but until then...

Might help if I actually played the lotto, of course.