• Expatriate Health Insurance Blog

  • Thursday, May 17, 2012

For many people, living abroad as an expatriate is the greatest experience of their lives. However, in some unfortunate circumstances, expatriates may pass away while living oversea. This can happen for a variety of reasons, including illness, injury, or even natural causes. As with any death, the loved ones left behind are these ones who suffer the most, and if you have not made appropriate financial arrangements, dealing with your memorial can be an added burden. Expatriate life insurance will be a significant help in these situations.

No one likes to think about what they will do when a loved one dies, but it is something that must be attended to. Think of how stressful it will be for your loved ones to cope with losing you. Now think of how difficult it will be for them to deal with planning a funeral or arranging your cremation and then scheduling a memorial service. Finally, imagine you have the responsibility of arranging a funeral service, but you lack the money to take care of it.

What a horribly stressful and frustrating situation that would be. Thankfully, it can be avoided with expatriate life insurance. With this type of insurance, you can provide your family with the financial resources they need to give you a proper memorial without crippling their own financial well-being.

Think of all the stress and frustration you will save them. Expatriates have the added wrinkle of needing to have their bodies shipped back to their home country (assuming that is what the family wants). So taking some of the financial and logistical portion of the equation out of the picture will be greatly appreciated by all involved.
When you are traveling internationally, there is a seemingly endless list of things that could go wrong. And when something goes wrong on an international flight or trip, it is generally not something that has minor ramifications. These problems may impact your personal schedule, your health, and even your finances. Because there is such a wide variety of problems that could occur, and each can have such negative ramifications, it is important to equip yourself with the comprehensive coverage of expatriate travel insurance.

Just think of all the problems that might occur when you travel internationally. Your flight could be delayed because of mechanical problems or weather issues, which could force you to miss a connecting flight. Or perhaps worse yet, it could be cancelled altogether. This will force you to buy a new ticket for a new flight, and to lose money on the one you'd already purchased which can no longer be used. Or if your flight is lucky enough to take off without a hitch, the airline may lose your luggage, a problem that will cost you time in trying to track it down and money if you need to replace the items in it and/or the luggage itself.

Medical problems are always a potential threat during travel. The stress of an international flight may leave you tired, weakened, and more susceptible to illness, which can then be exacerbated by being thrown into a new environment. Or you may become injured through any variety of problems- a simple slip and fall mishap, an auto accident, or participation in sports or some other activity.

Thankfully, expatriate travel insurance can cover you in all these situations and more. This will save you hundreds if not thousands of dollars, and it will also provide invaluable security and peace of mind. The next time you plan an international trip, think of this long list of potential problems and make sure you leave prepared.
Volunteering in international locations has become an increasingly popular activity. And for many people, these volunteer efforts are not something that last just for a few weeks or months. More people are committing to long-term stays in foreign countries to continue volunteer work. And when they do that, they need to ensure that they have an adequate level of insurance for any health issues that need to be addressed. In these situations, expatriate group insurance may be the best available value.

One reason volunteering abroad has increased in popularity is because of the recent rash of natural disasters occurring over the past few years. Hurricanes, earthquakes, and other incidents have led volunteers in large groups to areas like Haiti for long-term rebuilding missions. Simply staying for a few weeks to help clean up after a disaster is appreciated, but more and more people want to be part of long-term rebuilds, helping these countries and communities build new housing and schools.

These volunteers may be part of churches, charitable organizations, or other groups. Because they are part of a group going over en masse, they may qualify for expatriate group insurance, which can be a huge money-saver. It can save individual members of the group significant amounts on their insurance costs.

Think of the insurance pan you use in everyday life. Your employer probably provides it, and the reason for that is that they can get a better rate based on their size. An insurer would rather have the guarantee of 200 plan signups rather than just 1, so to incentivize that large employer to provide group coverage, they offer discounts which get passed on to you. The same principle applies to expat coverage. You can leverage the size of your group to get a more favorable rate, saving you money on an item you need for your stay.

As an expatriate, you probably already realize the many benefits of expatriate life insurance. It is an essential purchase to ensure that the loved ones you leave behind have the proper financial security after you pass away. However, you may not be sure how much you need to purchase. Here are some important factors you should consider when making this purchase.

First, think about who your beneficiaries would be. Do you have a spouse and children? Does your spouse work? Depending on your answers to these questions, you will need to purchase more or less insurance. The last thing you would ever want to happen is for your family to have to worry about financial issues because they no longer have the support of your income. They will already be consumed with grieving your loss; they do not need additional concerns layered on top of that.

Next, calculate your beneficiaries’ monthly expenses. Are there mortgages, car payments, and credit card bills to pay? What sort of existing assets can be cashed out to help pay for those items? Taking stock of what you and your family owe as well as what you have on hand will help you gain a clearer picture of how much insurance you want to purchase for them.

These are all simple questions, but they really do serve as the cornerstone for figuring out how much expatriate life insurance you will need. Your family will likely have a difficult time without the assistance your income provides, so it is important that your supplement it any way you can. And when supplementing it, yo definitely want to provide them with an adequate amount.

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