Women Less Likely to Have Life Insurance

In a surprising reversal, recent research from NobleOak reveals that the previous two year trend where women were more likely to have Life Insurance is now not the case.

This finding is from the independent survey commissioned by NobleOak in December 2018, with around half of the people surveyed having Life Insurance in place.

When asked if respondents currently have some form of Life Insurance (including Life cover, TPD, Trauma) and/or Income Protection, 54% of women said yes, compared to 57% of men.

This compares to 67% of female respondents citing they had some form of cover in 2017 and 58% in 2016.

This is a surprising change to the previous two year trend where women were more likely to have Life Insurance but are now not giving as much priority to their financial security.

It is also concerning as women make up more than 50% of the Australian population and 47% of the workforce, either full time or part time. In addition, they account for almost three quarters of all unpaid work.

The research also found that people who classified their occupation as “Home Maker/Stay at home parent” were also less likely to have financial protection.

Only 47% of people in this occupation category had Life Insurance.

The percentage of stay at home parents and homemakers without some form of financial protection reduced from 55% in our 2016 survey to 47% in 2018. This trend is very concerning as people underestimate the importance of the home maker when it comes to the value of unpaid work.

For instance, if the stay-at-home parent was not there to perform important tasks, such as cooking, cleaning and child care, the other parent may have to pay someone else to do the duties, which could prove very costly, particularly over the longer term.

According to PwC, the value of unpaid childcare alone is estimated at $345 billion.

So while the stay-at-home partner may not think of his or her contribution as having financial value, it certainly does when you consider that to replace it would require significant funds. It’s important that couples consider this when looking into securing financial protection through insurance.

Unfortunately, accidents and illness happens and it does not discriminate between men and women. Women need the financial protection and security that Life Insurance provides as much as men in the event an illness or a serious accident were to occur.

The research discovered 61% of women and 59% of men would rely on their savings to cope financially if they could not work with 35% and 24% respectively relying on friends and family for help.

If necessary, 36% of women would cut holidays first compared to 30% of men who would cut entertainment expenses first if they lost some or all of their income or financial support.

Not sure what type of cover you need?

If you’re not sure what type of cover you need and how much, you can use NobleOak’s online calculator. It only takes 5-10 minutes to complete and you’ll receive a personalised report at the end. And it’s free! Click here to start using the Life Insurance Calculator.