Why expat life insurance term policies are ideal for globally mobile people

If you’re an expat with a family or dependents, you need international life insurance. Living abroad takes a bit of getting used to, for the first few months, maybe even longer, you may find yourself veering wildly between excitement, stress, culture shock and homesickness in equal measures.

“What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” can be applied to most areas of your life, but you need to look at the practicalities of your expat lifestyle.  Moving yourself and your family means leaving behind everything that is familiar and moving away from your usual support networks and services. This is much more serious than feeling the proverbial like a fish out of water, should something happen to you, your family will need to know that they will have the necessary financial and practical support.

A stiff upper lip and pioneer spirit are fine, as long as you can Facetime or Skype family and friends at home when feeling lonely or in an emergency they can transfer some much needed spondoolies into your bank account.  But family and friends will be unable to help should you fall ill, have an accident or if you are attacked. This is why health and safety are two areas where expats should never take a chance.

It may never happen – why pay?

Paying for insurance is by definition a weird concept, as you are hoping never to have to make a claim. Yet, anyone with a family should be covered by life insurance, grudgingly or not.  Here are some reasons why you need expat life insurance.

24-hour International Assistance

The last thing your family needs is the hassle of chasing paperwork, trying to arrange for your body to be released and flown home. One of the most valuable services life insurance can offer, is a 24-hour helpline in English, allowing the beneficiaries to hand over the coordination to an expert who can take charge of the situation, no matter where in the world they happen to be.

Death benefit & lump sum payments

This is possibly the most familiar element associated with expat life insurance. Policies are essentially a method of planning for your family’s financial future without you, making sure they receive enough to cover the mortgage or school fees etc.  Expats should choose a policy that offers ‘upfront payment’. Instant cash could be needed for flights, legal expenses and visas within the first few days of your death. Some companies offer as much as 10% of the lump sum as an upfront payment to cover these expenses.

Knowledge of international customs and laws

In addition to financial assistance, the insurance company will work with international funeral directors who will understand the local cultural, legal religious requirements. For example, you can’t transport a coffin across borders (can’t be sealed or made of lead) and the Worldwide Airline Association (IATA) requires an embalming certificate before you can move a body across national borders.

Mortal Remains Repatriation

It will most likely cost considerable money to transport your body back to your home country. It will also take lots of patience and know-how to deal with the admin, including clearing customs, dealing with the police and port authorities. A considerable fund is required if you are to navigate through the bureaucratic obstacles to repatriate a body from abroad.  If you die overseas, it will cost a fortune whether you bring the body home or have it interred or cremated overseas. No one wants to leave a loved one in a pauper’s grave, just because the money and assistance weren’t available.

Global cover

The very nature of being an expat means that you are likely to be travelling back and forth, and possibly relocating, so you need truly international cover. You need to check the policy benefits to make sure it includes ‘geographic extension’, which means that your policy will follow you. For example, if you buy a policy in Thailand, it will cover you whilst you’re in another country or even on another continent.

It may be a hackneyed phrase but life insurance really does offer ‘peace of mind’. There is comfort in knowing that your family will be able to ask for and receive help in English, should you come a cropper.

Once you understand that expat life insurance is an essential not a luxury, you’ll have much less of a problem paying for it.