Over the last few weeks I've told you about the different ways you can protect yourself with insurance that covers your home, your health, your long term care as you age - even your children's futures.
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Very often, as you get yourself and your home organized, then apply for these insurance policies, there is an uncomfortably long waiting period before the insurance coverage actually takes effect. It's in these situations that an instant insurance quote, which allows you to get insurance today, is incredibly valuable.
What Types of Insurance Qualify for Immediate Insurance Coverage? It is possible to get immediate insurance online quotes for nearly every circumstance, but today we'll deal with the two most common types:
- Immediate Health Insurance: Most health insurance policies, whether individual or obtained through your employer-provided health care coverage, begin on the first of the month following the date on which you enroll.
In other words, if you apply today and today is December 15, your health insurance coverage will actually kick in on January 1. With instant insurance, however, your coverage begins the instant you sign up and are approved for the policy. - Instant Life Insurance: Similarly, most life insurance policies begin the first of the month following the date when you sign up for the policy - or if you are signing up through your employer, there may be only one time during the year (known as "open enrollment") when you are permitted to join the insurance program.
If you decide after this period of time that you'd like to be covered, you must wait until the following year's "open enrollment" to join. With immediate life insurance, however, you can purchase life insurance that kicks in right away, so that you're covered as soon as you need to be.
When Would I Want to Get Immediate Insurance Coverage?
Ok, so you're probably thinking, 'But why wouldn't I just sign up for everything when my employer holds the annual open enrollment for health care and life insurance policies?' Or you're thinking, 'Who cares about waiting an extra two weeks to get covered? Two weeks isn't that long!' Well, there are several situations when you'll want coverage right away. For example:
- If You Are Laid Off: Just because you lose a job doesn't mean you should lose health care or term life coverage. Most companies that terminate employees will provide COBRA options to extend your current coverage, but these can be pricey. So if you're looking for something more affordable while you hunt for a new job, consider an instant insurance policy as a stop-gap measure.
- If You Are a Recent College Graduate: When you've just finished college but haven't yet started a full-time job, you will probably be in an uncomfortable transition place - your university health care is expired and your corporate health care hasn't started yet. Get immediate insurance coverage and save your stress for your job interviews, not your health insurance.
- If You Are No Longer Covered by Your Parents' Insurance: If you have remained on your parents' policies through college and young adulthood but are now at the age where they no longer cover you, check out instant online insurance quotes to find the best plan to get yourself covered until you find a long term solution that suits your insurance needs.
- If You Are Waiting for a New Employers' Insurance to Kick In: If you have existing health conditions (diabetes, chemotherapy treatments, physical therapy) that would make it uncomfortable for you to experience a period of time without health insurance, it doesn't make sense to wait for your new employer-based policy to kick in next month. Get same-day insurance coverage until it does.
About the Author
Alison Overholt is a freelance writer based in New York. She holds a degree in government, with honors, from Harvard University and writes frequently about business, travel, and lifestyle subjects for national magazines and other publications.
