What types of insurance do you have? Everyone has something, health, auto, home, and life insurance are probably the most common types of insurance people will have.
Many people often think of preppers getting ready for the collapse of modern society and for many, this is true but preparedness is more about protecting yourself and your family from what might happen. In essence, prepping is a form of insurance, you are preparing for things that may or may not happen but as a prepper, you want to be prepared for anything. So one part of preparing for, day to day emergencies will include having some of these insurance coverages.
What Your Policy Might Be Missing
With the many types of insurance, it’s sometimes hard to know if you have the right insurance or if it even covers your needs. Health, auto, home, and life insurance may have a place in your preparedness plan so make sure that you have the coverage that you need.
Health Insurance
Most everyone in the United States has health insurance, the “Affordable Care Act” mandated that everyone have coverage or you pay a penalty. Now with the skyrocketing premiums, you increase your deductible to lower that monthly bill but now you have a deductible you can’t pay in the event of a major medical emergency. This is where supplemental insurance fills the gap.
Supplemental and Accident Insurance isn’t for everyone but if you are at a higher risk for injury due to your job or lifestyle, it may be a good fit for you. These types of coverage may not pay for everything but it can help take the sting out of the next insurance bill if you receive a substantial injury.
Short-Term Disability Insurance is another offering that some may take advantage of. Even if you have a large emergency fund, but you are the sole source of income for your family, you may want to look into short-term disability insurance.
Auto Insurance
Unless you are a city dweller you most likely have a car or truck, so at a minimum, you have liability insurance, right? This is fine but if something were to happen to your vehicle, you get no reimbursement for the cost of replacing the vehicle, so keep this in mind when assessing your auto insurance needs.
Emergency Roadside Assistance – If you have full coverage insurance on your vehicle then you may already have some level of emergency roadside assistance coverage. Many insurance companies include this in their policies and if they don’t, adding it to your policy is usually easy and inexpensive. This can be a lifesaver, especially when traveling far from home.
Another option for emergency roadside assistance is AAA. AAA provides a multitude of services including towing, extrication, lockout service and more. Often times, using just one of the services will pay for your annual membership dues.
Home Insurance
Homeownership is part of the American dream and making sure that you protect your home is vitally important. One of the most important things you can do is make sure that you have the right coverage for your situation. The next most important thing is to make sure that you have the right level of coverage.
As preppers, we are always adding to our preps and making improvements to our homes, so it’s important to make sure that any major items or additions are adjusted for in your insurance coverage to ensure that in the case of a natural disaster or fire you are able to be compensated appropriately.
Flood Insurance – What many people don’t know is that most homeowners insurance does NOT cover flooding. Flooding and sewer backup are often not covered unless you have actual “flood Insurance” added to your policy. The good news is that if your area is not prone to flooding, adding flood insurance is usually quite inexpensive.
Life Insurance
Do you need life insurance? No, you need water, food, and shelter, but you may want some. Unless you are completely debt-free including your home and have a substantial emergency fund built up and a healthy and diversified retirement portfolio, you probably want some life insurance.
Life insurance is about taking care of your family when you are gone. You need to assess your situation and determine what it will cost to bury you, clean up your finances and take care of your family until they can get back on their feet after losing you.
Identity Theft Protection
Identity theft protection is insurance that protects you against people fraudulently using your personal information, including your Social Security Number, credit cards, banking, and loans. In modern times we not only have to be concerned about our homes being broken into and having valuables stolen but now have to be concerned about our online information being stolen which can be even more costly to clean up.
Companies like LifeLock offer protection for your online information. Also, many cybersecurity companies like McAfee offer similar protections along with their anti-virus protection. Most of these companies not only monitor your information and alert you if someone is trying to use your information but also offer financial reimbursement for lost funds.
Self-Defense Insurance
As someone who works to protect your family from the threats of the modern world, you may also see the importance of being able to defend your family against those who wish to harm them but nowadays just defending your family can put you in jeopardy of losing your freedom. This is where the United States Concealed Carry Association(USCCA) comes in. The USCCA was formed to help protect people who legally protect themselves from a legal system that can easily run amuck when you don’t have the funds and good legal representation. The USCCA offers:
Legal Protections
- Money for bail
- Access to qualified attorneys plus retainer
- Criminal and civil defense funds up to the level of your chosen policy
Information & Training Resources
- Online training and guides
- Gun laws by state
- Concealed Carry Magazine
- Online community
- Locate USCCA trainers in your area
Don’t let the name fool you, the USCCA doesn’t just offer protection for those who conceal carry a firearm, it’s for anyone who may need to protect themselves and their family. For more information about the different plans and what the USCCA has to offer, check it out here.
Parting Thoughts
As preppers, we prepare for many different things. We put together Bug Out Bags knowing that someday we may have to evacuate our home, we store food and supplies knowing that someday the grocery store may not have received its deliveries, we invest in precious metals because we know that fiat currency doesn’t have a leg to stand on. We study and analyze the threats that are most likely to affect us and we take steps to mitigate the effects those threats have on our lives. Having insurance is just another way that preppers ready themselves for the unknowns of modern times.