Excuses, Excuses. What’s Yours?

Five reasons people make buying life insurance anything but top priority

Buying life insurance rarely makes the top 10 on our to-do lists—and we have plenty of excuses as to why. Here are top reasons people push it off, and why that might not be the best idea: 

1) “I’m covered through work.”

Employer-sponsored life insurance is a great benefit to have. But work benefits are usually limited. What’s more, they don’t automatically go with you if you change—or lose—a job. 

2) “I’m healthy.”

The fact is, the best time to buy life insurance is when you’re in good health. The younger you are and the healthier you are, the better your rates will be. 

3) “I’m not insurable.”

Most of us are never as healthy as we want to be. But you might be surprised to find out that you are, in fact, insurable, regardless of age or health. It’s worth it just to ask. 

4) “It’s too expensive.”

There are many types of life insurance available, and there’s usually something that will fit in everyone’s budget. Once you break it down, life insurance is basically a dollars-a-day expense.

5) “I’m single and don’t have children.”

Not being married or having little ones around now doesn't mean there aren't other plans in store for you in the future. Plus, if you are in your 20's or 30's and have debts such as a car and a home, it’s good to get insured now while the cost is the most reasonable.

Is today the day?

The truth is, we don’t usually think about items such as life insurance until someone asks about it, or worse, someone we know experiences a life crisis that puts things in a new light. But why wait? Let us be the one to ask you about it, rather than you experiencing a loss that jolts the issue to the top of your list. 

We can help you find an Erie Family Life insurance policy that fits into your budget and covers your needs for your stage of life. Plus, if you’re an ERIE auto and homeowners policyholder, you can save on your premiums when you add a life policy from Erie Family Life*. Give us a call today to learn more. 610-681-5785

*Erie Family Life insurance products are not available in New York. Related discounts vary by state and are subject to eligibility requirements. 

Disclaimer:

Not all companies are licensed or operate in all states. Not all products are offered

in all states. Go to erieinsurance.com for company licensure and territory

information.

Demystifying Life Insurance

Do your eyes start to glaze over whenever anyone starts to talk about life insurance? Term life, whole life, universal life, what does it all mean? And the chances of you ever needing to use it are so low, why bother learning all the jargon?

Think again. Life insurance is a crucial planning tool for the people you love. Whether it’s making sure that your kids can go to college, your spouse is taken care of or just leaving some extra money behind to your heirs, you can’t ignore life insurance. So let us make understanding it a little easier.

There are three major types of insurance we offer: term, whole and universal. All are great policies with different purposes. Let’s break it down:

• Term Life is life insurance that you purchase for a specific period of time, in increments of 10, 15, 20 or 30 years. Maybe you want to have a policy as long as the kids are still in school, or until your mortgage is paid off. Term life lets you make sure there’s enough money for all of these things without a lifetime commitment.

• Whole Life lets you adjust how you use your life insurance policy as your needs change. While you’ll always receive death benefits, a whole life policy also includes a cash value that you can draw upon. Maybe it’s to pay medical bills or to help out with retirement—it’s there for you to use as you need, and to adapt over time.

• Universal Life is a balanced plan offering you a strong death benefit protection as well as plenty of opportunities for investing and growth on a tax-deferred basis.

Still confused? Sit down with us and let’s talk about which of these kinds of insurance fits your needs, both today and in the future. Don’t leave things to chance: protect your family. 

“Not all companies are licensed or operate in all states. Not all products are offered in all states. Go to erieinsurance.com for company licensure and territory information.”

Nothin' But a Number

Many consider this a rude question, but we're going to ask it anyway:

How old are you?

Don't worry, your secret's safe with us. But it's an incredibly important question. Not because it determines how creaky your knees are or whether or not you can rent a car -- but because it determines where you should be on the road to a secure retirement.  

When it comes to investing for your retirement, the rule of thumb is the earlier, the better. The earlier you start investing, the more time your money has to grow.

But, even if you haven't had time to let your money grow, it's still not too late to invest. Better to start when you're 40 or 50 than just to throw your hands up and not invest anything at all because it's “too late.” It's never too late—you just might have a little catching up to do.

No matter where you are in your investing strategy, we want to talk to you about how annuities, IRAs and other investments can help lead to a better financial future for you and your family. 

“All insurance products are subject to terms, conditions and exclusions not described here; we can answer any questions you may have.”

Insurance Tune-Up

You know that your car needs its oil changed every 3,000-5,000 miles. You know that your heating and air conditioning system needs to be checked out every year. But what about an insurance tune up?

At Serfass Insurance, we do our best to make sure you're up-to-date on all changes in your policies, changes in the law, and other information you need to have. That's our job, after all. But it never hurts for us to sit down every year and make sure you have all the coverage you need at the price that fits your needs and your wallet.

Why is this so important? Because your life changes. Maybe when you first started working with us, you were a fresh-faced graduate with a car, and only needed auto insurance. When you bought your first house, we were there to help you make sure you were covered in case of fire, burglary and other homeowner hazards. All of this is common sense.

But did you remember to start saving for retirement? Or when you got married and had your first child, did you buy life insurance to cover your family in case of the worst? If not, it's not too late. Let's sit down and really talk about what matters to you in life, and what's worth protecting. Let's tune up your insurance, and make sure everything is still working. It'll pay off in the long run.

“All insurance products are subject to terms, conditions and exclusions not described here; we can answer any questions you may have.”

Doing the Right Thing: ERIE Rate Lock

You probably already know that many insurance companies boost your rate for getting into accidents. But did you know that traffic tickets can raise your rates, too?

Late to work one day and have a bit of lead foot? Rate increase. Miss the speed limit sign? Rate increase. Forget to signal at a light? Rate increase. Seems crazy, doesn’t it? You already were punished with a pricy ticket, and then you find yourself hit again with a rate hike.

But insurance doesn’t have to be that way. When you choose ERIE Rate Lock^SM, you’re protected against rate increases due to traffic tickets or accidents. After all, we’re your insurance company, not your driver’s ed teacher—we don’t need to punish you every time you make a mistake.

Why does ERIE offer this feature to qualifying applicants when so many other companies don’t? It’s simple: We think it’s the right thing to do. A pretty radical stance, but we’ve been doing the right thing since 1925 when H.O. Hirt founded ERIE with the plan to offer commonsense service at affordable prices.

Add some certainty to your auto insurance bill with ERIE Rate Lock. Give us a call at Serfass Insurance today, and let’s talk about whether ERIE Rate Lock makes sense for you. 

ERIE Rate Lock does not guarantee continued insurance coverage. Insured must meet applicable underwriting guidelines. Premium may change if you make a policy change.

Have Your Cake (and eat it, too)

Nothing beats the personal touch. We all love it when someone asks how our kids are, or remembers that we just took a vacation to Florida. It makes us feel special when someone cares enough to treat us as an actual person with a family and a life, rather than just another anonymous number in a huge machine.

That’s where your personal agent comes in. We’re the people you see at the grocery store, or who you bump into on the sidewalk. And we genuinely want to know how the kids are doing, what you did on your vacation, and that your house repairs went off without a hitch. We want to know that you’re happy, and all is well.

But there are some advantages to having a big company behind you, too. Erie Insurance is a financially stable Fortune 500 company with more than four million policies in force. There’s strength in numbers.

With us, you get the best of both worlds. You get the hands-on interaction with an ERIE agent who knows your name, your policy, and your situation. And you get the comfort of knowing that standing behind every ERIE agent is a company that has the resources you need.

Isn’t it great to have your cake and eat it too?

“All insurance products are subject to terms, conditions and exclusions not described here; we can answer any questions you may have.”

Annuities for Any Budget

Some people think that annuities are expensive, that you need to have thousands of dollars in the bank to buy into an annuity. While there are some annuities that require a large single payment, Erie Insurance offers many other options that can fit into many budgets:

• Flexible Premium Deferred Annuity (FPDA): Think of the FPDA as the “pay as you go” model of annuity. Rather than a large single payment, this annuity is funded over time with either scheduled or intermittent payments into your account. This allows you to fund the account slowly without a large initial payment, and can be a great choice for building a retirement account. You can enter a FPDA for as little as $300.
• Single Premium Immediate Annuity (SPIA): If you need an immediate source of income, an SPIA may be right for you.* It does require an initial payment, but you begin receiving income right away with no waiting. These payments can be limited to a certain period of time, or can keep paying out for the rest of your life.
• Single Premium Deferred Annuity (SPDA): If you have $10,000 or more to invest in your future, an SPDA is an option. Choices include 3, 5 or 7-year guaranteed payout terms. Depending on the amount of the deposit, there may even be a first year bonus.

Don’t be scared away from annuities because you don’t have thousands to invest. Call us today, and let’s talk about whether an annuity fits your needs and your budget.

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*Surrender charges and other penalties may apply to early withdrawal of principal.  See policy for details, or call us to discuss.