The time right after marriage is typically a whirlwind of activity.  A lot of the day to day practical concerns takes a short hiatus and with good reason.  Between making plans and the actual event, not to mention the honeymoon, there doesn't seem to be any free time left for anything else.  Probably the last thing on your mind is insurance and especially, life insurance but as soon as the dust settles, it makes sense to take a look at your current term life insurance standing and make sure it reflects your new setup.  There are actually two major considerations we'll take a look at. 

Marriage is one of those big ticket items in life that change everything.  Right up there with the birth of a child, you really don't realize just how important or perhaps, how much of an impact it will have on your life over the long run.  For many people, marriage will be a blessing and great addition to their lives but for a fair number, it will end either with a wimper or bang.  I have now been married 10 years and it seems this is about the time that many couples we know are in the throes of ending right now.  Some marriage endings are cordial while many are downright nasty.  Like with the original marriage, many practical matters such as the standing of term life insurance end up on the perpetual to-do list and this can come back to really haunt a person later.  It's not uncommon for marriages to be second or even third marriages.  It's important for the newly-weds to go through their respective financial affairs including life insurance and make sure it's all in order.  There may be changes in beneficiary that are required to remove the original spouse which is generally filling that spot.  There may also be changes in address, phone numbers, and billing information as the two newly member individuals make large-scale lifestyle changes.  This updating of existing policies is very important.  The last thing you want to happen is have an term life insurance triggering event and find out the beneficiary detail still reflects the original spouse.  This is a nightmare and by the time it's found out, there's usually very little we can do. 

A new marriage also necessitates thinking forward in terms of life insurance planning.  Invariably, you how have a new consideration in terms of providing for dependents whether it's just your new spouse or potential children later on.  You also need to look at what your new spouse has in terms of life insurance.  Obviously, the basic need for life insurance is primarily driven by replacing income, to assume that there won't be financial implications of a non-working spouse passing away is risky at best and we address this concern in detail with other articles.  Many times, newly weds will determine that life insurance is less important than saving for a house or other purchase not realizing that the cost of term life insurance is directly tied to the age of the insured and only goes up with more time.  There's no better time than right now to apply for term life.

So the need for life insurance self-reflection on behalf of newlyweds is two-fold.  First, you want to make sure all the information on existing policies is correct.  Secondly, you want to make sure that your new family insurance needs do not merit changes in your term life insurance coverage.  Both are equally important and we're here to help you in any way.