Teaching Your Partner about Insurance

When my grandfather passed away recently it led to a reassessment of how bills and information are handled in both mine and my parents’ households. We realised that after 55 years of relying upon my grandfather to deal with bills, payments and all finances, my grandmother didn’t know where to start or who to contact. The cultural differences between this generation and my own are huge, and there is now a much greater level of cooperation, but there may still be a separation.

Whilst you may think that it is fine for one person in a relationship to handle finances, it could actually create a huge problem if that person were to suffer an accident or leave the relationship. It is ok for one person to retain responsibility, of course, but it is vital that you provide your partner with the skills to cope with finances and an understanding of how you do it – otherwise they could be left unable to manage. Here is a simple method for sharing knowledge about home insurance and other finances with your partner:

● Collate the Information
All of the necessary information needs to be available to both partners in a relationship. This is vitally important, so that your partner is able to determine which companies you utilise – for everything, from water to internet – in your absence.

● Give Them Access
Knowing which companies you use is only useful if both partners can access the information needed to make changes. As much of this is carried out online and by phone, it is important that both of you know the passwords and understand the needs and arrangements.

● Explain
Explanation is vital to this process. If your partner knows how to access the necessary information but not how to deal with it or process it, then there is no point. Explain what everything is and why it is important. This is particularly important for things like life insurance, property tax and contents insurance because their uses and processes are less obvious than electricity, for example.

● Demonstrate
Let them assist you in the process of paying bills and managing budgets for the household. This educational process should help them to understand what you are doing as you do it.

● Split Responsibilities
The best way to keep a good level of understanding is to provide your partner with responsibilities. By splitting the responsibilities and exchanging them occasionally, you will necessarily both have a decent level of understanding about the financial situation.

● Discuss the Future
Discussing future arrangements is possibly the most important part of this process. Consider the financial state that you would be in if either partner died, fell terminally ill, or were unable to work for any reason. Planning for the future and for the worst-case scenario is the only way that you can ensure it would have a minimal impact if it were to occur.

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