The purpose of buying life insurance is to protect your dependants from any financial difficulties in your absence. This logic holds true for both, men and women. But statistics tell us that in India, men buy life insurance far more than women. We believe insurance is an all-pervasive need and there is a need for women to get insured like their male counterparts; the reasons for the same are many.

As more women take up the responsibility of contributing towards the family income, the risk of a loss of income in case of an eventuality increases. Also observed in many cases is the fact that some families are dependent solely on one earning member who happens to be a woman. Having a life cover under such circumstances can prove to be helpful.

Besides, it helps homemakers and working women alike in providing them with the twin benefits of insuring themselves while at the same time acting as a compulsory savings instrument to take care of their future needs. Life insurance bought by you can also aid your family on a rainy day, at a time when help from every quarter is welcome. And of course, since some plans also double up as a savings instrument, they assist you in planning for such future needs like children's education and marriage.

Here, we have evaluated various options at your disposal while considering life insurance. Let's first take a look at a term plan as it provides a cost effective insurance cover for individuals.

A term plan is a pure risk cover plan and there is no savings element involved. Hence, there is no maturity amount and therefore it is very affordable. A term plan, in case of an eventuality, aims to give the nominees the sum assured, as mentioned in the policy. Also the premium on a term plan is a very affordable amount to pay every year. Something you can easily save from your monthly income or allowance as the case may be.

In case of an eventuality, your nominees would stand to get the sum assured. This will help in ensuring that they are adequately compensated in your absence.

Another variant available under the 'women's insurance' banner is unit-linked insurance plans (ULIPs). ULIPs, simply put, invest the premiums you pay in market-linked instruments like stocks and government securities. While your returns are market linked and therefore at risk, you also have the potential to generate a higher return vis-�-vis plain vanilla plans.

Endowment is a popular category of insurance plans. Such plans aim to give you a certain amount on maturity. These plans not only provide risk cover but also help in the accumulation of wealth over the long-term. For example, assume that you take an endowment plan at 35 years age, and the sum assured is Rs 100,000 while the tenure is 25 years. The annual premium for the policy for instance works out to approximately Rs 4,047. While the maturity amount at the end of the tenure works out to Rs 282,500 (assuming a rate of return of 10%). That's a tidy sum indeed!

That apart, you should also consider buying a money back plan from the endowment plans category. A money back plan aims to give you a certain sum of money at regular intervals; simultaneously it also provides you with life cover. Money back plans are especially useful in case you need money at regular intervals for your child's education/marriage or you want to buy household appliances or purchase gold/jewellery.

Some life insurance companies have money back plans specially designed for women. These plans offer benefits and flexibility to women while at the same time, fulfilling their financial needs. In fact, one aspect of these plans that needs special mention is that, they cover a host of women-related illnesses under their 'Critical Illness' rider.

A few other points to be kept in mind while women plan their finances.

1. Ensure that your spouse and/or the primary earning member has insured himself adequately. We feel that life insurance should ideally be in the form of a term plan. Alternatively, if your spouse has ensured himself sufficiently through other endowment-type plans, that should also serve the purpose.

2. Know whether your spouse has secured all his liabilities. For example, if your spouse has taken a home loan, ensure that he has also bought a term plan to secure the loan. This will help in securing your family's financial future in his absence. Keep your existing endowment-type plans distinct from the ones meant to cover any sort of liability.

3. Nominate your children and dependants in some of your life insurance policies. This will help in securing their future financially. In the other policies you can nominate your spouse as well.

4. Maintain a logbook of all your family's assets as well as liabilities. Keep updating the same regularly. This will help in knowing your exact financial status at any given point in time. Also share the same with your spouse/children/parents. This is especially true for homemakers as in case of an eventuality, you would like to know exactly how your finances are placed.

5. Women should also look at covering their medical expenses. While riders can be attached with a life insurance policy, the same can also be done by buying a medical insurance plan. And the premium too works out to be cheap and therefore, affordable (around 1.00%-1.50% of the amount covered).

6. Some life insurance companies also offer to insure women at a lower cost. So you must evaluate all your options well before you decide to zero-in on any insurance policy.

7. Women should also ensure that they have a portfolio of insurance plans. While we feel that a term plan is essential, you should have an ideal balance of endowment plans, money back plans and ULIPs, which will enhance your returns. Of course, this would depend on various factors like your needs and risk appetite among others.

All in all, women need to bear in mind that their lives are as important and precious as their spouse's. Financial planning is as important for women if not more, as they are at considerable risk if an eventuality was to take place in the family.  It is keeping this in mind that women need to plan their finances well for a better and a more secure future.

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