Hey Superwoman – yes I mean you! I know women often think they are invincible. I see women in my life laugh at the thought of manflu and play things down if they’re not feeling great. We just keep going no matter what! But I’m sure we can all think of women in our lives that were hit out of the blue with a serious illness or died suddenly. My grandmother passed away from breast cancer at 68. She would never entertain the thought of being ill and was one of the toughest women I know, she sure seemed like Superwoman to me. Unfortunately no matter how tough we feel and healthy our lifestyle, we can’t take our good health as a given. This is brought home to us in Irish Life every time we look at all the life insurance and specified illness insurance claims we pay to our customers.

Some of Irish Life’s 2013 claim statistics:

• Paid out €168 million in life and specified illness insurance claims to both men and women.
• Paid out 579 life insurance claims and 344 specified illness insurance claims to women.
• 38% of all life and specified illness insurance claims are paid to women.
• The average age of women making specified illness claims was just 53.
• The most common cause of claims for women is cancer (malignant), followed by stroke (resulting in permanent symptoms).
• Paid one customer who was diagnosed with a benign brain tumour €100,000. She only had her plan in place with us for 12 weeks.
• Paid a family of a customer €100,000 when she passed away from sudden adult death syndrome. She had her plan for just 2 years.                                                                              

 Most women make a big contribution to their households either through working or looking after the family so it’s important to consider the financial impact if something were to happen to you. I know it’s not a happy thought but maybe just for today imagine what would happen if you couldn’t be Superwoman someday. You can get a quote for life insurance here.

Anthony Curran is an advocate for your financial future who takes a holistic approach to your needs and goals. He will work collaboratively with you to define what success and financial independence mean to you and how best to achieve them. Anthony is well qualified to provide long-term support and guidance on a variety of financial challenges and will help you focus on what you can control. Defining your own financial freedom will help you be more comfortable about retirement and the possibilities of creating the life you want. Whether you are single, married, or raising a family, your approach to financial well-being now will shape your life for years to come. www.lowcostlifecover.ie