Short answer: Because it includes things specifically relevant to the circumstances that nomadic families – and family members of nomads who are back home – will face, if you unexpectedly die young whilst in a foreign country, which the non-nomad-focussed life insurance companies don’t cover.
Here are those things – it’s a five minute read, and contains extremely useful information, whether you choose to buy a life insurance policy or not.
Before we get into the specifics, there are two important things to bring to your attention. Firstly, you are not likely to unexpectedly die young – that’s why the cost of life insurance is so low. So don’t panic. But whilst the chances are low, they’re not zero – every day, thousands of people unexpectedly die young, for a variety of reasons, and some of those people are nomads like us. Whilst unexpectedly dying young is of course a travesty for all involved, those unexpected deaths which happen in a foreign country are a lot more difficult – and a lot more expensive – for the surviving family members to sort out, compared to what needs to be done when someone dies in their home country. Therefore us nomads have a major specific need which doesn’t apply to the non-nomads.
Secondly, because of this, life insurance isn’t just important if you have children – everyone knows it is hugely important to have a large amount of life insurance if you have children, because your children are still financially dependent on you whether you’re alive or dead – in this article, we’re specifcally talking about the actual situation faced by the family (which could be your parents, your partner, your kids, or another next-of-kin) of a global nomad who unexpectedly dies young in a foreign country – whether there are children involved or not.
So, on to the things that family members of a global nomad, who unexpectedly dies young, have to deal with. Remember – in addition to all the things below, they’re also grieving. Losing a loved one is an extremely difficult time, whatever the circumstances – even if you died whilst living in the same place as they live. When it’s an unexpected early death, it’s even harder to deal with, emotionally, even if you died whilst living in the same place as they live. When a loved one dies in another part of the planet, it’s even more of a nightmare.
That nightmare includes, but is not limited to: Dealing with the local police, wherever you were when you died; Identifying your body; Completing all the paperwork and other legal requirements in whatever country you died in; Getting your dead body through customs so it can leave the country; Arranging (and paying for) transportation for your body to bring it home; Clearing customs in your home country. These things are not easy, and they are not cheap. And even when all the above has been done, the situation is now the same as it would have been if you had died in your home country – there is still more paperwork and legal requirements to fulfil in whatever country you’re from, still a funeral to arrange, and still a burial or cremation to sort out. All whilst dealing with the horrors of someone they love unexpectedly dying young.
Recovering your dead body would probably be the biggest and most painful problem for your family if you died young, but it would not be the only one. Dealing with any death is mentally and emotionally challenging, the paperwork and bureaucracy involved is a nightmare at the best of times, but throw in the added complexities of it being an unexpected early death (i.e. not old age), AND having to navigate foreign legal procedures, potentially in a foreign language, and you’ve then got a set of circumstances which is, quite frankly, going to be unbearable for a lot of people – particularly those who have never lived in multiple countries themselves.
If you have a life insurance policy specifically designed for international digital nomads and expatriates, the insurance company will sort a lot of this out – in addition to paying out the money that you are insured for, regardless of whether you are insured for a large or small amount of money. This means that the people who care about you the most don’t have to do most of this, because they get huge amounts of help from a team of professionals with international experience of “Mortal Remains Repatriation” who will sort it all for them.
Most life insurance policies from most life insurance companies do not include this – you will only find this service included as a benefit on life insurance policies specifically designed for digital nomads and long-term expatriates. Additionally, whilst travel insurance will usually refund any costs involved with sending your body back home (after it’s been paid by your family first), it usually does not provide any help at all with the administrative processes involved in sorting out the mess.
In addition to the practical assistance with the legal procedures, they also get other assistance for the situations and stresses which are unique to us global nomads. This includes 24/7 multi-lingual support based in a range of global locations and time zones, access to professional counsellors to help them cope with whatever they’re faced with – including things they would normally be able to sort themselves, but may not be able to due to the stress and complications they are dealing with at the time – and of course a simple and non-location-specific claims process to make it as easy for them as possible.
In normal circumstaces, having a life insurance policy pay out quickly is not a concern for anyone involved – they are grieving, they’re not thinking about money. But when they need to travel to another part of the planet, and pay for transport and accomodation, those costs can quickly escalate, particularly for things booked at short notice. That’s why, unlike traditional domestic life insurance policies, life insurance policies specifically designed for global nomads and their families include an upfront payment of part of the insured amount to make sure that the people who have to sort out the situation have quick access to the cash they need to do what they need to do.
Finally, the coverage is fully global, with no exceptions. Many domestic life insurance policies specifically exclude deaths in countries they consider “high risk” – and that list of countries can and does change over time, depending on the whims of the department head at the insurance company. Nomad-specialist insurance recognises that living in a different country does not increase the risk of you unexpectedly dying young, it just increases the cost and the drama if you do. That’s why there are no geographical exceptions to a truly global nomad-specific life insurance policy – if you’re on Planet Earth, you’re covered.
Looping back to the start of this article – you are not likely to unexpectedly die young, the chances are very small, they’re just not zero. Similarly, the cost of life insurance is not zero, but it is small. Like, really small. You will probably be amazed at how inexpensive it is to get, say, $25,000 worth of insurance cover – with all the other added benefits included, regardless of the amount of insurance you choose – which should be enough, in most circumstances, to pay for every cost involved with your family having to travel to collect your body and bring it home, and get everyone a few drinks at your funeral, if you are unlucky enough to be one of the millions of people who will unexpectedly die young over the next year.
Find out the precise cost instantly online here: https://LifeInsuranceForNomads.com/get-a-quotation, and have a think about whether it’s a good thing to have. Everyone would have it if it was free… is it worth a few dollars?
Most importantly – stay safe, live your best life, and enjoy exploring the planet. You only get a few laps around the sun – use them well!