It is not just low-income families that are not prepared for financial emergencies; financially successful families also are vulnerable, according to a study by the Million Dollar Round Table.
In a recent study, 47 percent of those surveyed say that if they lost their primary source of income they could only maintain their lifestyle for three months or less, and only half have life insurance. Of the 2,192 American adults surveyed, 40 percent had a household income of $74,000 or more. Most of the families had two incomes.
It appears that many American households are not prepared for an unexpected event that would cost the family one income, says the Million Dollar Round Table, a global association of financial service professionals and life insurance companies.
Sixty-one percent of those who took the survey say their family would assume debt if the primary breadwinner passed away. Of those primary breadwinners who have dependents, 47 percent say their dependents would run out of money within two years.
Only 20 percent of the survey participants have either short-term or long-term disability insurance. Of those Americans who do have disability insurance, only 39 percent believe it would be enough to cover their long-term-care and medical expenses if they were to have an accident.
Another factor affecting families is the rising cost of a college education, the report says. Of those families with children under the age of 18 in the household, only 36 percent of them are saving for children’s education. Lack of college savings may be a result of many Americans still working to pay off their own student loan debt, the report says.