You may be a DIY’er (Do-It-Yourself-er) and find the thought of shopping from your couch in your pajamas to be a great experience. Amazon has made millions selling books, DVDs, watches and more to online shoppers. Cyber Monday has exploded with popularity and is on pace to outsell retail stores on Black Friday in the next few years. Having said that, there are a few products that shouldn’t be purchased online without advice and insurance is one of them. Insurance isn’t a television. If a TV breaks, you can buy a new one with little financial impact. The reason you buy insurance is to avoid any financial impacts, so you want to make sure you are protected properly. Below are some reasons you should not buy insurance online:

You may not know of or understand the exclusions

It seems almost every week there is a headline about travel insurance being declined. That’s not to say it’s a bad product, but maybe the buyer didn’t read the policy and completely understand what’s covered and what isn’t. It is so easy to just check boxes online confirming you’ve read the policy, but if you aren’t going play by the company’s rules, why even bother purchasing? Typical oversights include: a) there is no medical coverage for pre-existing conditions and b) there may no coverage if injury occurs while intoxicated.

Please read your policy at time of purchase.

You may have health risks that you consider “normal”

When answering health questions in an online application, there are many grey areas where how you interpret the question may be different than how the insurance company interprets the question. By using a qualified insurance broker, you can ensure the questions are answered properly and can include further documentation to support your case.

You might purchase too little or too much

Too often shoppers are looking for the lowest rates, not considering the impact it has on the overall plan. The cheaper and cheaper the plan gets, the likelihood is the less and less it covers. Furthermore, there are some things you can’t put a price on. Attributes like great customer service, great claims-handling procedures, the speed of claim settling are very important and a broker know which companies are best.

Conclusion

It may be easy, it may be cheap, but insurance is something you don’t want to screw up. You’ve clearly given though to the situation and done your research - that’s a great start. If you want life insurance or any other type of insurance, working with a broker will ensure you get the best price, the best value and the right type of insurance that suits your needs.