When Is the Best Time to Buy Life Insurance, According to Dave Ramsey?

Read this advice before deciding when to buy life insurance.

Purchasing a life insurance policy can be extremely important to avoid leaving loved ones in a financial mess after an untimely death. But when is the right time to buy life insurance? This can be a complicated question to answer.

For consumers deciding when to buy life insurance coverage, it could be helpful to heed some advice on this issue provided by finance expert Dave Ramsey.

Here's when Ramsey thinks consumers should buy coverage

According to the Ramsey Solutions blog, there's a simple answer with regard to the best time to buy life insurance.

"If you have dependents, now is the best time to get life insurance," the blog reads. "Don’t leave them unprotected. If you have young kids, they’re counting on you for the next 15-20 years. Whether your spouse works or not, they’re also counting on your income, so don’t run the risk of leaving them high and dry."

As for those who don't yet have dependents, Ramsey still recommends buying a policy sooner rather than later if they expect to one day get married and have children, or if they're worried about how their family might cover their burial expenses. This is because it can be cheaper to get coverage at a younger age rather than waiting.

Is Ramsey right?

Ramsey is 100% correct that buying life insurance is something that should be done immediately for anyone with dependents who doesn't already have protection. And he's right that it should be done at a young age for those who plan to have people relying on them in the future.

Most people with a spouse or partner have set up their shared lives based either on two incomes, or based on one person bringing in income and the other providing services such as taking care of the home. An untimely death without life insurance in these situations could lead to disaster, as a surviving partner could be unable to pay the bills or unable to pay someone to provide the services their deceased loved one was offering.

As for parents, raising children is extremely costly, with the essentials offered in the first 18 years coming close to costing a quarter-million dollars, according to the USDA. The death of a parent could make it impossible to provide for kids appropriately until adulthood -- much less pay for a child's college education.

Since no one can predict when they will pass away, anyone with current dependents needs to act before a tragedy happens. If a sudden death occurs tomorrow, it would be far too late to do anything to protect surviving loved ones who are left behind.

The good news is, it's not difficult to take action now and get covered as Ramsey suggests. Most people can shop for life insurance online, get quotes, and sign up for a policy either immediately or after a short medical exam. There is no excuse to put off taking this action to care for loved ones when no one has any guarantee that tomorrow will come.