Out-of-pocket long-term care is incredibly expensive, which is why many people use Long-Term Care Insurance as a way to avoid the high costs of nursing or assisted living facilities. But, there’s a secret that a lot of policyholders and their families aren’t told when considering Long-Term Car Insurance: there’s a good chance your policy will lapse before you’re able to use it.
Most people seek these sorts of policies in their 60’s and hope to use them in their 80’s. A premium is paid, much like life insurance, but, unlike life insurance, the premiums are being paid by people in their 60’s and 70’s. The rate of cognitive decline is much higher in those years then when you’re normally paying life insurance premiums. So, for 38% of men and 32% of women, one month you forget to pay the premium. No big deal, right? Wrong. Your policy just lapsed. Your coverage is gone.
If you fail to make even one premium payment, you could have just thrown away all of the premium payments you’ve already made, and bought yourself a ticket to the extremely expensive long-term care facilities you were trying to avoid paying for. Sadly, the people most likely to forget to pay their premiums (those in cognitive decline) are those most likely to need long-term care in the future.
The insurance industry claims there’s a safeguard in place to prevent these types of lapses – policyholders can have their premium statements sent to family members or representatives. But the operative word there is “can”, not “must”. If the policyholder doesn’t understand they have an issue remembering to pay their bills, what would trigger a request to have such statements sent to someone else?
Make sure you have a plan in place for these sort of insurance policies: Either have the premium automatically drafted from your bank account, or have a loved one pay it for you.
Author Bio
Paul Yokabitus
Founder & Estate Planning Lawyer
Paul Yokabitus is the founder of Cary Estate Planning, where he helps North Carolina families protect what matters most through wills, trusts, probate, and special needs planning. Known for his “planning, not paperwork” approach, Paul turns complex legal concepts into clear, practical strategies so clients feel informed and confident at every step. He has been recognized as a Business North Carolina Legal Elite attorney and a Super Lawyers Rising Star, and was named to the Triangle Business Journal’s 40 Under 40. A graduate of Campbell University School of Law, Paul lives in the Triangle with his wife, Alix, and their two sons.
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Paul and his team at Cary Estate Planning are fully committed to creating a personalized experience to develop thorough and comprehensive estate plans. They value their clients and go above and beyond to make sure that no details are missed. I would highly recommend Paul to anyone looking to create an estate plan.
I was referred to Paul by my Real Estate Attorney and I could not say enough about how exceptional the client service has been from everyone I spoke to. The communication is prompt and I feel like they really took the time to answer all my questions and set things up exactly as I wanted, but also recommended things to make it easier on my family down the line.
After attending one of Paul’s estate planning seminars, my husband and I knew we wanted Paul to assist us with our estate planning. His honest, professional approach to this necessary part of life put us at ease with the process. We will continue to recommend Paul and Cary Estate Planning.
We had a great experience working with Paul Yokabitus and the team at Cary Estate Planning to set up our Will and Estate Plan. The process was clear and easy, and in the age of COVID, our signing session was very well done, easy, and safe.
The Cary Estate Planning team will make sure that you have the information you need to be confident in your estate planning decisions. I learned so much from videos, a one-on-one in-person consultation, the website, emails, and a newsletter mailed the old fashioned way. The fee is very reasonable given the importance of estate planning. No matter the size or number of your assets, don’t procrastinate like I did!
Paul is a masterful attorney. He’s very good at taking your intentions and defining that into a durable Trust and Will. Best of all he is as simple and plain-spoken as you like. Or as fast as intellectual as you may be. It’s all about your your speed and your desired outcomes. Would strongly recommend this firm.
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