Although women have been the conventional money managers of the Indian households, they have, for a long time, lacked the financial resources and independence to make their own financial decisions. Knowledge of and investment into financial instruments, especially insurance, stocks, mutual funds, etc., was a male domain.

However, with a resounding presence in almost every professional and societal domain, women have managed to shatter the glass ceilings with elan. They earn their own monies and contribute to household income. Therefore, women, especially working women, too, need life insurance protection. There can be no value to the life of a loved one; however, securing yourself with life insurance can guarantee the financial security and stability of your family in your absence.

What is Term Insurance?
Term insurance is a form of life insurance that is only limited for a particular period for e.g. 10 or 20 years or even 30 in some cases. Term insurance works like any other life insurance wherein there is a sum assured as a death benefit which is offered to the family after the death of the insured. Although there are no maturity benefits, some term insurance policies return the amount of premium paid on maturity. 

Importance of Term Insurance for Working Women

1. Financial Protection
   As working women, financial responsibility increases by a large extent. Whether it is in a marriage or supporting your parents, the financial support offered by women cannot be undermined. Therefore, it becomes equally significant that women do not shy away from enrolling into insurance policies because, at the event of an untimely death, the financial dependents will be taken care of by the proceeds.
2. Pay off Debt
   Women are increasingly availing education loans, home loans and business loans. Therefore, taking a term policy would ensure that the dependents can pay off any debts with the insurance money. Also, term policies can be linked to existing loans, and in case of untimely death, the insurance company pays off the debt with the sum assured.
3. Tax Benefits
   Working women also have to pay taxes even though they have a separate tax slab. A term insurance policy would help them save their tax deduction significantly under Section 80C of the Indian Income Tax Act, which has a provision of including your premium payments for tax deductions. Moreover, the proceeds after maturity from term insurance is also tax exempted under Section 10(10D) of the Act.
4. Retirement Goals
   Planning for retirement must be started as early as your first job because, with the rise in purchasing power and inflation, the daily expenditure at the time of your retirement would reach sky-high. A term insurance policy is a significant positive step towards your retirement plan. Term Insurance with maturity benefits can support additional old-age expenses and ensure a stress-free retirement life.
5. Future Family
   Getting married and having a family is a huge responsibility and brings with it huge expenses. All these can be financially draining in a country like India, where social security is not up to the mark. Therefore, planning and getting term insurance with maturity benefits maybe of 10 or 20 years, can serve the purpose of having a financial net when needed.
6. Critical Illness Cover
   You can avail multiple riders or add-ons with certain term insurance policies. One such rider is a critical illness cover, wherein the insurance company pays a lump sum amount to the insured for the treatment of critical illnesses like cancer, heart ailments, stroke, paralysis, etc. This ensures financial independence for women even in case of a medical emergency.
7. Wealth Creation: Leave a legacy behind
   A term insurance policy helps women in wealth creation. Term Plans with maturity benefits offer multiple additional bonuses which help you in buying an asset or even leaving a legacy behind for your future generation to flourish.

Women should realise the value of their contributions and insure themselves with a good term insurance policy. However, when one looks at the insurance companies’ data, the ratio is quite skewed against women. This is mainly due to the lack of awareness of the benefits that term insurance can provide over a lifetime. Many insurance companies are targeting women, in general, and working women, in particular, with term insurance for women. Buying term insurance for women is critical for working women to safeguard the financial freedom of their dependents.