Insurance Issues to Be Aware of Following Divorce

Insurance is an important part of life, and your needs with respect to insurance may change dramatically after your divorce becomes final. While insurance issues are unlikely to be at the forefront of your mind during your divorce, they are something that you need to consider how you will handle in your post-divorce life. For instance, if you traditionally had various types of insurance coverage through your spouse’s employer, you need to figure out how you will gain necessary insurance coverage following your divorce.

Life Insurance

In some cases, maintaining a life insurance policy with your ex-spouse as beneficiary is a requirement in your divorce decree. The point of this requirement is to ensure financial support for your children if you should pass away unexpectedly. If, however, maintaining a life insurance policy is not required by your divorce decree, you should consider whether you need to obtain your own term life insurance policy, and, if so, whom you should name as beneficiary. If you have an existing life insurance policy, then you are likely to want to change the beneficiary of the policy from your ex-spouse to another designated person, such as a parent, sibling, or adult child.

Health Insurance

If you have your own health insurance coverage through your employer, then you are not likely to have to make any changes to your coverage following your divorce. However, if your ex-spouse covered you on his or her employer-provided health insurance plan during your marriage, then you have some decisions to make. You no longer can be covered as a dependent on your ex-spouse’s policy once your divorce becomes final. The only way you can do this is by opting for continued coverage through your ex-spouse’s employer through the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), which requires you to pay the insurance premiums yourself. Only some employers are required to offer COBRA coverage. You can opt for COBRA coverage for up to 36 months following your divorce, but the cost tends to be extremely high. It may be cheaper to pick up insurance through your own employer, which you can do outside of the regular enrollment period, since your divorce constitutes a qualifying event, or find coverage through the insurance marketplace available in the state of Florida.

Car Insurance

Once you and your ex have decided how you will divide your vehicles, you must take steps to split your auto insurance policies in some manner. You can simply maintain your existing policy and remove your ex-spouse’s name from the policy. You also can cancel your existing policy altogether and simply procure a new policy solely in your name. If you have teenage drivers, you also need to find out if you must list the teen solely on one parent’s policy, or if you must list the teen on both parents’ policies.

Get the Legal Advice That You Need Before, During, and After Divorce

If you decide to go forward with a divorce or separation from your spouse in the state of Florida, you need to take care that you tie up any loose ends after your legal proceedings are over. Insurance is only one of the many issues that arises in the context of a divorce, and because insurance coverage is so important, it is essential to take the steps necessary in order to ensure that you have the appropriate insurance policies in place. An experienced family law attorney can guide you through the different options available to handle matters following your divorce and help you make the decisions that are best for you and your family. Contact Vanessa L. Prieto Law Offices, LLC, today and see what we can do to help.