Insurance company thinks you’re bad at math

Are you pessimistic, paranoid, and unable to perform a basic compound interest calculation?  Then maybe divorce insurance is for you.  After all, the future is uncertain, and nothing says, “I’ll love you forever,” like cutting that monthly premium check.

A company called WedLock is now offering a cash payout should the day ever come that you can’t stomach living happily ever after anymore.  It’s a little something to soften the blow, or so it seems.  Prices are just $16/month per $1250 unit.  That is, $160/month will net you $12,500 upon your decree.  But don’t order yet.  There’s also a $250/unit bonus for every year you manage to stay hitched after the 4-year mandatory waiting period for the policy to go into force.

Time magazine thoughtfully did some of the math for us using this hypothetical 10 unit purchase and assuming the marriage lasts 10 years.  The $19,188 you paid in premiums will get you $27,500 in divorce-dollars.  Should you manage to stay together for 20 years, your $38,400 investment will get you a cool $78,400.  Of course, should you screw up and pull off the whole “til death do us part” thing, you get nothing.

While it may seem like you are getting decent return on your investment, consider that over 10 years the policy is only yielding 6.8% APR.  Granted, in the current economy that looks like a good return, but historically it’s a pretty conservative investment return. The stock market has consistently returned an average of over 10% APR for the last century.  Over 20 years, the return drops to 6.45%.  So the longer you stay married, the more money the insurance company makes.  It should be comforting to know that at least someone has the incentive for you to stay with your spouse.

Entrepreneur John Logan is responsible for this new financial product and says even he is surprised how much  insurance his customers are buying.  He says some are spending more than $1000/month in premiums.  This certainly causes you wonder how someone comes by $1000/month in disposable income while being so profoundly bad with money.

The bottom line is that you are much better off to simply invest the monthly premium yourself.  Not only is your return likely to be better, but should you celebrate your 20th anniversary together, you can use the nest egg to take the whole family on a great vacation rather than lamenting all the cash you’ve tossed down the drain to preserve your happiness.

The mere existence of insurance like this is validation for the USA being ranked 24/30 countries in math ability.  While the sale of this product is not criminal, the fact that’s it’s selling is certainly a crime.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *