As the American statesman Benjamin Franklin once famously said, there are only two things in life that are certain, and those are death and taxes.
And whilst nobody likes having to give their hard-earned money to the taxman, it's generally accepted by most people as being an inevitable and necessary evil that stays with everyone throughout their working life and beyond. Indeed, even once retirement age has arrived, savings and investments are still subject to tax and then after that there is inheritance tax to consider too. So, it's probably fair to say that tax really is a certainty throughout life.
Of course, death too is another one of life's undeniable certainties, but the key difference here is that most people will never know when or where it's going to happen; it just happens. And for many people, that can be a lot sooner than anticipated.
But if that is the case, then it can be all too easy to take a cavalier attitude to mortality by saying that there's nothing we can really do about it, so why worry about it? And this outlook may be fine for people with no dependents, but for families who rely on one person's income, it is probably wise to have plans in place should the absolute worst happen.
It is estimated that about 3,000 people died on UK roads in 2007, with around the same amount of accidental deaths happening due to accidents in the home. So whilst the odds are still clearly stacked against anything unfortunate happening, the risks are clearly there.
Most families live a lifestyle that reflects the amount of money coming into the household. If either parent is on a high income, for example, it's likely that there will be a big mortgage and perhaps other outgoings such as school or university fees. If the unthinkable was to happen, then this would obviously have a drastic effect on the family unit, but it would also affect their ability to maintain as stable and normal a life as possible.
Life insurance is the safest way of ensuring loved ones are looked after should the unthinkable happen. And it has never been easier to acquire life insurance, thanks to the abundance of websites that are dedicated to comparing life insurance premiums.
Furthermore, even for those who feel they already have all their preparations in place, it's always worth shopping around to see if any better deals can be found. Advances in medical science and the subsequent rise in life expectancy has resulted in many providers reducing their costs in recent years, so it's worth requesting a new life insurance quote at the very least.
So, whilst death may indeed be one of the few certainties in life, most people are never in a position to predict when or where this will happen to them. For this reason, it's probably wise to have the necessary plans in place to ensure loved ones are cared for should the worst happen.
After all, nobody knows what the future holds.