April 9, 2024

Insurance Review

by Matthew C. Miller, CFP®

Believe it or not, I try not to think about insurance too much on the weekends. Sometimes, though, life hands you a scenario that puts the article you were going to write on the backburner, and makes you think about risk. Not the game of strategy (Kamchatka, anyone?), but the possibility of something unpleasant or unplanned happening.

In our meetings with clients, the risk we think about most visually, and perhaps most often, is portfolio risk. All of our clients have seen pie charts along the efficient frontier, discussed optimal asset allocation (another way to talk about “risk management”) and viewed personal asset class weightings on Armor reports in vivid color.  This focus on and colorization of the concept of portfolio risk is an important -I would even say vital – part of how Armor communicates. Quantifying the art and science of portfolio management is a craft that may never be mastered anywhere, but I think we do it well here. There are, however, other risks…

A few weeks ago, I witnessed a “confused the accelerator for the brake” car accident that fortunately damaged only a stop sign and an empty building, but nearly took some bystanders out in the process. While the new-ish dad in me immediately started thinking about my own little one and all of the big-picture things we cannot control, the financial planner side of my brain couldn’t help but think about insurance. Like fiber in a diet, insurance isn’t the most exciting thing on anyone’s plate, and you don’t want too much of it, but its importance as part of a well-balanced financial plan is irrefutable.

As your net worth and the overall complexity of your financial life grow, the threat of “not having enough” can give way to the danger of “not protecting what you’ve got”. Life, health, and disability insurance are a great place to start, but as careers and families take root, it is often wise to add more layers. P&C, or Property and Casualty insurance, is one place to make sure you are adequately covered. Auto, Home, and Umbrella policies often get set on autopilot and overlooked (sometimes for decades!) as lives and markets change. To make sure a short-term adverse event doesn’t get in the way of your long-term goals, Armor is continuing to evolve how we look at protecting our clients.

To that end, we have partnered with a local independent Property and Casualty expert to help review and analyze current policies for opportunities to better protect or save. As always, Armor is only compensated by our clients, so that our advice is always aligned with your best interest.

We often remind our clients to let us know if their financial or personal circumstances have changed, and we mean it! Clients shouldn’t hesitate to reach out to schedule a check-in or ask for an in-depth review of insurance, tax returns, or anything else on their mind.