Insurance, deal or no deal?

There are so many types of insurance out there. Why do we buy insurance? Perhaps it is human nature that drives us, perhaps it is fear. The fear of losing, fear of taking chances, even though the probability could be less than 0.01%. Because when we lose, we may lose big. You see, we even buy insurance on the black jack tables =) I surfed by the GIA (General Insurance Association of Singapore) and I learned something new today... there really are many types of insurance..

Of course we are familiar with the common ones like motor, house/fire, life, personal accident, travel, health insurance etc. There are many others like glass, fidelity guarantee, computer material damage, public liability insurance etc which I don't hear of. But even looking at the ones we know of like personal accident, living and health policies, there are so many providers that packages different policies. Seems to me like "if you cannot convince, you confuse them." Many a times we read newspapers reports that agents may be overselling to unknowing consumers until they are over-insured.

I know of friends who do not buy insurance other than Medishield. I'm not sure what is their reason or view of insurance. But to me, I guess I'm driven by human nature, I'm not afraid to pass on from this world, but I'm afraid of the financial burden that I will give to my loved ones if I cannot pass on and remain bedridden (touch wood!!)

Bottom-line is get a good advisor, know what is important to you and buy within your means.. cheers