As a parent who receives child support, you understand the fear that someday your former spouse may stop paying you. Some spouses face uncooperative exes or circumstances that intervene to stop support. This is why a support order in a divorce settlement may not be enough. You may want to consider taking out life insurance on your spouse.
Your former spouse may be willing to cooperate with a support order. Still, there are some possible events that may make it worthwhile to have an insurance policy to back you up.
Circumstances that halt support
Courts make it clear that parents who pay support cannot abandon their responsibilities. So if your ex filed for bankruptcy, a court would not halt the support order or discharge past unpaid support. However, your former spouse may lose vital earning capacity due to a sudden auto accident or an illness. Such an incident may incapacitate your ex for life.
There is also the possibility that an accident or illness could cause your ex to die. This would put an end to any further support and put you in a financial bind.
How life insurance may help
According to Policy Genius, if you maintain a life insurance policy on your former spouse, you have a way to receive coverage for your children in the event your spouse dies or otherwise cannot make payments any longer. You can use this policy to protect your child support, your alimony or retirement money you receive from your ex.
Consider owning the policy yourself. If your spouse owns the policy and stops making payments, your policy may become null and void. You should also think about the benefit level in the policy that will best serve your children until they are old enough to be self-sufficient. With life insurance, you may feel more at ease about caring for your kids as a single parent.