3 Important Insurance Moves to Make in 2023

Make sure to put all of these on your list.

The start of a new year is when people tend to make lists of financial items to tackle. And one area of your financial life you don't want to ignore is insurance.

It's important to have different types of insurance so you have the coverage you need. But your insurance should also be affordable. With that in mind, here are three insurance moves worth making in 2023.

1. Buy life insurance if you don't have it already

The idea of buying life insurance can be intimidating, since it effectively forces you to grapple with the idea of potentially not being around for your loved ones. But to spin it positively, putting a life insurance policy in place could bring you peace of mind. So if you don't have life insurance yet, make 2023 the year you change that.

You shouldn't, however, overpay for life insurance -- especially not at a time when you may be looking at higher-than-average living costs due to inflation. And to avoid overpaying, focus on getting a term life insurance policy rather than whole life.

Term life insurance won't cover you forever like whole life insurance will, and it won't accumulate a cash value. But you might spend a quarter as much on term life premiums as you would for whole life insurance, which means you're less likely to run into affordability issues that force you to let your policy lapse.

2. Make sure your homeowners insurance policy is up to date

Homeowners insurance can be a large expense, so it's important to keep your insurance company informed of changes that might affect your premium rates. Let's say you put in an alarm system over the past year. And let's say you also decided to get rid of your pool and level off your backyard instead. Those are changes that could result in lower premiums, so it's important to make your insurance company aware that they've taken place.

3. Shop around for better auto insurance rates

Owning a car is an expensive prospect these days. If you purchased your car over the past year or so, you probably paid a higher price than usual for it, which means you may be looking at hefty auto loan payments. And so in that case, the last thing you need is auto insurance that's more expensive than it needs to be.

You might assume that sticking with the same auto insurance company for years will result in the lowest premium rates. But that's not automatically true. So instead, take a little time to shop around for auto insurance. You never know when you might be in a line for a discount by making a switch.

You may have a lot of financial matters to tackle in 2023. But don't neglect matters related to insurance. These moves could help your family get the protection they need, and they could also result in a nice amount of savings at a time when life has gotten more expensive than a lot of people have bargained for.