Besides life’s unpredictability, getting insurance or takaful when you are younger is always the better choice – your savings may not be sufficient to cover unexpected expenses, but, more importantly, you’re likely to be healthier, which means lower and more affordable insurance and takaful fees. You will also benefit from a longer savings and investment period that can help build your retirement nest egg.

No matter how well we look after ourselves, our health will deteriorate as we age. This also means the older you are when you sign up for insurance or takaful, the higher the prices will be.

And if you have dependents, especially children, protecting them from when they are born can also protect you in the long run, as there are any number of pregnancy complications, children’s illnesses and accidents that can occur as they grow up – potentially costing you a lot of money if they are not already covered. Many insurance and takaful plans for children can be converted to adult ones upon reaching a certain age, and once they start earning an income, your children can continue paying for the policies themselves, knowing they’ll have financial support even though they’re just starting out.

We have mostly talked about insurance and takaful from a medical perspective so far, but there are many other personal protection plans that can come to your rescue when you find yourself in a tight spot. But the most important thing is to have an insurance or takaful plan in place, because the unexpected can truly occur at any time.