Sushi (and insurance) for beginners

‘I’m thinking tuna,’ said the woman in front of me in the sushi queue and waggled a brochure under her beau’s nose. ‘Maybe we should get some income protection insurance.’

‘I think we have some through our super,’ he said. ‘Tuna? Really? Cooked or raw?’

‘Or maybe a crab and avocado. Through super, you think? We could do, I suppose. Hey, I think I’ll get a Teriyaki chicken, after all. Or maybe a prawn...’

I watched the brochure sail into the bin.

‘Prawn? Yeah, sounds good,’ he said. ‘Two, even.’

‘The prawn. Definitely. Or just an egg roll...’

I couldn’t help thinking this exchange pretty much summed up the typical Aussie ‘she’ll be right’ attitude to protecting our incomes and lifestyles. Eighty three percent of Australians say they have car insurancebut only 31% insure their ability to earn an income.

What would happen to you and your family if you got sick or injured and couldn’t work? Would you survive on welfare?

If you spent as much time choosing the right insurance as you do on lunch, you’d have a lot more peace of mind.