72% of life insurance owners wish they had bought coverage sooner, even though 70% knew it was important before they purchased a policy.
Cost may be a bigger misconception than consumers realize, with 42% saying they would have acted sooner if they had known coverage was more affordable than expected.
Major life events can turn life insurance from something people put off into an urgent priority, with becoming a parent emerging as the top trigger.
Life insurance is one of those things many people know they should probably have, but it can be surprisingly easy to put off. Maybe you assume you’re too young to need it, think coverage will be too expensive, or simply figure you’ll get around to it later.
A new survey from Ethos suggests that waiting may be a common regret: 72% of life insurance owners say they wish they had started protecting their future sooner, while 70% say they knew life insurance was important before they actually bought a policy.
So what finally gets people to stop putting it off — and what makes them wish they had acted earlier? ConsumerAffairs spoke with Nichole Myers, chief underwriter at Ethos, to take a closer look at what may be driving Americans to delay coverage.
How the survey was conducted — and what it found
Ethos conducted its survey in July 2026, asking 1,079 U.S. adults who currently own life insurance about what motivated them to finally buy coverage, how long they waited, and what may have prompted them to act sooner.
Participants were 18 and older, with an average age of 44. Some survey questions allowed respondents to select more than one answer.
The findings suggest there can be a significant gap between knowing life insurance is important and actually purchasing a policy. Here’s a look at the key findings:
70% of respondents said they understood the importance of life insurance long before buying it.
72% said they wished they had started protecting their future sooner.
8% assumed coverage would be too expensive.
42% said they may have acted sooner if they had known it was more affordable than expected.
Becoming a parent emerged as the most common moment that made protection feel urgent, cited by 35% of respondents.
Why the delay?
Nearly three-quarters of respondents said they wished they had bought life insurance sooner than they did. So, what is the primary reason behind the delay?
"Life insurance is a unique kind of transaction, in which most people are buying protection for something they do not want to happen or don’t want to think about,” Myers said. “So, it feels easily postponed without any clear deadline forcing the decision.
“What I have learned is that people aren't missing the message — they're missing the moment. And that moment comes as a part of some big event in life, such as having a baby or getting married."
The most common misconception: cost
Myers hopes these findings shed light on the biggest misconception about life insurance: it’s too expensive.
"For the 38% of those who felt it was too costly, they are probably thinking about pricing structures from 10 or even 20 years ago or the wrong type of insurance altogether,” she said.
“In reality, a healthy 30-year-old can get a meaningful amount of coverage for less than a dollar a day. That gap between perception and reality lines up with our finding that 42% of people say learning it was more affordable would have moved them to act sooner.”
A long-term investment
Perhaps not unsurprisingly, the youngest survey respondents were twice as likely to delay coverage as older survey respondents. However, Myers encourages consumers of all ages to think about the long-term benefits associated with getting life insurance at a younger age.
"Being invincible at a young age is part of the natural development process,” she said. “The industry needs to remind consumers that purchasing life insurance is truly one of the wisest financial moves you can make. Applying for coverage when you are young and healthy, keeps your premium lower throughout the life of the policy.
“Generation Z is driven by facts and concise explanations that come from their mobile phones and social media influencers. Reminding them that protecting their family with life insurance can be as simple as an online application with just a few health questions, easily completed from the sidelines of a child's soccer game or while you are waiting for your food delivery is a good place to start.”
Secure protection sooner than later
For those who may still be on the fence about life insurance, Myers said the present is the best time to act.
"The time is right,” she said. “You are never younger than you are today. So set yourself a deadline for this week and do not procrastinate because statistics show that nearly one out of three individuals, who wait, ends up waiting more than a year, which is a year of protection you could have already had in place for your family.”