Who’s the biggest winner during Life Insurance Awareness Month?

Sometimes we find amazing win-win opportunities in life. For consumers as well as insurance and financial professionals, Life Insurance Awareness Month is a great example.

Life Happens created LIAM and coordinates its celebration each September to educate consumers about the important role life insurance plays in helping families, individuals and small businesses achieve financial security. This education is sorely needed. The 2025 Insurance Barometer Study, conducted by Life Happens and LIMRA, reveals that a lack of knowledge about life insurance products is a major obstacle inhibiting American adults from acquiring necessary coverage.

LIAM addresses this shortfall through a national public outreach campaign that raises awareness of the knowledge gap and provides timely and accurate information about life insurance products. Throughout September, LIAM messaging reaches millions. This is a huge win for American consumers. 

The Barometer Study clearly shows that more than three-quarters of young adults do not understand life insurance products or the underwriting process. However, those who do are much more likely to have adequate coverage.

LIAM also offers unique opportunities for agents and advisors to differentiate themselves, market their businesses, and connect with existing and potential clients by participating in LIAM and using LIAM-themed messaging and content. Life Happens produces a robust suite of this content as a benefit to NAIFA members and corporate partners. Helping consumers clear up misapprehensions about life insurance is a great way to strengthen client connections and increase sales. That’s an obvious win for agents and advisors. 

The knowledge gap and the need gap

The Barometer Study found that 4 out of 10 consumers acknowledge that they have a need for life insurance or additional coverage. That represents a need gap affecting about 100 million Americans. This need gap is particularly acute for households with annual incomes of less than $50,000, consumers who identify as Hispanic or Black, adults aged 18 to 60, and women.

When Life Happens and LIMRA asked consumers about the reasons for the need gap, the most common answer was that life insurance is perceived as being too expensive. This is where the knowledge gap comes into play. The study shows that consumers significantly overestimate life insurance’s cost. 

Young adults aged 18 to 30 estimate the cost of life insurance to be 10 to 12 times higher than the true cost. The knowledge gap shrinks slightly for those aged 31 to 35 but remains substantial, with their perceived cost being five to seven times the real cost.

Many of the other top reasons consumers offer for not covering their life insurance needs — “other financial priorities,” “not sure how much or what type I need” and “no one approached me about it” — also point to the knowledge gap as a significant problem. LIAM’s greatest achievement is that by reducing the knowledge gap, it helps address the need gap.

LIAM and financial professionals: A winning combination

Life Happens and LIAM help bring agents and consumers together. This is crucial because LIAM by itself doesn’t sell insurance. While a highly successful awareness campaign can help us reduce the knowledge gap, only the community of experienced, licensed professionals can reduce the need gap. Agents and advisors are consumers’ most important resource. LIAM-themed content and educational materials from Life Happens, which include impactful social media graphics and messaging, help make financial professionals even more valuable to their clients and communities. 

LIAM places great emphasis on building social media connections. This is by design. The 2025 Barometer Study found that 62% of adults, including 80% of those under age 45, use social media when they research insurance and financial products. As recently as 2019, only 29% turned to social media, so the trend is growing. Today, 45% of young Americans who use social media follow financial advisors, and 33% follow financial influencers. Simply put, social media is where consumers are.

It is a great medium for educating people at their convenience in a sphere where they are comfortable and spend a good deal of time. It’s almost like LIAM and social media were made for each other. Together they help agents build connections and relationships. And when agents and advisors can use LIAM to position themselves as trusted sources of information, everybody wins.

Brian Steiner is the executive director of Life Happens. Contact him at [email protected].