That would be what an emergency fund is for, in traditional financial literature. If you mean something more tragic, that's what insurance and other products ar

That would be what an emergency fund is for, in traditional financial literature. If you mean something more tragic, that's what insurance and other products are for. Even then, 401ks have exceptions for something like total disability that allows early withdrawals without penalty. If you just mean "I want my money early", well... there's lots of ways to access retirement account money early without penalty with some planning.