If I die (let's be honest, that will probably happen), would my wife or family get my coins? What if they don't know my passwords/private key?
Then it's lost, forever. At least if you don't give them access, but if you do, then well it's just like transferring ownership of the assets from you to your family, but if not well, to quote what I just saw earlier.
I believe this guy knows what he's talking about:
Lost coins only make everyone else's coins worth slightly more. Think of it as a donation to everyone.
So fear not! If you died and you weren't able to give access to your wallet to your family, at the very least, you made a donation to every other Bitcoin holder out there!