LIFE INSURANCE CORPORATION OF INDIA
Life insurance in India made its debut well over 100 years ago. Life insurance is a contract that pledges payment of an amount to the person assured (or his nominee) on the happening of the event insured against.
The contract is valid for payment of the insured amount during:
» The date of maturity, or
» Specified dates at periodic intervals, or
» Unfortunate death, if it occurs earlier.
Among other things, the contract also provides for the payment of premium periodically to the Corporation by the policyholder. Life insurance is universally acknowledged to be an institution, which eliminates 'risk', substituting certainty for uncertainty and comes to the timely aid of the family in the unfortunate event of death of the breadwinner.
By and large, life insurance is civilisation's partial solution to the problems caused by death. Life insurance, in short, is concerned with two hazards that stand across the life-path of every person:
- That of dying prematurely leaving a dependent family to fend for itself.
- That of living till old age without visible means of support.
Life Insurance Vs. Other Savings
Contract of Insurance:
A contract of insurance is a contract of utmost good faith technically known as uberrima fides. The doctrine of disclosing all material facts is embodied in this important principle, which applies to all forms of insurance.
At the time of taking a policy, policyholder should ensure that all questions in the proposal form are correctly answered. Any misrepresentation, non-disclosure or fraud in any document leading to the acceptance of the risk would render the insurance contract null and void.
Protection:
Savings through life insurance guarantee full protection against risk of death of the saver. Also, in case of demise, life insurance assures payment of the entire amount assured (with bonuses wherever applicable) whereas in other savings schemes, only the amount saved (with interest) is payable.
Aid To Thrift:
Life insurance encourages 'thrift'. It allows long-term savings since payments can be made effortlessly because of the 'easy instalment' facility built into the scheme. (Premium payment for insurance is either monthly, quarterly, half yearly or yearly).
For example: The Salary Saving Scheme popularly known as SSS, provides a convenient method of paying premium each month by deduction from one's salary.
In this case the employer directly pays the deducted premium to LIC. The Salary Saving Scheme is ideal for any institution or establishment subject to specified terms and conditions.
Liquidity:
In case of insurance, it is easy to acquire loans on the sole security of any policy that has acquired loan value. Besides, a life insurance policy is also generally accepted as security, even for a commercial loan.
Tax Relief:
Life Insurance is the best way to enjoy tax deductions on income tax and wealth tax. This is available for amounts paid by way of premium for life insurance subject to income tax rates in force.
Assessees can also avail of provisions in the law for tax relief. In such cases the assured in effect pays a lower premium for insurance than otherwise.
Money When You Need It:
A policy that has a suitable insurance plan or a combination of different plans can be effectively used to meet certain monetary needs that may arise from time-to-time.
Children's education, start-in-life or marriage provision or even periodical needs for cash over a stretch of time can be less stressful with the help of these policies.
Alternatively, policy money can be made available at the time of one's retirement from service and used for any specific purpose, such as, purchase of a house or for other investments. Also, loans are granted to policyholders for house building or for purchase of flats (subject to certain conditions).
Who Can Buy A Policy?
Any person who has attained majority and is eligible to enter into a valid contract can insure himself/herself and those in whom he/she has insurable interest.
Policies can also be taken, subject to certain conditions, on the life of one's spouse or children. While underwriting proposals, certain factors such as the policyholder’s state of health, the proponent's income and other relevant factors are considered by the Corporation.
STAR HEALTH INSURANCE
Commencing operations in 2006 as India’s first Standalone Health Insurance provider, Star Health and Allied Insurance Co Ltd is providing sterling services in Health, Personal Accident and Overseas Travel Insurance etc. Our efforts have always been on service excellence and product innovation with a focus on delivering the best to our customers.
Star Health has excellent products to cater everybody, be it individuals, families or corporates.
Why Choose Us?
As India’s preferred Health Insurance Specialist offering innovative products, we have raised the benchmark of the health insurance sector with our best in class services supported by a 24x7 multilingual call-center and dedicated claims assistance.
Max Bupa
Leading a healthy lifestyle in the modern high-stress routines is challenging. Medical emergencies can arise without any intimation. At such times, treatment costs can put a huge financial burden on families. For example, cost of cancer treatment can cost around 20 lacs*. Such huge payments coupled with work-pay loss can cause imbalances in your family finances.
*Src: Business Today, Jul 2017
Health insurance plans for you
Max Bupa always believes in adapting to newer lifestyle by promoting healthy habits through rewards, covering new-age treatments and coming up with quick digital solutions like AnyTimeHealth(ATH) Kiosks and Health App.
At Max Bupa, the mission is to help customers live healthier and more successful lives by providing expertise as healthcare partners. And we have made this possible by constantly raising the standard of medical insurance by keeping the promises made to ourselves, to our customers, and caring for them, for life.
For us, it is always about building a long-term relationship with our customers, and providing them the trust they need and expect from the best health insurance company in India.
What are health insurance plans?
Health insurance plans are insurance products designed to cover your medical expenses in case of hospitalization or critical illness. Unlike other health plans, which provide coverage for only the medical bills, a health insurance plan can provide coverage for other medical procedures and treatments, depending on your need. Medical treatment procedures in complex ailments such as cancer are costly and can continue for many years. To cover these costs, people sometimes end up taking loans, or even selling or mortgaging their assets. A health insurance plan bought early on in life will provide sufficient financial coverage if such a situation arises.
How to choose a health plan?
Health plans can provide coverage to your family members. Make sure you are selecting a plan with sufficient coverage as premiums are not directly proportional to the coverage amount. Here are three simple steps to choose a health insurance plan
- Choose the amount of Insurance Cover (sum insured) you need
2. Choose the maximum coverage age as there are chances of contracting a critical illness in old age too.
3. Arrive at the premium amount basis your age, gender, chosen Sum Insured and Maximum Coverage Age.
Who should buy health plans?
- If you are between age of 25 - 65
- If you want to ensure your family is protected during a health crisis
- If you also want to save income - tax beyond the 80 C limit
Why Life Insurance?
We prioritize insurance planning is a must because it is protection to the life cover risk. It will help you understand whether you are under-insured or over-insured and the existing policies can be earmarked in the financial planning structure.
Life insurance is important to people who want to protect their family from financial distress after their death. It can be used to provide financial security for loved ones.
The proceeds from a life insurance policy are paid to the beneficiary on a tax-free basis, which provides a lump sum that can be used for a number of purposes. Depending on the type of policy chosen, life insurance can also provide a savings component for the policyholder.
How does life insurance provide financial security ?
The main reason people consider buying life insurance is to protect the people they leave behind. Having coverage in place is especially important during the policyholder's main earning years. During this time, he or she may have major expenses such as a mortgage, car payments and the like.
He or she may have young children that need to be cared for, and/or aging parents that require assistance. In the case of a stay at home parent or spouse the funds may be used to pay someone else to perform the tasks, like cooking, housekeeping and child care, that the deceased once provided.
The death benefit that an insurance policy provides is meant to replace income so that the policyholder's family is less likely to have to face a major lifestyle change in addition to dealing with the loss of someone who is very important to them. Most people are underinsured, as opposed to having enough coverage.
Ideally, the level of protection chosen should be enough to replace the policyholder's gross income for a number of years. Where the policyholder has a young family, it's not unrealistic to look a plan that will pay out an amount that is equal 10 years of earnings or more.
What can a death benefit be used for ?
The death benefit that is paid out under a life insurance policy can be used for any purpose the beneficiary deems appropriate. It's very common for the proceeds from the policy to be used to pay bills and debts the deceased has left behind. That way, his or her survivors are not required to pay them on the deceased's behalf.
The cost of final arrangements is something that can be pricey, even for a very simple cremation or burial. An insurance policy can also be used to pay for funeral expenses and take that pressure off the family.
Proceeds from a life insurance policy can also be used to pay off a mortgage or for general living expenses. If the policyholder has young children, the money may be used for childcare expenses or to hire a housekeeper or nanny. The funds can also be used to pay for post-secondary education for the insured's children, if desired.
Anything that the policyholder's salary was used for when he or she was alive can be paid for with the death benefit that an insurance policy provides. The funds can also be invested to provide a source of income for the surviving spouse or partner in retirement.
How can life insurance provide savings ?
Some types of life insurance plans have a savings component as well as provide protection if the policyholder dies. When the person chooses a permanent, universal or whole life insurance policy, part of the money that he or she pays in premiums is used to fund an investment savings plan. The money grows over time and the policyholder can use the money as collateral for a loan from the insurer if he or she needs to get access to cash in a hurry.
The policyholder also has the option of canceling the policy and gaining access to the pool of funds if he or she wishes to do so. This is not a move that should be taken lightly and the policyholder should contact his or her agent or insurance company to discuss options before taking this step.
The individual may also choose to cancel the existing policy and replace it with a term life policy that still provides a level of financial protection but does not include the savings component.
Life insurance is a product that should be included in a plan to protect the policyholder and his or her family from financial disaster. Life insurance is important because it can be used to pay bills and expenses on behalf of the deceased. The funds from a death benefit replace the policyholder's income and can be used to help to maintain a lifestyle similar to the one the policyholder's family had before disaster struck. It is one of the most loving things that a person can do for his or her family, since the person who is insured will not be benefiting from the coverage - the ones he or she loves the most will instead.