Life Insurance Policy

What is a life insurance policy?

A life Insurance policy offers guaranteed financial protection to the nominee in the event of the unfortunate demise of the life assured.

It may also provide you with a financial backup in case of an accident or any other event which may cause temporary or permanent disability and therefore loss of income.

Life insurance can also help as a saving or investment tool. One can use the saving and investment plans to save for specific-financial goals.

Types of Life Insurance Policies in India

Future Generali offers different kinds of simple-to-understand life insurance policies. These plans will help meet your various needs such as protection, savings, investments, child’s education, health etc.

Term Insurance Plans

Term insurance is the most basic form of life coverage. It is a "pure risk cover". While the policy is active, it pays life cover amount to the nominee in the case of demise of the life assured. Some term insurance policies also allow the life assured to select how the benefit should be paid to the nominee. Some of the prevalent pay-out methods are:

• Get a lump sum amount
• Get a regular income for a defined period
• Get a combination of lump sum and regular income

A term insurance plan can offer the following benefits:

• Offers high life cover at a low price.
• Financial protection for the loved ones by offering the assured amount to the nominee in the case of life assured’s unfortunate demise.
• Option to avail additional coverage by opting for riders.
• Flexibility to choose the policy term
• Flexibility to choose the premium payment term
• Flexible premium payment modes (yearly, half-yearly, quarterly, or monthly). Some term plans allow single premium option also.
• Allows taxpayers to claim tax benefits according to provisions defined under Section 80C and Section 10(10D) of the Income Tax Act, as amended from time to time.

Endowment Plan

Endowment plan is a combination of insurance and savings. It offers three benefits to the life assured under a single plan – long term savings, life insurance and tax benefits. This policy not only provides protection to the insured but also helps the policyholder save some money on a regular basis for future financial milestones. The traditional endowment plans promise a minimum value as on specified date as long as the premiums are paid as per schedule. It is one of the most disciplined methods of saving money for all your future financial needs.

Let us look at few key benefits of buying an endowment plan:

• Low risk plans that offer a minimum guarantee
• In the case of the life assured’s demise the assured amount (Sum Assured) is given to the nominee.
• It is a goal based savings which helps to create corpus to fulfil important life goals
• Option to avail additional coverage via riders at a nominal additional cost
• Allows taxpayers to claim tax benefits according to provisions defined under Section 80C and Section 10(10D) of the Income Tax Act. Tax laws are subject to change.
• Provides the option of obtaining a loan against the policy in case of a financial emergency.

Money Back Plans

As the name suggests, this type of life insurance plan offers a specific amount/ percentage of the sum assured as money back to the life assured at pre-decided intervals. This money back benefit is usually called survival benefit.

In case, the insured dies during the policy term, then a death benefit will be payable to the nominee, without any deduction of past survival benefits already paid and the policy would be terminated.

Here are the benefits of a money back policy:

• It is a good option for individuals who want their savings to be accompanied by an element of liquidity
• Most of these plans are eligible for bonuses as declared (if any) by the insurance company
• Many insurance companies also provide guaranteed additions on certain money back plans
• Money back plans come with in-built life cover
• Ready corpus for financial emergencies
• Riders can be opted for additional protection at a nominal additional premium
• Tax benefits can be availed as per the prevailing tax laws

Whole Life Insurance Plans

A whole life insurance plan offers life coverage as long as the insured lives. For ease of administration, insurance companies may define a maturity age which could be 80, 85 or even 100 years. Unlike a term plan, if the life assured lives throughout the policy term the maturity benefit is paid at maturity.

Benefits of whole life cover are as follows:

• With a whole life cover, you need not worry about the continuity of financial support to the family
• A whole life plan can contribute significantly towards one's legacy planning.
• Optional riders, if allowed, can add an extra layer of protection
• Allows taxpayers to claim tax benefits according to provisions defined under Section 80C and Section 10(10D) of the Income Tax Act. Tax laws are subject to change.

Child Insurance Plans

A child plan acts as a tool to provide funds during the important stages of a child's life, like higher education, marriage or start of professional life. A child plan helps one secure a corpus for their child so that finances do not come in the way of their child’s dream. Generally, child plans provide benefits as regular payouts at pre-decided intervals or a 1-time payout as defined at the start of the policy.

In an unfortunate event of the untimely demise of the insured parent during the policy term, most child plans will waive off the future premiums and the plan will continue till the opted policy term will all the benefits intact. Many insurance plans also pay an additional amount immediately upon death of insured parent to take care of any immediate financial burden.

The following are the benefits of child insurance plans:

• Child plans offer targeted maturity i.e., payouts are received during the important milestones of the child's life.
• These plans remain intact even in the absence of insured parent.
• Optional add-ons/riders can be chosen to enhance protection or benefits in case of an eventuality.
• Under Section 80(C) of the Income Tax Act, tax benefits can be claimed for the premiums paid towards this policy, as per the provisions. Tax laws are subject to change.
• The payout(s) received can be tax-free under Section 10(10D), as per the provisions. Tax laws are subject to change.

Retirement Plans

Retirement plans are also known as pension plans. The plan helps the life assured accumulate a corpus for their retirement. Typically, retirement plans provide steady income, post retirement through an Annuity Policy purchased from the proceeds of a pension plan. With pension/retirement plans these days, here is what you get:

• Lump sum up to an extent defined at maturity of a pension plan
• Monthly pension/income through annuity purchased using the balance amount

Here are the benefits of retirement plans:

• Financial independence and peace of mind even after your retirement.
• Retirement plan benefits replace income and provide a comfortable lifestyle during the golden years.
• Accumulate enough wealth to deal with medical emergencies.
• Option to Retire Early if you have adequate retirement corpus
• Legacy Planning
• Tax Benefits

Unit Linked Insurance Plans (ULIPs)

A ULIP offers life cover plus wealth creation (market-linked returns). Here, the life assured pays premium, that gets invested into different funds opted after deduction of defined charges, including cost of insurance.

With a ULIP, the life assured can choose funds, depending on their risk appetite, that invest in equities, stocks, funds, and bonds. The funds offered are low, medium, high risk funds, balanced funds, cash funds, etc.

The benefits of ULIPs are as follows:

• ULIPs offer a whole host of high, medium and low-risk investment options via different funds available under the same plan.
• The charge structure and value of an investment at assumed rate of returns, for the complete tenure of the policy are shared before you buy a product.
• ULIPs also let you do a partial withdrawal; wherein after the first 5 years, you can withdraw funds partially from your ULIP.
• ULIPs help you inculcate a regular saving habit, which goes a long way in building a corpus for future needs.
• The premiums paid towards the policy can be eligible for tax deduction under Section 80C as per provisions of Income Tax Act 1961, as amended from time to time.

Comparison of Different Types of Life Insurance Plans in India

Here’s a comparison between different types of life insurance plans in India:

All Products Offered by Future Generali Life India Insurance

How Do Life Insurance Policies Work?

Here’s how life insurance policies work:

• Step 1: You decide to buy a life insurance plan from an insurance company.
• Step 2: You decide the coverage amount or sum assured that you/your nominee will receive.
• Step 3: You decide the policy term (the duration of the policy) and the premium paying term (the duration of premiums to be paid).
• Step 4: Based on various factors like your age, health condition, sum assured, policy term, and premium paying term selected, etc., the premium amount to be paid is decided by the life insurance company.
• Step 5: You buy the life plan from the insurance company and in return you pay premiums.

Death Benefit/Life Cover

In the case of the unfortunate event of the life assured's demise, the sum assured or the death benefit is paid to the nominee of the life assured and policy gets terminated.

Survival Benefit:

In the case of insurance plans like money back plans or income plans, survival benefit i.e., specific amount/ percentage of the sum assured is given back to the life assured at pre-decided intervals.

Maturity Benefit:

At the end of the policy term, if the life insured survives s/he is paid the promised maturity benefit.

Key Features of Life Insurance Policy

Life insurance policies have the following key features:

What are the benefits of Life Insurance Policy

The following are the benefits of having a life insurance policy:

• Financial Security - There is no greater peace of mind than having life insurance. It is true that we all have some financial responsibilities, but with life insurance, you can ensure that your loans (debts) or loved ones will be taken care of financially in the event of your unfortunate demise.
• Wealth Creation - You can create wealth through unit linked life insurance plans . In addition to providing life insurance cover, these policies allow you to invest your premiums in different market linked funds as per your risk appetite.
• Tax Savings - Dual tax benefits are available with life insurance plans. The premiums paid towards a life insurance policy are eligible for tax benefit according to the provisions under Section 80C of the Income Tax Act. You can avail tax deduction of up to Rs 1,50,000 in premiums paid each year from your gross income, lowering your tax burden. In addition, the death or maturity benefit paid under life insurance plans may be entirely tax-free. This tax benefit is under Section 10(10D) of the Income Tax Act. These benefits are subject to change as per the prevailing tax laws.
• Death benefit - In the case of an unfortunate event of death of the life assured, the nominee will receive an amount as defined in the policy. The nominee(s) can use the payout received from the life insurance policy to cover a variety of expenses, including clearing routine bills, repaying loans, paying for children's school fees, and so on.
• Disciplined Saving - Along with serving as a protection tool, life insurance also enables consumers to save in a disciplined manner for future financial milestones.
• Addresses Multiple Needs - Ensure that your family's financial needs are met in your absence. Ideally, these needs should be assessed based on the individual's stage of life, as well as current liabilities, expected future liabilities, the number of dependents, financial goals, lifestyle, etc. The decision process gets simplified when you have a need in mind, whether it's for your child's education or down payment for your own house, or for your retirement or loan repayment.
• Loan Options - In the event of an emergency, you can borrow money from your life insurance policy. The amount of the loan that can be taken as a percentage of the cash value or sum assured under the policy, depends on the policy terms & conditions.
• Life Stage Planning - With life insurance, you can plan your financial goals for various stages of your life according to your convenience. By doing so, you can make informed decisions at any time. The purpose of life insurance is not only to provide support in the event of an untimely death but also to serve as a disciplined saving/investment tool to meet various financial goals. No matter what your life stage or risk appetite, you can achieve your goals, including your child's education, their marriage, or planning a relaxed retirement.
• Assured Income Benefits - Many life insurance plans offer this benefit. The income your family receives on a regular basis ensures their security. With this income, one can pay for the expenses, such as rent, loans, child’s education, monthly bills, etc. After the death of the earning member, this income makes up for the loss of income, if adequate.
• Riders - A rider is an optional additional cover to a basic insurance policy. Riders allow you to increase protection. Riders provide comprehensive protection by covering risks that are not covered by the main life policy. Riders may include critical illness coverage, personal accident coverage, family income coverage, as well as waiver of premium coverage etc. During circumstances where a major life insurance policy may not be applicable, this additional protection steps in. Furthermore, they provide tax benefits and make you eligible for deductions based on life and health insurance. For example, if you select an accidental death rider, you may deduct premiums paid under Section 80C; for critical illness, you may deduct premiums paid under Section 80D. Note tax benefits can be claimed according to provisions defined under the respective Section of the Income Tax Act. Tax laws are subject to change as per the prevailing Income Tax Laws

How much life insurance cover do i need?

What is the worth of your life? When shopping for life insurance, you need to answer this strange question. The primary purpose of life insurance is to provide financial security for your family if something unexpected happens to you. Hence, the life cover should be sufficient to settle any outstanding debts as well as provide a source of income for your (the life insured’s) family.

The following tables can help you calculate how much life insurance you need. The amount of insurance cover depends upon what will it take for your family to keep up their current lifestyle in your absence.

How to Choose a suitable Life Insurance Policy?

Each one of us aspires for a happy Life and works hard toward achieving the same. However, there are uncertainties around and as it is said, in case GOD has a different plan for you, that will prevail.

While one cannot avoid or keep uncertainties away, it is possible to reduce or minimize the implications or impact of uncertainties related to human life, which primarily could be Death, Disability or Disease. While nothing can compensate emotional losses, financial losses can be compensated to an extent using insurance policies. What you need to do is to plan well. What you buy should be keeping in mind the uncertainty you want to protect your loved ones from.

While one cannot avoid or keep uncertainties away, it is possible to reduce or minimize the implications or impact of uncertainties related to human life, which primarily could be Death, Disability or Disease. While nothing can compensate emotional losses, financial losses can be compensated to an extent using insurance policies. What you need to do is to plan well. What you buy should be keeping in mind the uncertainty you want to protect your loved ones from.

There is no substitute for pure protection insurance policies that pays upon death of insured or say a Mediclaim insurance policy that compensates the covered hospitalization expenses.

You can also look for a critical illness policy which provides you a fixed sum on specified critical illnesses to top up your Mediclaim policy for expenses over and above the hospitalization expenses

Apart from a term or a critical illness policy, Life Insurance policies can also come handy when it comes to securing long term savings for specific life goals, beyond pure risk cover. For example, a child will go to college at age 17 and for higher education at age 21 or 22. Life insurance plans can help you achieve such an objective without subjectivity. You can create a decent corpus that enables availability of funds for admission to a decent college and also to handle an undesirable scenario to meet the expenses even if the parent was not around.

Before you buy any insurance policy, it is important to define the objective for which you want to buy an insurance plan. If you are buying a term plan, try getting a total cover of at least 10 times your annual income so that in case of an eventuality, the amount available to your family is adequate to generate income for them to survive without any compromise in the lifestyle for next 12 to 15 years. You should ideally look at a term plan that covers you up to age 60/65, i.e. matching your retirement age. The longer the duration of term plan, costlier it gets.

If you are buying a savings plan, make sure the policy term meets the target date of your financial goal for which you are buying the plan.

Insurance saving plans can be fully guaranteed or fully non-guaranteed or combination of two. You need to choose an appropriate plan that best fits your need. For example, you need a lump sum for your daughter’s marriage or a sum at disposal when you retire, you need a product that pays a lump sum whereas if you are looking for a regular income post retirement, you may evaluate income plans.

The product type depends upon your risk appetite.

• If you are risk averse and happy with guaranteed returns, you can choose what is called a ‘Non-Participating” savings product. The benefit illustration of such a product will show you what you pay and what you get.
• If you are okay with variable return with a minimum guarantee, you can look at ‘Participating products’ – these products contain bonuses which are non-guaranteed and vary based on the performance of the insurer.
• If you are an aggressive investor, you may look at market linked plans also, popularly known as ULIPs. Such products are unbundled offering where cost of investment and insurance is shown separately
• Best way to compare benefits of non-guaranteed products is to look at what you pay and what you get @4% and one @8% gross investment return.

The benefit Illustration is the most important document to understand the product and its benefits Just remember the following mantra:

• Term plan to secure family in case of untimely death – get it 10 times of your annual income
• Saving plans to secure financial milestones like Retirement, Kid’s education, marriage or other aspirations/events that require money – plan for each milestone separately for better control
• Tax benefits can enhance the value of the plan you buy.

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• 1357

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• 1.5 Million

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• ₹70.74 Billion

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• 95.04%

  Individual claims settlement ratio for FY 2022-2023

Data as on 31^st March 2023

What is a Life Insurance Premium?

Premiums are payments that are made in order to receive life insurance benefits. A premium is paid yearly, but a half-yearly, quarterly, or monthly payment option is also available. Premiums also contribute to the growth of the policy's cash value.

The premiums paid to the insurance company by the life assured are determined by the insurance company. However, both the policy term (duration of the policy) and sum assured are chosen by the buyer.

When calculating the Premium, the insurance company takes various factors into account, including your lifestyle, occupation, number of dependents, finances, sum assured, etc.

What factors affect the life insurance premium?

With increasing awareness around insurance, we can find people who look for buying an insurance policy or look at few options before taking the final decision on a recommendation. One of the questions that often gets asked is about why the price for similar offering will be different across different life insurers. Most of the times, you may also find two similar life insurance products in the same company also having different premium. Let’s understand this in simple language.

First, we need to understand are we comparing like to like. Key factors for this include:

• Age - You may not be surprised that this factor determines how much your insurance policy will cost you. The higher your age, the higher your premiums. The risk of a young person contracting a life-threatening disease or dying in their youth is very low, compared to an older person.
• Gender - While insurance companies are not gender biased, they do believe there are differences in life expectancy between men and women. The life expectancy of women is 2.7 years higher than men i.e., females tend to live about 3 years longer than males. Therefore, some insurance policies may charge a lower premium for woman than a man of the same age.
• Smoking - As a smoker, you raise a red flag to your insurance company as smoking increases your risk for many diseases and also death. Smokers may end up paying a significantly higher premium than non-smokers, sometimes even as much as twice what a non-smoker would pay. Smokers may face consequences if they hide their smoking habits, which could result in claim rejection.
• Family History - Genes are something you can't change. Severe illnesses such as cancer, heart disease etc. are hereditary, and may lead to increase in your premium compared to someone with no such family history.
• Drinking - We are all aware that alcohol is harmful to our health. Alcohol harms us in more than one way. An individual who consumes too much alcohol may be subject to higher premiums. When you buy an insurance policy, companies ask about your smoking and drinking habits. Being honest with the insurance company is crucial to avoiding future problems at the claim stage.
• Profession - You may not know that your profession also influences your insurance premium. Those who have a hazardous work profile, for example mine worker or a supervisor in a chemical factory etc. may end up paying a higher premium.
• Lifestyles Choices - You also pay a premium for your insurance based on your lifestyle choices. It's possible that your insurance premiums would be higher if you like to take risks, live for the thrill, and take part in activities like racing or climbing mountains.
• Obesity - Obese people tend to suffer from several health problems such as diabetes, osteoarthritis, high blood pressure, stroke, heart diseases, cancer etc.. As a result, obesity may also affect your premiums.

Factors that will influence premium for every policy are:

• Duration of premiums to be paid (premium payment term) and duration of cover period (policy term)
• Amount of cover on death (Death Sum Assured) and amount of benefit on survival/maturity
• When and how the survival and maturity benefits are paid
• Any additional coverage such as accidental death benefit or critical illness or waiver of premium etc.
• Type of policy - fully guaranteed benefits (non-participating) or fully non-guaranteed (such as ULIPs) or combination of two (such as participating policy containing bonuses)

The premium payable under an insurance policy is the consideration towards the cover or benefits that insurance company promises to the policyholder upon happening of certain event or at specified time.

The first and most important influencer is the policy type or the benefits payable under a policy.

A pure term policy will be the cheapest form of insurance since a claim is payable only upon death, followed by term with return of premium where along with life cover, premiums are returned if the insured person outlives the policy period. The savings plans will call for a higher premium compared to both term and term with return of premium since it intends to pay more than the total premiums paid on survival and/or on maturity.

The premium in a life insurance savings plan will depend upon the benefits, which may be fully or partly guaranteed under the policy, the cost of insurance as well as the amount of cover (Sum Assured) and the risk associated with the investment under the policy.

The benefit Illustration is the most important document to understand your policy and its benefits vis a vis the premiums to be paid. It shows a comparison of what you pay and what you can get.

While all this holds true, there is an important angle to insurance saving plans – while your premiums may vary a little, the protection that it provides to your life moments is priceless.

What are Riders?

Insurance companies offer riders i.e., optional add-on coverage to enhance the coverage provided by the base policy. One must know about the suitable riders before opting for the same.

Types of Riders

Here are some of the rider options available in various insurance policies:

1. Accidental Death Rider

Accidents are a leading cause of death around the world, so it makes sense to avail of the accidental death rider. In the event of your untimely death due to an accident, this rider will pay additional benefits to your beneficiaries over and above the policy's death benefit. A family's finances can be severely impacted by the death of the primary earning member, so for these individuals the accidental death benefit rider is a must.

2. Critical Illness Rider

Cause of critical illness can be hereditary or the lifestyle that we lead. And in worst case, one instance of critical illness may completely wipe out a person's savings. Life insurance policies with a critical illness rider can come handy in case such an adverse situation strikes. When life insured is diagnosed with a serious health condition covered under the critical illness rider, it pays a lump sum benefit. The money you receive from the payout can be used to pay your hospital bills and maintain your lifestyle or to meet recuperation expenses. Make sure you are aware of the types of illnesses covered under this rider, as they tend to vary from one insurance provider to another. The payment of critical illness can be standalone i.e. over and above the other policy benefits or accelerated i.e. can terminate the policy upon payment of full benefit. It is important to note that a waiting period and survival period may be applied to the riders covering illness.

Waiting period means the time period after which you are eligible for a claim.

Survival period means the minimum time period that life assured needs to survive (after diagnosis of critical illness) to be eligible for a claim.

3. Waiver of Premium

Premium payment for a policy may be interrupted in case the earning member dies or contracts a critical illness or becomes disabled. In such a situation, a waiver of premium rider helps keep your policy active. The policy continues with all benefits without paying future premiums (future premiums are waived) in such cases. It is important to note that a waiting period may be applied to the riders covering illness.

4. Terminal Illness Rider

Watching a loved one suffer from a terminal illness drains not only your emotions but also your finances. A family's savings can be wiped out if it needs to seek treatment at any of the country's top hospitals. If you want to avoid this, getting a Terminal Illness Benefit/Rider may be a good idea. When the life insured is diagnosed with an illness that can lead to his/her demise within a defined period (as mentioned in the policy document), it pays out cash advances against the death benefit. The potion of death benefit paid can be used to pay for the costs of treating a chronic condition or terminal illness.

5. Disability Rider

The disability rider pays an additional sum upon total and/or permanent disability of the life insured because of an illness or accident or both. Some disability riders also cover partial disability.

If you plan to add riders to your policy, you should study them thoroughly including their benefits, inclusions and exclusions. It is important to note, however, that although the above-mentioned riders can enhance the value of your insurance policy, you should read through your policy brochure first to check what all riders are allowed. Look at your current plan's coverage and choose a rider that would meet your needs if the level of protection is inadequate.

Document Required for Buying Life Insurance Policy

In order to apply for a policy, you will have to submit the following documents:

1. A proposal or application for insurance.
2. Age proof
3. KYC documents like - Identity proof, address proof, etc.

Other Documents

The Insurance Company may call for additional information or documents depending upon the amount of cover applied, the premium that you will be paying and your profile, including but not limited to your lifestyle, habits, family history etc.

What is an insurance claim?

An insurance claim is a formal request by a policyholder/nominee. This is made to the insurance company for compensation against the insured event.

What is the claim process?

Typical claim process is as follows:

How to File a Life Insurance Claim?

Insurance companies publish the claim process on their website and it is also mentioned in your insurance policy document. If all the necessary steps are taken care of, filing a claim and collecting the assured amount can be a piece of cake. You must file the claim in the right way.

If you are not satisfied with the claim process, you have three levels to raise your concern:

1. Level 1: Claims Review Committee of the Insurance Company
2. Level 2: Grievance Redressal Officer
3. Level 3: Insurance Ombudsman