Category Archive: Insurance

Feb
23
2012

Revision of NTUC iTerm

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by Martin Lee

February 23, 2012

NTUC has reduced the premium rates of their regular term plan, i-Term. This comes a couple of months after Aviva reduced the premiums for their term plans.

Applicants who apply for sum assured of up to $750,000 for i-Term will be able to enjoy better rates (Applicants for higher sum assured are already enjoying better rates).

I did a quick check and calculated that the premiums for a male non-smoker, aged 30 years old last birthday, covering an insured amount of $300,000 (death and TPD) and for a 25-year term works out to be about $450/year under the old plan.

With the new rates, the annual premiums are only about $368. This is almost 20% cheaper.

The race to the bottom for term premium rates is set to continue as insurers will be constantly evaluating their products to make sure they remain competitive.

Of course, they will need to maintain certain minimum levels to ensure that the premiums they collect are adequate to pay for any future claims.

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Feb
21
2012

NTUC Incomeshield Promotion

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by Martin Lee

February 21, 2012

NTUC is currently having a promotion for all new application of their incomeshield plans. Customers who are already under an existing incomeshield plan will not be eligible for this promotion.

The promotion entitles a person to a 10% discount for premiums of the first year for both the main plan and any riders.

The offer lasts till 30 April 2012 but NTUC reserves the right to change the terms and conditions of this promotion without any prior notice. Any subsequent upgrades or application for riders made will also not be eligible for the discount.

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Jan
31
2012

Getting Medical Insurance Early

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by Martin Lee

January 31, 2012

There was an article in The Sunday Times over the weekend which talked about the important of getting medical insurance early while you are still young and healthy.

This is because if you wait until you have a medical condition before getting insurance, that condition will not be covered.

Or even worse, your entire application can be declined.

Better to Get Medical Insurance While Young and Healthy (Sunday Times)

Please also read the portion in the green column “Think before you switch”.

Do not make the mistake of switching shield plans as this person found out.

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Permanent link to this article: http://www.martinlee.sg/getting-medical-insurance-early/

Jan
20
2012

Community Health Assist Scheme

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by Martin Lee

January 20, 2012

The Community Health Assist Scheme (CHAS), which was previously known as the Primary Care Partnership Scheme (PCPS), has been enhanced to benefit more people from January 2012 this year.

Patients who qualify to be on the CHAS will be able to receive subsidised outpatient medical treatments for acute and chronic conditions as well as basic dental services at General Practitioners (GPs) and dental clinics near their homes.

The subsidies can be up to $18.50 for acute conditions and $80 for chronic conditions.

To qualify for CHAS, you must be either:

  • A Singapore citizen who is 40 years old or above, and with a per capita monthly household income of $1,500 and below; or
  • A Singapore citizen and you are unable to do any one of these six activities for yourself – washing / bathing; toileting; transferring; feeding; dressing; and/or mobility, and; with a per capita monthly household income of $1,500 and below; or
  • On the Public Assistance Scheme.

Previously, only citizens aged 65 or more with a per capita monthly household income of $800 or less would qualify for the scheme.

Hopefully, with the enhanced scheme,  some of the heavy demand at Polyclinics can be channeled over to private sector GPs.

For more information about the CHAS and the application form, you can visit the Community Health Assist Scheme website.

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Permanent link to this article: http://www.martinlee.sg/community-health-assist-scheme/

Jan
11
2012

Closure of NTUC Growth Plan

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by Martin Lee

January 11, 2012

The Growth Plan from NTUC is one of the more popular single premium endowment plans in the market for a duration of five years or more.

While the returns are nowhere near what you can get from an equity investment, it does give a conservative and steady returns of 2-4%+ p.a.

The interest rates in Singapore have reduced quite significantly over the past few years. 12-month fixed deposit rates are now hovering around 0.4% p.a. compared to 0.9% p.a. 5 years ago. Similarly, 5-year Singapore government bond yields have declined from 3.2% p.a. 5 years ago to 0.9% p.a. today.

As such, NTUC have decided that it is no longer possible to offer the Growth Plan in its current form and have withdrawn it from the market.

A new version of the Growth Plan will be launched in its place but you can expect returns to be poorer compared to the old one. :(

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Permanent link to this article: http://www.martinlee.sg/closure-of-ntuc-growth-plan/

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