In my line, I always tell people that having insurance is a must and it is very simple. But to some of my client, it seems to be a very difficult task. Eg: Some of the people that i met spent a whole lot of time thinking whether they should upgrade their basic medishield to private shield plan because they are concerned about using CPF money. Seriously from my point of view, there is really nothing to think too much. In any case, they are contributing 6% of their salary into Medi-save per month and one year premium for private shield ranges from $100-$1500 (depending on age). So if you think logically, how is it possible not able to afford it? Moreover, it does only good and no harm to people upgrading their shield plan.

But then again if we really sit down and think, is buying insurance that simple?

In my personal opinion, getting an life insurance is a simple task but not easy. Other than there are many things that you must understand before you make a decision. Eg: what’s the term and conditions, any exclusion, pros & cons, interest rate and guarantee or non guarantee portion.  I have to say that maintaining the  budget to keep the policy in force is also another factor to consider. Hence i need to say that it is not easy simple because for generally, most people doesn’t view insurance as their most important expenses. To them, buying insurance is good to have when you have spare cash and when they got retrenched or pay cut, the first thing to cut is insurance!

The same theory goes for driving a car. It is simple to drive on the road since you only need to step the accelerater and it will drive automatically however you need to master all the road signs and understand all types of road condtions to be able to drive safely. It is not easy though. Buying a car is simple. Just go to showroom and select a car that you fancy and pay the deposit to drive off.  However is it easy to maintain the car? No! Many people i know are struggling to keep up with the expenses. They have became a ‘car slave’

In driving, we hire a private or school instructor to teach us how to drive and in the insurance context, we engage a financial consultant to share with us all his knowledge and understanding of the products so that we can make the whole process a breeze. Therefore i must emphasize that the financial consultant that you are seeing (bank, tied agent or IFA) must make sure that he does a fact find with you first and follow by introducing and explaining all types of suitable products for you before you sign anything with him. Another important aspect that you need to take note is whether did he disclose how much commission is he getting from the plan he is recommending you? However if you notice that this person only has one plan for you and never tell you anything about his reason for recommendation then you should know what to do with him(dump him!) Sometime if the agent doesn’t bother to even ask you about your spending habits and are only concerned about how much you can save, you know that this person is just another salesperson out there.

A good financial consultant in my personl opinion is someone who bothers to upgrade himself constantly in this industry. Be it taking CHFC or general insurance, it will definitely value add the client in one way or another. Sometime by attending outside course where it increases general knowledge, it is also benefical to the clients. He/She must also be willing to be open with his own financial habits because at least you know that this person practises what he preachs. He must also possess a spirit of listening and understanding your whole financial situation and constantly follow up with you. If the person after one appointment never bother to follow up then again you can move on looking for other sincere consultants. Most importantly the consultant itself must believe in its own products. Ask for his own policies and see how much he/she is covered. If he can’t show you then i believe he himself also doesn’t believe much in insurance planning.

So after looking from the other point of view, do you still think buying insurance is a difficult task? It is a difficult task if there is no proper consultant advising you on all aspects (logic & emotional) when choosing a plan. The million dollar question right now is whether have you been able to find ‘the one’ to help you to make the process more simpler =)

Related posts:

  1. Is there a need for second opinion?
  2. Why Should I Buy Insurance?
  3. Should You Upgrade Your Basic Medishield?
  4. 100,000 women are not covered by Medi-Shield!
  5. If you fail to plan, you plan to fail – Part 2