Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent or uncertain loss.
Health insurance is an agreement wherein an insurance company agrees to compensate the insured for the medical and surgical expenses incurred during the policy tenure. The medical expenses may incur if the insured falls ill, or meets an accident that leads to hospitalisation of the insured. To be eligible to avail coverage benefits under the policy, the policyholder is required to pay a specific amount periodically, known as premium. Health insurance premium is decided by an insurance company and policyholders are required to pay the same on a monthly, quarterly, half-yearly, or yearly basis, without any lapse, to avoid losing the renewal benefits.
Life insurance refers to an agreement between an individual and an insurance company under which the latter promises to provide a sum assured (death benefit) to the family of the life assured in the event of an untimely death of the life assured. In case of no death, a sum assured known as the maturity benefit is provided at the time of maturity of the policy under certain life insurance plans. Some insurance companies also offer optional coverage for critical illnesses. Besides the standard coverage, other benefits are provided in accordance with the type of life insurance plan chosen.
Term Insurance plans are the most basic type of life insurance plans. They are also called ‘Pure Protection Plans’. Under these plans,a death benefit is provided to the family members in the event of a sudden demise of the life assured during the policy term. This plan thus helps you keep your family financially secured in your absence.
A Unit-Linked Insurance Plan (ULIP) is an investment cum life insurance plan. In addition to the life cover, this plan invests your money in market-linked funds. These plans generally come with 2 types of investment strategies namely automatic or systematic fund allocation strategy and self-managed strategy for the management of your funds.
Child plans serve the dual purpose of providing a life insurance cover and an investment corpus for your child’s future. This plan provides a lump sum amount at the end of policy tenure that can be utilised for financing your child’s educational expenses or marriage expenses. These plans are generally available as savings plans and ULIPs.
Money-Back plans are investment plans which provide guaranteed sum assured on plan maturity/death of the life assured. The guaranteed benefit under these plans can be availed as either a lump sum or in the form of regular instalments as steady income. The regular instalments is generally equivalent to a certain percentage of the sum assured.
Retirement plans are investment cum life insurance plans which provide you with a life cover, along with helping you accumulate your savings for the life after retirement. This plan helps you enjoy a regular and steady flow of income after retirement, so that you can remain financially independent to enjoy the golden years of your life on your terms and conditions.
Endowment plans are traditional savings plans which not only provide a life cover but also provide the policyholder an opportunity to invest their money for a specific period of time and earn guaranteed returns. The value of both, the death benefit and maturity benefit, is appreciated under the plan by way of regular and guaranteed additions at regular intervals.
Car insurance is a contract between a car owner and a general insurance company wherein the latter promises to protect the car owner from financial losses which may occur due to an unfortunate event involving his/her car. Depending on the scope of coverage, there are 3 types of car insurance policies - Third-Party Car Insurance, Standalone Own-Damage (OD) Car Insurance, and Comprehensive Car Insurance.