“Every year, 12.7 million people around the world discover they have cancer and a further 7.6 million people die from the disease.”
(source: Huffington Post)
Okay, now you know how real the probability is, we wrote this post to share more about the brief background of why Insurance exists, and largely about why you should probably consider this (especially if you are lacking in some form of coverage).
To be brutally transparent, I am not a financial advisor but rather simply aim to shed as much light on this industry as far as possible as a common man who has done research and looking to skim out what’s really important for you from personal experience of a close family member.
A true story
My very own family member was hit by a taxi while riding a bicycle in Singapore, and in the 5 years since, had gone through multiple surgical procedures, not just for the accident itself, but also a late stage brain tumour which was discovered post-accident. This example may seem very drastic, but it is just one of many cases that happen each day here in Singapore.
Till this day, he is bravely fighting for his life against stage 4 brain cancer, of which a large part of the medical bills have been covered by both health insurance (hospitalisation and surgical) and Medisave (CPF). In reality, if we did not have these insurance plans, especially the Health insurance policy, we would probably have to have sold off majority of our assets and be in debt of easily over $400k to $500k+ to receive the best care and treatment in Singapore (the most expensive country in the world).
2 Types of Insurance that are definitely must-haves:
Type | Health Insurance | Life Insurance |
|---|---|---|
| Why | To mainly cover your own healthcare cost | For your dependants (wife, kids, parents, siblings) |
| Products | Hospitalisation & Surgical Plan, Critical Illness (CI), Disability Income | Term life insurance (usually up to aged 65), Whole life insurance |
| Example Situation | You get hit by a car on a normal day and subsequently got warded with surgical procedures. All medical fees get covered including follow-up treatment (accordingly) | You get warded to hospital for a surgery to remove a tumour, of which during the surgery you suffer a cardiac arrest and pass away. |
A brief explanation of Insurance and why it can be powerful for YOU – It’s all about probability
Insurance in its simplest definition is simply a protection from some form of financial loss. Think of this as a risk management tool that beats the risk of you ‘dying or falling ill’ against a larger pool of people. Think of this like gambling, where you are the Casino house (e.g. MBS or RWS) and you have a pool of gamblers who comes in to play blackjack everyday, with the right numbers and probabilities, you are largely able to win in the longer run when you consider and properly assess your players risk appetites and probability of them ‘winning a windfall’.
Source: Calvin Hobbes
Yes, we know ‘Insurance’ is a dirty word today
Our dear agents and financial planners may have come across as hard-sell and overly sale-sy. And largely, it has been largely due to how the industry has been shaping up for many years, on a mix of sales and building up a relationship.
This is largely the way of how these expensive products get sold – where agents get a full year’s premium if they successfully sell you a life plan (which may not be in the best interests of the consumer). But we see it changing as information becomes more readily available online and people get more aware, like how you are reading this article now. Lastly, you should probably look for someone you can trust and ideally be there when the shit hits the fan.
Read also: As A Young Working Adult, What Insurance Should I Get
Conclusion
So this article serves as a primer – an introduction to a very real use case of Insurance and how it can potentially severely limit your downside. Having done research, it comes as no surprise that you should seriously consider getting these policies and get introduced by some trusted friends to agents. Personally, this is especially important when in today’s day and age, our lifestyles are getting increasingly toxic, with late nights and booze. And please do more research into how these plans actually work with each other, and not overlap. There are enough other articles out there to give you a deeper look into these policies, forums discussing premiums and coverage etc.
Lastly, one easy way to do this is to pull out an excel sheet to properly look at which products you already have and areas you are potentially lacking in. And also figure out how much premiums you are already paying.
I personally use Seedly, whereby syncing up my bank accounts, I know exactly how much premiums I am paying each month and to which Insurance company.
(Full Disclaimer: I am from Seedly, so do take this with a pinch of salt) But in all honesty, this really helps as these premiums can skyrocket as age progresses and eat into your monthly budgeting, so do take note.
” YOLO – You Only Live Once? “
False. You live every day, and You Only Die Once – YODO.
Think about this and see if it makes sense. Given that now you understand why Insurance can be a big safety net and powerful tool to help you build your wealth in the long run, when your downside is covered.
P.S #personal story #millennialYODO
Do Email us at [email protected] or leave your comments stories below on your own experiences with insurance and how it has helped or maybe not, in your own life!
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