Ive been researching AIA and Prudential the past 6 months. Each has its pro's and con's but i noticed there are many limitations in AIA. On paper it looks good but when u see the details and the limitations and compare that against the premiums, it doesnt look that attractive anymore.

For instance, when u say premium always the same and never goes up, you fail to mention that AIA always starts the premium on a higher level right from the start. For instance, the premium for Exelcare Medicover Plus for the age group of 16-35 at ECP 350 is RM878.50 per annum. Prudential costs about RM 270 for a similar package.

Overall it will balance out. AIA charges higher premiums from the start and gives u assurance it wont go up as long as u stay within the same age group. Prudential premiums might go up according to inflation levels but they start small.

This is what i mean by you have to look at the finer details rather than the big figures on paper which always looks nice. By the way, im not involved in any insurance sales business. Just a normal consumer just like many of you.

Cheers!

You are right. No insurance company in Malaysia guarantees that premiums will NOT go up. The so called 'guarantee' from AIA means that there will not be any increase in premiums as long as you STAY WITHIN THE AGE GROUP. Once you move into the next age group, your premium jumps. For Prudential, the premiums depend on the ENTRY AGE. But due to inflation, the yearly premiums WILL go up.

This is the difference between the 2 main insurances. But in lay man's terms both are saying premiums WILL INCREASE.

As for the returns, the percentage provided is always STATISTISCAL AVERAGE and NOT GUARANTEED. But as with most insurances, you must think long term. So some years you can even have dividends declared as high as 42% (as in 2009 for Prudential) but can also go as low as -32% (in 2007). So overall it will even out to be about 6-9% over a 30 yr period. This display percentage is a requirement by Bank Negara.

Yes i have researched this lifetime limit issue as well. Yes its true that AIA does NOT have a life time limit compared to Prudential. But AIA has stipulated limits for CANCER and KIDNEY DIALISIS treatments and these limits are quite low. Cancer limits are set at RM322K per lifetime while Kidney dialisis is set at RM200K per lifetime (this is assuming you take the highest coverage bracket) We all know that these 2 treatments are usually the most expensive treatments in the medical world. Average cancer treatment for a Stage 3 patient at SJMC for instance can come up to RM 30K a month. So if you have a limit of RM322K for cancer, you will only get reimbursed for 10 months of treatment. This is a major drawback.

Prudential stipulates lifetime limits but all treatments for the specified diseases are AS CHARGED. their max lifetime limit is RM 1.5 mil for the highest coverage bracket. So if you get cancer and you need treatment you have about 50 months of treatment before your coverage lapses.

This is a major difference between AIA and Prudential.

Yes but the co-insurance is covered by PruMed at a minimal cost.

yes thats true. Whatever plan you go for must be taken in a package that covers all main areas. Stand alone plans only benefit you in 1 way. But overall, i find that all plans somehow add up to roughly the same benefits. U just need to choose one that gives u the best cover and returns on investment.