Read from the start of this discussion. You will find your answers there. Basically insurance is not a good tool for savings because the returns are lower than many other investments available and your money is tied for many years. If you withdraw before the term ends your returns are even lower.

This post has been edited by DannyOP: Nov 3 2008, 10:46 AM

Totally agree. Even before you have insurance you should have emergency funds. I had a previous experience of false alarm of appendix, eventhough I had my prudential insurance card,Subang Medical insisted that I must swipe RM5k from my credit card before being admitted. Imagine if I didn't have any emergency funds and it was a real emergency, I might have been dead today eventhough I had insurance.

People should be taught that insurance is only a form of risk management. In emergency cases, the most important thing you should have is money. Then only comes insurance, if at all. In some areas, I have to say insurance comes useful but it totally depends on each individual. It is wrong to make a blanket statement that everyone needs a particular plan because each individual needs and capabilities are different.

In one area where insurance is useful is when the breadwinner of a family dies. In this case, all financial assets are frozen immediately until the assets are administered by the court. If it is testate, it will take approx 1 year to execute and liquidate the assets and if cases of intestate, it will take 6-7 years. During this time, all the money in the world is useless because it is frozen. So if there are dependants who can't fend for themselves, then this is where the insurance comes handy as part of asset management, the dependants will be given a monthly income that is planned ie. RM5k for 1 year until assets are administered, or a creation of a trust account.



This post has been edited by DannyOP: Jan 2 2009, 02:42 AM

Joint a/c is also frozen upon death.