Ai Ai de las Alas and Maja Salvador ask life insurance questions

Waste neither time nor money, but make the best use of both. Without industry and frugality, nothing will do, and with them everything.—Benjamin Franklin

There are but two ways of paying debt: Increase of industry in raising income, increase of thrift in laying out. —19th-century Scottish philosopher Thomas Carlyle

If frugality were established in the state, and if our expenses were laid out to meet needs rather than superfluities of life, there might be fewer wants, and even fewer pleasures, but infinitely more happiness. —18th-century Irish poet Oliver Goldsmith

CALAPAN, Oriental Mindoro — This writer reaffirms our fearless forecast of world economic recovery by Christmas, but we need to continue working hard, investing wisely, insure and always save money no matter what happens to the world or the national economy. Even if experts predict a slump in local realty prices and sales, this is actually good news for the public and end-users to start buying homes, offices and business sites at possible discounts.  

This writer has been invited to various places in recent days, such as our unforgettable fast sea journey to Mindoro isle from Batangas port, also visits to Cebu and Mandaue cities, where we had very interesting meetings. Thanks also to speech invitations from the Rotary Clubs of Makati Buendia, Bagumbayan Manila, and other organizations.

Whoever operates the Mindoro-Batangas Supercats ferry should invest more to modernize, because the May 18 afternoon disruption in ferry service forced me to take the much-slower, two-hours-later but surprisingly enjoyable Ro-Ro boat ride at dusk, causing me to miss an appointment with Megastar Sharon Cuneta Pangilinan at Edsa Plaza Hotel that night. We need more infrastructure and transport investments to bolster the tourism prospects of beautiful rural areas like the still-mainly-agricultural economy of Mindoro isle.

During the slow but pleasant Ro-Ro boat ride, I saw several Badjao kids from Mindanao begging for money from other passengers. What are the socio-economic policies of government to uplift the many disadvantaged indigenous cultural minorities in our rural regions?  

Thanks to the personal welcome of Oriental Mindoro Governor Atty. Arnan Panaligan, who said he always reads The Philippine STAR and this column, and that he supports our advocacy of promoting a national culture of savings through this series with the nation’s largest and oldest home-grown life insurance giant, Insular Life.

Thanks also to the hospitality of Mindoro Oriental Councilors League president Robert Concepcion and wife, Jackie, Sisters Sanitary Napkins owners Emilio and Aileen Go, Mindoro’s largest Citimart Island Mart owners Carlito Go and wife, Fely Ong Go, and to 78-year-old Leona Yap Ong.

Thanks for all your letters via e-mail or Facebook. Zen Zest owner Michelle Asence’s e-mail of questions have already been answered by Insular Life executives; kindly refer to back issues of The Philippine STAR or the archives of philstar.com last February 16 and March 23. Here are three interesting letters from a new graduate who’s considering life insurance sales as a career; also queries from “Dance Princess” Maja Salvador and “Comedy Concert Queen” and box-office actress Ai Ai de las Alas, with Insular Life executives’ expert responses:

QUESTION 1:

I am age “twenteen.” I do not have any life insurance right now. If a person buys life insurance and pays every year a certain amount of money, what is the guarantee or assurance that after all those years of yearly payments that a person is indeed insured? Is what I’m doing now correct in the financial-discipline sense —I deposit in the bank all my earnings from commercial endorsements, while I only use my TV earnings from shows for personal expenses? 

Maja Salvador

ANSWER:

A life insurance policy is a legally binding contract, meaning that the insurer binds itself to make good on all the contracted benefits in the future according to the terms and conditions of the policy. For as long as the policyholder pays his/her premiums on time, the policy will not lapse and therefore the policyholder continues to be insured. For added comfort and security you must also choose very well the institution you believe is stable and financially sound enough to entrust your insurance needs to. As with all sound financial decisions, study your options well. You can secure information about insurance companies from the Insurance Commission or from the annual reports of life insurance companies. The Insurance Commission maintains a website that reports the revenues and other financial data of insurance companies, their standing in the industry, and so on. Check for reputation, track record of meeting obligations, even market preference. These can help guide you in making sound and confident decisions.

We also commend you for being very disciplined with your earnings even at your young age. I mentioned before that financial security can be achieved if one has the discipline not to waste money, the constancy to save and invest wisely, and finally, enough time to realize his/her financial objectives. Life insurance is needed for the final requirement — to ensure that even if one does not enjoy enough time or one’s income is disrupted by disability or even old age, life insurance is a financial safety net against such risks. 

Jesus Alfonso G. Hofileña

Executive Vice President & Head

Sales & Marketing Group

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QUESTION 2:

I’m a new graduate of a business management degree from a major university, but instead of working for a bank or a multinational firm, I’m fascinated by your series on life insurance and would like to inquire about how to become a new life insurance agent. What are the future career prospects of being an agent and is this a good long-term career path for an ambitious person? What are your age and qualification requirements for new agents? What office do I go to or where do I call to apply? How do I start? Is life insurance your only product, is this enough to build a career on, or do your agents also sell medical insurance, educational plans or other investment products like those in America by financial advisers? Is a life insurance agent at Insular like a financial adviser of some sort? Last but not least of my many questions, if ever I or some other person wants to be a life insurance agent, why should I choose Insular Life at all or what are the advantages of your company? Thank you for your enlightening series. I suggest you expand your topics next time to anything to do with personal finances or careers, because your series is very interesting for most of us who seem to like getting rich but are not interested in studying financial topics.  

Thank you for expressing interest in the profession of life insurance financial services by considering becoming an agent. One of the things that have so fascinated me about this profession (and is one reason why I derive a great sense of fulfillment in my work) is the opportunity it has given to thousands of ordinary Filipinos to realize their goals and dreams of success and prosperity. Truly, life insurance is a worthwhile career for those who would like to consider earning a good living by helping secure the welfare of families.  Just recently I attended a function in honor of one such lady who has made life insurance selling her profession for over 50 years now (and she’s still going strong!). When she started out in this business she was a mere secretary of another agent. Testimonials like this abound in our industry. In our company, Insular Life, we have many outstanding role models of devoted and dedicated sales professionals who likewise came from very humble beginnings or rose from the ranks. We certainly invite you to find out more and we would be delighted to have one of our executives visit you at your convenience in the soonest time possible.

Jesus Alfonso G. Hofileña

ANSWER 2:

You have every reason to be fascinated by this business. I have been here for the last 23 years and its endless opportunities constantly challenge me to extend the limits of my potential. From being a full-time agent, I formed my own unit, and now, as district sales manager, I lead a team of five units with close to 40 people. It has been an ongoing “voyage of discovery” for me; the financial rewards are just the tip of the iceberg.  

All this time I have only been with Insular Life. The company provides me with a very wide array of choices — from the traditional to investment-linked products — and this allows my team to serve a bigger segment of the market. Insular Life’s unbroken service record of keeping its promises for almost 100 years bolsters our confidence in selling these products. But even with its long history, it continues to be a learning organization, constantly adapting to the ever-changing business landscape.  

This is primarily a people business, so we look for those who are genuinely interested in interacting with and helping others. In essence, we get people whose values in life resonate with ours. So as a first step, I suggest we sit down together and get to know each other a little better. You may reach me at 536-9067 or 526-2137. 

Raul Mabanag

District Sales Manager

Insular Life Malate District Office

QUESTION 3:

I am 45 years old and the single mother of three teenagers. I have a question for your Philippine STAR and Insular Life series. If a person has life insurance protection and dies, how many months later can the beneficiaries claim their money and what are the legal or other requirements? I am just very concerned that if it takes too long or is too complicated, kawawa naman ang mga beneficiaries. I agree with your noble advocacy on savings and that everyone should buy life insurance. In fact, I personally not only put money into my savings, because I know that showbiz fame or success is not forever, I also tithe over 10 percent of my earnings every month to God, where all my blessings come from. I also like the idea of pension plans, which I hope you can explain. 

Ai Ai De Las Alas

ANSWER 1:

Life insurance companies are usually required by both internal and external regulations to process insurance claims expeditiously, knowing that the proceeds of the policies are needed by the claimants. However, the time it takes to release a claim will depend on certain circumstances. For instance, if death occurs within the first two years (which is usually the contestable period of the policy) an insurance company is allowed more time to look into the circumstances to make certain that there was nothing irregular in the application for insurance as well as the circumstances surrounding the death. However, claims on policies that occur after the contestable period generally only take a few days to a couple of weeks to process, provided that all necessary claims documents are duly submitted.

Jesus Alfonso G. Hofileña

ANSWER 2:

My reply is specific to our company’s practice when a beneficiary makes a death claim on the policy of an insured. It is best to notify Insular Life of the death of the insured as soon as possible. Upon notification, Insular Life will inform the claimant of the requirements to process the claim. The length of time in processing a claim depends on the submission of complete requirements as well as on the verification of relevant information. The usual requirements include the death certificate, duly accomplished Claimant’s Statement, Attending Physician’s Statement, IDs of beneficiaries to establish their identities, and birth certificate/ marriage contract or other documents to establish the relationship of the beneficiaries with the insured. If the designated beneficiary is a minor, a Guardian’s Bond may be required, depending on the amount of insurance.

Additional requirements may be requested if there are other additional benefits claimed under Rider Contracts attached to the insurance policy. For instance, if the death was due to an accident and the policy has an accidental death benefit rider attached to it, proof of the accident will be required.

Mona Lisa B. dela Cruz

Senior Vice President & Head

Administrative Operations Group

ANSWER 3:

On the question about pension plans, the term “pension plan” is more popularly used in the pre-need industry to describe a type of product that pays a certain sum of money at a definite time in the future. In life insurance that would be equivalent to an endowment policy that guarantees to pay or endow a certain amount at the end of a pre-determined period. Pension-type plans give lump-sum benefits that can be used to augment one’s retirement funds, but need not be used only for that purpose. At Insular Life we can recommend that you consider one of our endowment policies like I-Value, which provides cash benefits beginning on the eighth year all the way to the end of the 15th year for a total of 200 percent of the original amount of coverage. We will be more than happy to send you one of our associates to explain this in greater detail.

Jesus Alfonso G. Hofileña

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For more inquiries, call Insular Life’s Brand Marketing Department at 582-1818 loc. 1850 and 5124 or e-mail brand@mx.insular.com.ph or visit website: www.insularlife.com.ph. For answers to frequently asked questions about life insurance, visit http://www.insularlife.com.ph/inquirybox.

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Continue e-mailing your questions, letters or comments to willsoonflourish@gmail.com or Facebook. Thanks for your messages, all will be answered!