Should you’re a savvy client however dislike having to take care of insurance coverage brokers who attempt to arduous promote or affect you in the direction of getting sure merchandise that aren’t nice for you and your loved ones, then take a look at Planner Bee. Apart from permitting you to handle your (and your loved ones’s) insurance coverage insurance policies multi functional place, it presents a brand new mannequin of shopping for insurance coverage – the place you and your wants come first, and the agent servicing comes solely on the finish AFTER you’ve made your resolution. Can know-how take away the commissions bias that’s inherent within the business? I’m actually hopeful, however you may learn on to determine for your self!
You already know what you wish to purchase, and head on-line to match quotes on varied on-line aggregators. Then, you uncover that you just’ve run into a number of points:
- Most on-line aggregators provide quotes from solely a restricted variety of insurers, or product varieties (e.g. pet insurance coverage shouldn’t be widespread, just a few portals have it)
- Whilst you know what you need, you want to converse with somebody to ask questions and make clear your considerations earlier than you commit, particularly to a long-term plan like life or medical health insurance
- You attempt to name up your insurance coverage agent good friend for it, solely to understand that they’re unable to get you quotes from insurers like AIA, Nice Jap or Prudential.
- Typically, your agent is unavailable and doesn’t reply…which makes you surprise, what is going to occur if you want them throughout claims then? Who do you go to in the event that they’re the one contact you will have for that coverage?
The state of the insurance coverage market right now
The insurance coverage business is fraught with conflicts of curiosity, which regularly implies that customers have little to no clue as as to whether their insurance coverage agent is recommending them the very best coverage that meets their wants, or one that’s higher for the agent’s earnings. From completely different commissions charges abroad journeys for pushing sure merchandise, these incentive constructions are sometimes not made identified to the buyer, making it even tougher for them to evaluate what is really driving their agent’s suggestions.
I’ve met dozens of insurance coverage brokers, and most fail to actually impress me sufficient to earn my belief. For those who do, I’ve saved them shut through the years, utilizing their suggestions as a second (generally third) opinion to assist validate whether or not my resolution is right.
The tell-tale indicators normally seem when your agent is fast to advocate you entire life insurance coverage, investment-linked plans (ILPs) or endowment insurance policies spanning over 20 or 30 years. It’s a incontrovertible fact that time period life insurance coverage is a much more cost-effective strategy to shield towards mortality for many customers*, whereas investment-linked plans with their excessive charges will hardly enable you to beat the market and most endowment plans have barely saved up with market returns.
*See a case research of when the opposite argument (entire life over time period life) may maintain true right here, equivalent to when somebody does NOT wish to purchase time period and make investments the remaining.
After my current article about how insurance coverage brokers are compensated in Singapore, the crew at Planner Bee reached out to me to share their resolution to this downside. As an award-winning fintech app helmed by a crew from insurance coverage and wealth administration backgrounds, Planner Bee was designed to assist customers make knowledgeable selections based mostly on their wants fairly than an agent’s commissions.
And the reality is, until your insurance coverage wants are complicated, you is likely to be higher off planning for your self, to be able to eradicate all these potential conflicts of curiosity within the first place! That is what I’ve personally performed for the final decade, and I like to recommend that you just take possession of managing your personal insurance coverage insurance policies for your self on this method too.
However as a DIY insurance coverage planner, the place do you go to make sure that you’re heading in the right direction?
Discover and handle your insurance coverage insurance policies in a single place
Enter Planner Bee, a cell private monetary device designed by Singaporeans to cater particularly to the wants of insurance coverage consumers right here. Powered by their very own proprietary engine, the app’s dashboard was additionally among the many first in Singapore to supply customers a one-stop overview of their varied insurance coverage insurance policies throughout a number of insurers.
You need to use it to handle not simply your personal insurance policies, but in addition that of your loved ones. In a single look, you’ll have the ability to monitor:
- What plans you (and your loved ones) have
- The protection supplied by every, and in complete
- The premiums and renewal (fee) dates for every coverage
I beforehand advisable the Autumn app for this goal to a lot of you, however after Commonplace Chartered Financial institution determined to place the brakes on that challenge earlier this 12 months, I’ve been searching for another resolution – and located it in Planner Bee.
As soon as I had manually keyed within the particulars of my insurance policies (and my total household’s), I may now see and handle all of them inside the app.
And with instruments equivalent to an insurance coverage wants calculator, you’ll be guided on determining the overall insurance coverage protection you want and whether or not your current insurance policies adequately shield you.
As soon as what gaps you have to fill, you may then navigate their market to match throughout insurers and insurance policies. Planner Bee sources merchandise and quotes from throughout 29 insurers in a single place, which saves you effort and time because you now not want to go to a number of suppliers individually. Whether or not you want a private accident plan or a maternity cowl, it is possible for you to to match the advantages throughout completely different plans and insurers in a single view.
As the prices of premiums for a similar plan fluctuate at completely different instances based mostly on the insurers’ reductions, your age and gender, it’s typically tough for customers to match simply. Even brokers from FAs that distribute merchandise from a number of insurers may have a troublesome time getting these quotes for you, since insurers equivalent to Nice Jap and Prudential sometimes don’t open up distribution channels with these businesses in an effort to shield their very own tied brokers.
You will get round this by requesting for a personalised quote from Planner Bee; merely submit your particulars, sum of protection wanted and your annual funds for premiums.
Powered by its proprietary suggestion engine, you may also enter your insurance coverage wants and let the Planner Bee platform make personalised and brand-agnostic insurance coverage ideas for you, making it simpler so that you can discover the suitable coverage with out bias.
Which means whether or not you’re in search of medical health insurance to cowl medical prices or life insurance coverage for household safety, Planner Bee brings all the things underneath one roof, making it a simple, one-stop store to your insurance coverage wants.
Are you able to belief Planner Bee?
Planner Bee was based by Ms. Cherie Wang, who’s an authorized Chartered Monetary Advisor (ChFC) and Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU) who has ranked within the prime 5% of economic advisors globally for greater than 10 years.
However regardless of her achievements, Cherie acknowledged a persistent flaw within the system: many monetary advisors in Singapore sometimes function based mostly on commissions, which creates potential conflicts of curiosity. One other problem she confronted was that whereas working in an company, she and her colleagues didn’t all the time have entry to the very best merchandise inside their distribution community to supply to purchasers.
Many consumers additionally sought her assist in managing their total portfolios, together with insurance policies she didn’t have direct entry to. With over 20 insurers in Singapore, manually evaluating merchandise throughout the board every time was impractical, and it grew to become evident that her purchasers wanted a extra clear and environment friendly strategy to handle their insurance coverage portfolios.
This realisation drove her to work on Planner Bee, which was based with 2 important objectives:
- To assist individuals handle their general funds in a single place.
- To supply an unbiased platform for needs-based monetary product comparability.
As their crew shouldn’t be affiliated with any insurance coverage firm, their objective is to help you in planning and buying insurance policies from a number of insurers with none bias or choice in the direction of a selected firm.
At present, Planner Bee combines the comfort of a market with monetary calculators, an academic library, and personalised steering from licensed advisors that will help you get coated with confidence. The monetary planning device now connects to 42 monetary establishments so you may consolidate your banking transactions, insurance coverage insurance policies, and funding portfolios multi functional place.
Tip: Keep in mind to all the time ask your advisor for his or her MAS Consultant Quantity, so you may verify that they're licensed to deal with your case. Planner Bee gives these to the buyer, upon request.
Not like aggregators that merely checklist insurance coverage merchandise, Planner Bee goes one step additional to supply instruments to assist DIY customers consider their very own insurance coverage wants and presents personalised quotations based mostly on these wants.
Your premiums are the identical when shopping for by way of Planner Bee or straight from the insurance coverage suppliers.
And must you ever really feel caught or confused, you may also choose to seek the advice of a human advisor by way of their on-line session characteristic.
The app additionally categorises your insurance coverage insurance policies for you, so that you keep in mind what you’ve purchased and have already got coated. It additionally reminds you (by way of electronic mail and WhatsApp) when your renewal dates are nearing, so that you don’t have to fret about any insurance policies lapsing!
How Planner Bee solves for conflicts of curiosity
As an alternative of leaving the suggestions as much as particular person insurance coverage brokers, who might every push for various insurance policies for various causes, Planner Bee opts for a mannequin the place your quotations supplied are pushed by the client’s necessities fairly than which insurer is at the moment paying the best commissions for closing or giving an incentive journey on.
How does know-how take away the bias? Most citation programs right now require a human agent to key in particulars and choose the coverage that they want to get quotes for. In distinction, the citation programs at Planner Bee doesn't keep in mind commissions (because it doesn't have the knowledge within the system within the first place for it to be biased), and gives quotations solely based mostly on buyer’s necessities, funds and advantages or wants.
To offer you full visibility and management over your selections, Planner Bee’s citation system kinds insurance policies by its profit options and premium charges. This basically guidelines out any biases which may favour insurance policies delivering larger commissions, serving to to make sure that clients are getting the very best worth for his or her cash.
Get your questions on any coverage answered by scheduling a Zoom name, or ship messages by way of WhatsApp to debate the supplied quotations. When you’ve determined to buy, a video name (by way of Zoom) shall be organized with a salaried licensed advisor, who will clarify the phrases and situations and confirm if the insurance policies chosen actually match your wants, so you should purchase with a peace of thoughts.
Who ought to use Planner Bee?
Should you already handle your personal insurance coverage insurance policies and also you’re merely in search of quotes and help with out having to take care of an agent arduous promoting you, then you’ll love the Planner Bee expertise.
You get full management over your personal shopping for expertise with out the affect of any agent bias, but nonetheless have entry to ask the Planner Bee crew if you have to make clear any phrases or considerations on the insurance policies you’re analyzing.
Apart from its trendy digital insurance coverage planning interface for customers, a core good thing about Planner Bee is that it presents entry to over 500 insurance coverage merchandise throughout 29 insurers.
That is arduous – or near inconceivable – for many brokers or businesses to duplicate. It’s a well-known reality which you could solely get Prudential insurance policies from a Prudential agent, as an illustration, which is why most on-line comparability portals or aggregators are usually not in a position to pull quotes for you from a model with solely tied brokers both.
No tied agent or unbiased monetary advisory group has entry to that many, nor can a single human go for adequate product coaching on to grow to be an professional in so many various merchandise. That’s the reason Planner Bee pulls from the power of their crew as one, with completely different individuals specialising in their very own strengths, model(s) or product portfolio. They mix the information and expertise to information the know-how interface and quotations, however the licensed advisor is just assigned on the finish after the buyer has determined which product or insurer they want to go along with.
So for those who’re snug with utilizing on-line instruments and wish to save effort and time evaluating insurance policies from varied insurers, the app presents a seamless method so that you can handle your well being and life insurance coverage wants – not only for your self, however to your total household.
You need to use their insurance coverage wants calculator or the cell app to analyse your current protection:
However whereas savvy insurance coverage consumers will discover the app and instruments helpful, Planner Bee shall be much less appropriate for people who find themselves clueless on their insurance coverage wants, or for those who’re uncertain on even the kind and performance that every insurance coverage coverage performs in our life.
In such a state of affairs, you’ll most likely be higher off with an in-person session with an insurance coverage agent, who can sit down to teach you and advise you based mostly on their suggestions.
Sponsored Message from Planner Bee:
How one can purchase insurance coverage by way of Planner Bee
One of the best ways to make use of Planner Bee could be to gauge your personal monetary wants first and examine to see which coverage’s advantages would serve you greatest.
Then, get a personalised quote by way of their on-line type which you’ll obtain by way of electronic mail.
Should you want, you could request for an obligation-free session on-line or by way of a telephone name to run by way of the completely different choices.
When you’ve determined in your selection of plan, you may apply for a scheduled name to undergo any questions you will have and e-sign the digital types to use for the insurance policies that you just want.
As soon as your plan is permitted, you’re going to get a affirmation from the Planner Bee crew by way of electronic mail and WhatsApp.
Within the occasion that you have to make any claims, you may merely attain out to the identical WhatsApp quantity or electronic mail to your comfort, and their devoted customer support crew will help you together with your claims or servicing issues.
Take a look at Planner Bee for your self right here.
To get a reduction, quote DISCOUNTPLEASE to get the next presents:
- Built-in Protect plans: $50 cashback to your first 12 months premium
- Time period Life plans: 15% low cost in your first 12 months premium
- Entire Life plans: 10% low cost in your first 12 months premium
Reductions legitimate inside the subsequent 12 months.
Disclosure: This submit was written in partnership with Planner Bee Pte Ltd.
