Health insurance scheme launched

Dow University of Health Sciences (DUHS) launched the Health Insurance Scheme from July 15, 2008 for its faculty members and employees in agreement with the New Jubilee Insurance (NJI).

Addressing to the ceremony, Professor, Masood Hameed Khan, Vice Chancellor, DUHS, said that the University employees including their spouses and children are covered for treatment if they get hospitalised.

The employees will be issued a Health Insurance Card from NJI containing the employee’s name and family details. They would have to produce this card at the time of admission in the hospital, he added.

According to him, an employee who fails to fill the form will have to contact the concerned department at the DUHS.

The representative from NJI Company also addressed the faculty members and employees of DUHS. He explained the working details of the insurance policy to the audience.

The Vice Chancellor, along with Tahir Ahmed, Managing Director, NJI, distributed the health insurance cards to the departmental heads of 25 institutions working under the DUHS, Karachi.

news source : http://www.thenews.com.pk/

CATHAY LIFE INSURANCE OPENS IN VIETNAM

Cathay Life Insurance formally entered the local life insurance market yesterday with a total investment capital of US$60 million. Cathay Life, a subsidiary of the Cathay Financial Holdings Group (TAIEX:2882) of Taiwan, officially obtained its business licence in Vietnam in December 2007, and plans to maintain offices in both Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

Cathay will provide insurance products for customers such as life, accident, annuity, health and risk-linked investments.

news source : http://www.tradingmarkets.com/

ING receives approval to start life insurance in Ukraine

ING announced today that is has received approval from the relevant authorities to start life insurance operations in the Ukraine. This will allow ING to enter the fast growing life insurance market in a country with over 46 million inhabitants and a rapidly growing middle class. ING considers Ukraine to be an attractive emerging market, with strong growth indicators and a huge potential.

Jacques de Vaucleroy, member of the Executive Board of ING Group, responsible for Insurance Europe said: "Starting this life insurance greenfield is in line with ING's sharpened strategic focus on banking, investments, life insurance and retirement services. Our aim is to build a leading position in the fast growing Ukrainian life insurance market. I am confident that by utilizing our experience in setting up successful operations in other countries in Central and Eastern Europe we will be able to make a swift and efficient start."

ING expects to launch its activities in the first half of 2009. The head office of the new life insurance company will be located in Kiev and will be headed by Veronika Korolev as Chief Executive Officer. ING has been present in the Ukrainian market since 1994 and offers leasing and wholesale banking services. Last month ING started with the rollout of a retail banking network, aiming to become one of the top 5 retail banks in Ukraine by expanding to a nationwide distribution network of over 250 outlets.

news source : http://www.euronext.com/

Term life insurance is the low-cost best bet for most people

Q I'm a married homeowner in my late 20s, contemplating life insurance. We want to make sure that if something happens to one of us the other would have some time to figure things out instead of selling the house and moving back in with parents. What do you recommend -- the more expensive comprehensive lifeinsurance that we can take money out of later or term insurance?

MELISSA

A There's really only one reason to buy life insurance: To financially protect loved ones from an untimely death. Some insurance agents will try to sell you a policy as a way to save for retirement or for children's college education. Forget it. The financial world offers far better and cheaper ways to salt away long-term savings, such as a 401(k), a Roth IRA or a 529 college savings plan.

I'm a big fan of term life insurance for most people, especially in circumstances such as yours. Term is a pure death benefit. Premiums are cheap if you're in good health, although the cost of the policy increases as you get older. It's a simple product and it allows for comparison shopping. You'll want a low-cost, plain-vanilla policy from a blue chip, financially stronginsurance company.

Permanent or "cash value" insurance comes with a tax-sheltered savings component, as well as life insurance. The investment returns are difficult to analyze. Types of policies include whole life, universal life, variable life and variable-universal. In general, these policies are expensive, with steep fees and commissions. Cash value insurance makes sense for some people, but for most of us, term is the way to go.

news source : http://www.startribune.com/

Survey: Health insurance, fuel costs among top small biz burdens

The rising cost of health insurance, fuel and energy and inflation are the top worries among small business owners, according to a survey done every four years by the National Federation of Independent Business and Wells Fargo.

The new Small Business Problems and Priorities survey shows 42.3 percent of American small business owners rank the cost of natural gas, propane, gasoline, diesel and fuel oil as a "critical" concern. That's up from 26.1 percent on the previous survey conducted in 2004. Both surveys rank the cost of health insurance as the No. 1 issue facing small business owners.

Half of the top 10 problems worrying small business owners deal with costs, with the price of health insurance continuing its 20-year reign as the number one problem for small business owners. More than 56 percent say it is a "critical problem." Other cost issues in the top 10 include fuels and electricity, supplies, inventories and worker's compensation insurance.

The remaining top 10 problems relate to taxes -- federal taxes on business income, property tax (real, inventory or personal property), tax complexity and state taxes on business income. Tax complexity, a new problem on this year's survey, ranks fifth on the survey and is a "critical" problem for 23 percent of business owners.

"For four years, the economy provided a good, stable foundation for small business owners to do business, but as it started to take a negative turn over the last several months, they felt the effects of rising costs of doing business as reflected by these results," said Bruce D. Phillips, senior fellow at the NFIB Research Foundation and co-author of the report. "As the economic outcome remains uncertain, small business owners are searching for innovative ways to reduce expenses and increase sales."

The survey results are based on 3,530 small business owner responses to a mail survey circulated in the first three months of this year.

news source : http://www.bizjournals.com/

India could repeat the telecom success in insurance: Kidwai

Bangalore (PTI): India had the potential of repeating the success witnessed in the telecom sector in the insurance sector as well, Naina Lal Kidwai, Group General Manager and Country Head, India, HSBC, said on Monday. India had among the least insurance penetration in the world, especially in the rural sector, which indicated the vast potential that the country held in this field,she said on the sidelines of the launch of the Canara HSBC Oriental Bank of Commerce LifeInsurance Company.

The steps taken by the telecom industry helped in transforming the story in India, she said adding "we must see the success witnessed in the Telecom industry repeated in theinsurance sector", she said. Welcoming the entry of more players in the insurance sector, she said this would only enhance competition thereby improving quality of service."Both the customers and players would benefit from competition", she said. The entry of more players had helped to grow the market. There has been no shrinking scale", she said. "Everyone is growing", she observed.

Health insurance products was one of the potential areas that could be developed. Nearly 60 percent of household savings in India go to meet health related issues. The new company currently would offer standard products, but the market for health products would be examined, she added. She said unlike other countries, India did not have a social welfare scheme in place to care of the aged. Hence the importance of healthinsurance could not be undermined.

news source : http://www.hindu.com/

Insurance - Homeowners begin to opt out for life insurance as the credit crunch hits

According to broker, My Mortgage Direct, borrowers are trying to hold onto their cash by abandoning their life insurance cover. Concerns arise as only 20% of new borrowers are taking out a life insurance policy to protect their mortgage while others sacrifice the insurance cover as a means to save more. As the credit crunch continues, people will need to reduce their outgoings cutting back on luxuries and non-essential goods. Research conducted by Prudential reveals that one in ten people would give up their life insurance policy due to personal budgets. My Mortgage Direct believes that life insurance cover is regarded as non-essentials by borrowers as it acts as an easy target.

Cath Hearnden of Mortgage Direct highlights the importance of life insurance and warns that passing up life insurance cover is a false economy. She said, “Considering the huge financial commitment of a mortgage and what it represents to borrowers lives, trying to save a few pounds by going without life cover is a big mistake.” Although it may be difficult to make ends meet in the current financial status, Hearnden added that it will be significantly harder for one to manage mortgage repayments should their partner die. She assured that premiums have in fact been revised and life insurance is not an expensive commitment. My Mortgage Direct encourages people to take out life insurance instead of opting out and insists that cover can now cost less than what borrowers may think.

news source : http://www.onlyfinance.com/