I met many senior insurance managers at an Asean Insurance Conference in Vientiane, Laos.
One participant, who is a CEO, told me that he advised his friends and family members to buy Term insurance for the insurance cover. He advised them to avoid insurance products as investments, as they get a poor return.
He wished that it was possible for his company to sell better value products, but after providing for the high commission to the agents, this was not possible. He was not able to develop a new sales channel to replace the agents.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Earn an income by selling my puzzle books
A few people are able to earn a good income by selling my puzzle books. Details of my books are found here. They sell the books by teaching people how to solve the puzzles. If you are interested to try, send an e-mail to kinlian@gmail.com. The unsold books can be returned for a full refund.
Fair Dealing Outcome for Customers
I wish to post this article as a reminder to MAS and the financial institutions that they have the responsibility to ensure fair dealing outcome for customers. These should not be just hollow words, but should be pursued with conviction.
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MAS calls on banks, finance companies to lead in fair dealing
Thu, Feb 21, 2008
The Straits Times
THE MONETARY Authority of Singapore (MAS) has called on the board and senior management of firms from the banking, insurance and capital market sectors to lead their companies to improve the level of service offered by their representatives.
MAS issued a consultation paper on Thursday, stressing the responsibility of such top-level individuals, and also asking them to review their business operations to deliver what the authority calls 'fair dealing outcomes' to retail consumers. MAS has issued five 'fair dealing outcomes'.
One such fair dealing outcome is that consumers have confidence that the financial institutions put consumers' interests first in the conduct of their business.
MAS encourages financial advisory industry assocations to actively promote fair dealing outcomes among member firms.
Interested parties can provide feedback on the guidelines, which are available on the MAS website.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Battle of PayTV Operators
SingTel has announced attractive packages for the football channels that are lower than the current packages offered by Starhub. But it does not solve the underlying probelm.
The two PayTV operators (i.e. SingTel and Starhub) cannot expect consumers to have two set top boxes (even if they are provided free) and two sets of wiring in the home. It is also inconvenient to switch between set top boxes.
I suggest that the Media Development Authority should intervene in in the interest of efficiency, reduce waste, and looking after the interest of consumers and introduce the following measures:
a) Allow the customer to choose a delivery channel, i.e. SingTel or Starhub
b) Require the delivery channel to carry the third party content channels at their content rates plus an additional charge (which should be regulated).
For example, an existing consumer with Starhub as the delivery channel should be allowed to watch the football channels at a regulated rate, which could be the same rate charged by SingTel plus an additional charge.
Tan Kin Lian
The two PayTV operators (i.e. SingTel and Starhub) cannot expect consumers to have two set top boxes (even if they are provided free) and two sets of wiring in the home. It is also inconvenient to switch between set top boxes.
I suggest that the Media Development Authority should intervene in in the interest of efficiency, reduce waste, and looking after the interest of consumers and introduce the following measures:
a) Allow the customer to choose a delivery channel, i.e. SingTel or Starhub
b) Require the delivery channel to carry the third party content channels at their content rates plus an additional charge (which should be regulated).
For example, an existing consumer with Starhub as the delivery channel should be allowed to watch the football channels at a regulated rate, which could be the same rate charged by SingTel plus an additional charge.
Tan Kin Lian
Reduce unemployment
Shin Min and Sunday Times have covered my suggestion, posted in this blog, to promote flexible work by paying an hourly rate (instead of a monthly salary)
The key thrust of my proposal is to create employment for school leavers and for people who lose their jobs due to restructuring and other reasons beyond their control.
If a company employs 1,000 people working 40 hours a week, they can employ an additional 100 people, if each person works 36 hours a week. A person working less hours will earn less based on the hourly rate, but at least more people can be employed. This is fairer than having 10% of the people being jobless.
Working 36 hours a week means more time for the family, for hobbies, for continuing education and for leisure. Those who wish to have a supplementary income can continue to have part time work, e.g. provide tuition or other service. It diversifies their sources of income, and will not affect them badly if they should get retrenched.
Under the hourly rate system, there is no need for people to work longer hours, without overtime pay, just to impress the employer and keep their full time job.
There is a need to ensure that the hourly rate of pay provides long term security for employees. I shall address this point in a separate article.
Tan Kin Lian
The key thrust of my proposal is to create employment for school leavers and for people who lose their jobs due to restructuring and other reasons beyond their control.
If a company employs 1,000 people working 40 hours a week, they can employ an additional 100 people, if each person works 36 hours a week. A person working less hours will earn less based on the hourly rate, but at least more people can be employed. This is fairer than having 10% of the people being jobless.
Working 36 hours a week means more time for the family, for hobbies, for continuing education and for leisure. Those who wish to have a supplementary income can continue to have part time work, e.g. provide tuition or other service. It diversifies their sources of income, and will not affect them badly if they should get retrenched.
Under the hourly rate system, there is no need for people to work longer hours, without overtime pay, just to impress the employer and keep their full time job.
There is a need to ensure that the hourly rate of pay provides long term security for employees. I shall address this point in a separate article.
Tan Kin Lian
RED Portal (18) - Do your research
My friend bought a cluster house at an attractive price recently. The market price has since moved up.
She was able to get the good price due to the time that was spent in carrying out research. She looked at the comparable price for landed property in the target vicinity. When the opportunity comes, she and her husband was able to make a decision quite quickly.
Apart from getting a good price, the cluster house is suitable for their needs, considering the workplace of the spouses, future schools for their children, and their lifestyle needs.
For people who are spending more than $1 million for a private house or condominium, it is important to carry out the research early and study the market for a few months.
Do not act when a property agent bring an offer to you and tell you that it is a good offer. The agent probably tells the same story to many other potential buyers, who have rejected the offer.
To carry out your research, you can study the property websites in Singapore. Look for actual transactions, rather than the properties that are listed for sale (as they are likely to be inflated).
I have created the RED Portal to offer this information to potential buyers. It is also useful for sellers to get to know the market, so that they do not underprice their property. Please tell your friend about the RED Portal.
Tan Kin Lian
She was able to get the good price due to the time that was spent in carrying out research. She looked at the comparable price for landed property in the target vicinity. When the opportunity comes, she and her husband was able to make a decision quite quickly.
Apart from getting a good price, the cluster house is suitable for their needs, considering the workplace of the spouses, future schools for their children, and their lifestyle needs.
For people who are spending more than $1 million for a private house or condominium, it is important to carry out the research early and study the market for a few months.
Do not act when a property agent bring an offer to you and tell you that it is a good offer. The agent probably tells the same story to many other potential buyers, who have rejected the offer.
To carry out your research, you can study the property websites in Singapore. Look for actual transactions, rather than the properties that are listed for sale (as they are likely to be inflated).
I have created the RED Portal to offer this information to potential buyers. It is also useful for sellers to get to know the market, so that they do not underprice their property. Please tell your friend about the RED Portal.
Tan Kin Lian
Pay the right price for insurance
If you are offered an insurance product and there is no comparable products to compare the cost quoted to you, you can take the following approach:
a) Ask the adviser to get the insurer to disclose the claim to premium ratio for the product
b) If the ratio is 60% or higher, the product is fairly priced
In the competitive product for motor and health insurance, the claim ratio is usually 70% or higher. However, some health insurance products have a claim ratio less than 50%, as they are designed to make it difficult for customers to compare the price.
The insurer is able to disclose this information based on the past claim experience for that product. For a new product, they can state the assumptions used in the calculation. Ask for the information to be stated in writing.
If the insurer refuses to disclose the information, you should not buy the product - as the product is likely to be highly priced to generate a high profit margin.
This approach applies for an insurance product that offers pure protection, i.e. without any savings.
In the case of a savings product, a good method is to calculate the reduction in yield. If the reduction is 1% or lower, it is fairly priced. The cost of insurance can be computed separately. If the reduction is higher than 1%, the product is not fairly priced and should be avoided.
Tan Kin Lian
a) Ask the adviser to get the insurer to disclose the claim to premium ratio for the product
b) If the ratio is 60% or higher, the product is fairly priced
In the competitive product for motor and health insurance, the claim ratio is usually 70% or higher. However, some health insurance products have a claim ratio less than 50%, as they are designed to make it difficult for customers to compare the price.
The insurer is able to disclose this information based on the past claim experience for that product. For a new product, they can state the assumptions used in the calculation. Ask for the information to be stated in writing.
If the insurer refuses to disclose the information, you should not buy the product - as the product is likely to be highly priced to generate a high profit margin.
This approach applies for an insurance product that offers pure protection, i.e. without any savings.
In the case of a savings product, a good method is to calculate the reduction in yield. If the reduction is 1% or lower, it is fairly priced. The cost of insurance can be computed separately. If the reduction is higher than 1%, the product is not fairly priced and should be avoided.
Tan Kin Lian
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