Public talk by Dr. Jacques Attali

On the 13^th of January 2011 we are organising a ‘Public Talk’ by the French economist and writer Jacques Attali, one of the top 100 public intellectuals of the world.

This event is co-organised with the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS).

Singapore Foreign Minister Mr George Yeo will be present in this event to introduce Dr Attali.

This will be an open session where people from different walks of life living in Singapore would get an opportunity to interact with Dr Attali.

The topic for discussion: “Is The Global Economy Still In Crisis?”

The venue of the event is the Ballroom, Raffles Hotel (13^th January, Thursday, 10.00 am to 12.00 noon)

register on our website at www.asef.org 

Practical Guide on Financial Planning - case study

Here is a case study of a person who has read the book, Practical Guide on Financial Planning, and has a few follow up questions on how to apply the principles in the book.

Ask Mr. Tan

By reading the book and considering how to apply the principles, the consumer is able to have a good understanding of the subject and make the right financial decisions, with confidence. The book can be purchased here.

Standard of postal service

The standard of postal services seemed to have deteriorated. Some citizens have complained in the past, that Sing Post is now engaging in too many business activities, in the quest to boost their profits, that they are neglecting their core functions.

Read about the recent incidents of poor service in SGEP.

Blatant cheating (3)

An unwary consumer was cheated by an insurance agent into buying an investment linked policy (ILP) with an annual premium of $40,000. She thought that she was investing $40,000 in a unit trust. The agent assured her that she would get a better return.

She did not know that the annual premium ILP would take away more than 1 year of her savings. She was not given the benefit illustration and did not receive the policy document. The half yearly statement showed by the insurance company indicated the fund value to be quite close the the invested sum, but the surrender value to be only 10% of the fund value. She did not understand what the surrender value meant.

When she asked the agent for explanation about what was happening to her investment, she received vague and evasive answers.

MAS relied on the board of directors and top management of insurance companies to have a process to govern the behavior of their insurance agents. It is not clear about what is required to be done.  Surely, if someone buys an ILP with an annual premium of $40,000 and the insurance agent (and agency manager) is likely to earn more tan $40,000 in commission, an enquiry should be carried out to make sure that the customer is aware about the surrender charge?

If this is not happening, what is the MAS requirement for? Is it just to appear good? Is MAS interested to know the details of this case? Will their official, who is monitoring my blog, contact me?

Tan Kin Lian

Comparing whole life and term insurance

Lorna Tan (Sunday Times Money Page) gave a bad comparison of whole life and term insurance. The whole life policy insuring $500,000 cost nearly $11,000. She said that the term insurance policy (insuring up to age 99) cost $3,300. This is the line of reasoning used by insurance agents, and in a dishonest manner, to get people to buy whole life insurance.

The proper comparison is a 25 year term insurance policy, where the annual premium is $800. The balance of $10,000 can be invested in an indexed fund to earn 4% or more over the next 30 years. It will produce an accumulated savings of more than $500,000. By that time, there is no need for life insurance - as the accumulated savings is more than the sum assured!

By buying a whole life policy, the consumer will have a cash value that is 40% to 50% less than the accumulated savings. Why give so much of the savings away in a whole life policy?

Tan Kin Lian

Courts charged 36% on installment payments

Some time ago, I saw an advertisement by Courts about the cash price and the installment price of their products. They used a standard formula. The interest rate embedded in the installment price is 36% per annum.

Consumers may not be aware about the high interest rate that they have to pay for installment payments.  They should consider saving the money and paying for their purchase in cash, to reduce their cost by 36%.

I do not know if Courts is still charging this high interest rate now. I shall check when they next have their advertisements in the newspapers.

Tan Kin Lian

Computer buyers sent on a wild goose chase

Monica Lau wrote in the Straits Times about an advertisement by Courts Bukit Timah offering a Dell notebook from $399. After taking the trouble, "braving the rain" to be at the store, she found that there was no such offer. The only Dell notebook was being sold at $999.

Was this a misleading advertisement? Are there anybody who takes action to address these complaints? Is this another example of the "buyer beware" culture?