Hi, Mr. Tan,
I have two whole life which I bought in 1994 and 1995. I am now a pensioner. Should I continue with the policies? I wish to convert them into a life annuity, but I was told that it is not possible. The return from buying insurance is not very encouraging as the returns have been revised downwards in the past years.
REPLY:
You can ask the insurance company to quote the cash value of each policy as follows:
a) if you terminate the policy now
b) if you terminate the policy in 5 years time
c) premium payable for the next 5 years
d) if you temrinate the policy in 10 years time
e) premium payable for the next 10 years
You can make a better decision when these figures are available. You can show me the figures and we can decide together on which option is best for you.
Read this FAQ:
http://www.tankinlian.com/faq/exist.html
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
American Humour
Humour #1
The people who don't like Hillary Clinton said, "We don't want Hill and Bill back into the White House".
Humour #2
During the days of the Cold War, an American told a Russian, "In America, we have free speech. I can go to the White House and tell President Johnson - President, I don't like the way that you are running America".
The Russian said, "I can do the same in Russia".
American was surprised. "You mean you can go into the Kremlin and said the same to President Breshnez?"
Russian replied, "Of course, I can go into the Kremlin and tell President Breshnev - Comrade President, I don't like the way that President Johnson is running America!"
The people who don't like Hillary Clinton said, "We don't want Hill and Bill back into the White House".
Humour #2
During the days of the Cold War, an American told a Russian, "In America, we have free speech. I can go to the White House and tell President Johnson - President, I don't like the way that you are running America".
The Russian said, "I can do the same in Russia".
American was surprised. "You mean you can go into the Kremlin and said the same to President Breshnez?"
Russian replied, "Of course, I can go into the Kremlin and tell President Breshnev - Comrade President, I don't like the way that President Johnson is running America!"
Primary election in the USA
I am watching the primary election in the USA with great interest.
1. It is interesting to see how the Americans select their candidate for the Presidential election in November. It reflects democracy at its best.
2. Will America select, for the very first time, a woman President or a black President? Or will the Republicans (white, male candidate) win again?
1. It is interesting to see how the Americans select their candidate for the Presidential election in November. It reflects democracy at its best.
2. Will America select, for the very first time, a woman President or a black President? Or will the Republicans (white, male candidate) win again?
Mortality charge under a ILP
Dear Mr. Tan,
I have $300,000 coverage under an investment-linked plan. The mortality charges are about the same as for a Term insurance policy from the same company. Should I continue with the coverage under this policy?
Reply:
You can ask for a quotation on Term insurance (based on your current age and remaining duration) from a few other companies and compare it with the mortality charge that your current policy.
If the difference in premium is quite small, you should continue with the coverage under your policy. If the difference is large, then you can consider making a switch.
Read this FAQ:
http://www.tankinlian.com/faq/termd.html
I have $300,000 coverage under an investment-linked plan. The mortality charges are about the same as for a Term insurance policy from the same company. Should I continue with the coverage under this policy?
Reply:
You can ask for a quotation on Term insurance (based on your current age and remaining duration) from a few other companies and compare it with the mortality charge that your current policy.
If the difference in premium is quite small, you should continue with the coverage under your policy. If the difference is large, then you can consider making a switch.
Read this FAQ:
http://www.tankinlian.com/faq/termd.html
Insurance for a child born premature
Dear Mr. Tan,
Do I really need whole life policy for my three year old son who was born premature?
Most insurance company hesitate to take his insurance proposal. Company X offered a whole life policy with premium paid for 20 years. I am concerned that in future, he may have problem getting policy on his own, due to his past history. I know that based on insurance needs, he only needs medical coverage now.
Reply:
My understanding is that the highest risk for a premature baby is during the first month and there is a smaller risk during the first year. After one year, the risk should be quite small.
There is no need to insure your son now. When he becomes an adult, he should be able to get life insurance on his own. By that time, I hope that he will buy Term insurance and invest the difference in a low cost fund.
It may be a good idea for you to make additional savings for him. Invest in a low cost equity fund for the next 20 years. It can accumulate to a large amount of savings (compared to the whole life policy).
Do I really need whole life policy for my three year old son who was born premature?
Most insurance company hesitate to take his insurance proposal. Company X offered a whole life policy with premium paid for 20 years. I am concerned that in future, he may have problem getting policy on his own, due to his past history. I know that based on insurance needs, he only needs medical coverage now.
Reply:
My understanding is that the highest risk for a premature baby is during the first month and there is a smaller risk during the first year. After one year, the risk should be quite small.
There is no need to insure your son now. When he becomes an adult, he should be able to get life insurance on his own. By that time, I hope that he will buy Term insurance and invest the difference in a low cost fund.
It may be a good idea for you to make additional savings for him. Invest in a low cost equity fund for the next 20 years. It can accumulate to a large amount of savings (compared to the whole life policy).
Premature birth
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Premature birth is the birth of a baby before the standard period of pregnancy is completed. In most systems of human pregnancy, prematurity is considered to occur when the baby is born sooner than 37 weeks after the beginning of the last menstrual period (LMP).
Approximately 12 percent of babies in the United States are born prematurely each year.
The shorter the term of pregnancy, the greater the risks of complications. Infants born prematurely have an increased risk of death in the first year of life (infant mortality), with most of that occurring in the first month of life (neonatal mortality).
Prematurely born infants are also at greater risk for developing serious health problems such as cerebral palsy, chronic lung disease, gastrointestinal problems, mental retardation, vision or hearing loss and are more susceptible to developing depression as teenagers.
In developed countries premature infants are usually cared for in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).
Some of the complications related to prematurity are not apparent until years after the birth. For example, children who were born prematurely have a higher likelihood of having behavioral problems, delays in motor development, and difficulties in school. Specifically these problems can be described as being within the executive domain and have been speculated to arise due to decreased myelinization of the frontal lobes. Throughout life they are more likely to require services provided by physical therapists, occupational therapists, or speech therapists.
For more details, read:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Premature_birth
Premature birth is the birth of a baby before the standard period of pregnancy is completed. In most systems of human pregnancy, prematurity is considered to occur when the baby is born sooner than 37 weeks after the beginning of the last menstrual period (LMP).
Approximately 12 percent of babies in the United States are born prematurely each year.
The shorter the term of pregnancy, the greater the risks of complications. Infants born prematurely have an increased risk of death in the first year of life (infant mortality), with most of that occurring in the first month of life (neonatal mortality).
Prematurely born infants are also at greater risk for developing serious health problems such as cerebral palsy, chronic lung disease, gastrointestinal problems, mental retardation, vision or hearing loss and are more susceptible to developing depression as teenagers.
In developed countries premature infants are usually cared for in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).
Some of the complications related to prematurity are not apparent until years after the birth. For example, children who were born prematurely have a higher likelihood of having behavioral problems, delays in motor development, and difficulties in school. Specifically these problems can be described as being within the executive domain and have been speculated to arise due to decreased myelinization of the frontal lobes. Throughout life they are more likely to require services provided by physical therapists, occupational therapists, or speech therapists.
For more details, read:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Premature_birth
Congenital disorder
Most health insurance excludes congenital disorder. What is a congenital disorder? Here is a description from Wikipedia.
A congenital disorder is any medical condition that is present at birth. However, a congenital disorder can be recognized before birth (prenatally), at birth, years later, or never.
The term congenital does not imply or exclude a genetic cause. Congenital disorders can be a result of genetic abnormalities, the intrauterine environment, a mixture of both, errors of morphogenesis, or unknown factors.
Congenital conditions can be referred to as diseases, defects, disorders, anomalies, or simply genetic differences or uncomfortable. The usage overlaps, but also involves a value judgement as to the harmfulness of the condition. In particular, people may disagree as to whether a specific physical anomaly should be considered a birth defect or a normal variation.
A congenital disorder can have trivial or grave consequences. The most severe, such as anencephaly, are incompatible with life. Others, such as congenital tumors, vary from causing stillbirth to requiring fetal intervention or special delivery procedures such as the EXIT procedure, to needing surgery in the neonatal period.
The most common congenital tumor is teratoma. Congenital physical anomalies (birth defects) are a leading cause of death in early infancy, accounting for the deaths of nearly 2 out every 1000 infants in the United States.
"Congenital disorders" is a broad category that includes a variety of conditions. Congenital disorders include minor physical anomalies (e.g., a birthmark), severe malformations of single systems (e.g., congenital heart disease or dysmelia), and combinations of abnormalities affecting several parts of the body. Congenital defects of metabolism are also considered congenital disorders.
For more details:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congenital
A congenital disorder is any medical condition that is present at birth. However, a congenital disorder can be recognized before birth (prenatally), at birth, years later, or never.
The term congenital does not imply or exclude a genetic cause. Congenital disorders can be a result of genetic abnormalities, the intrauterine environment, a mixture of both, errors of morphogenesis, or unknown factors.
Congenital conditions can be referred to as diseases, defects, disorders, anomalies, or simply genetic differences or uncomfortable. The usage overlaps, but also involves a value judgement as to the harmfulness of the condition. In particular, people may disagree as to whether a specific physical anomaly should be considered a birth defect or a normal variation.
A congenital disorder can have trivial or grave consequences. The most severe, such as anencephaly, are incompatible with life. Others, such as congenital tumors, vary from causing stillbirth to requiring fetal intervention or special delivery procedures such as the EXIT procedure, to needing surgery in the neonatal period.
The most common congenital tumor is teratoma. Congenital physical anomalies (birth defects) are a leading cause of death in early infancy, accounting for the deaths of nearly 2 out every 1000 infants in the United States.
"Congenital disorders" is a broad category that includes a variety of conditions. Congenital disorders include minor physical anomalies (e.g., a birthmark), severe malformations of single systems (e.g., congenital heart disease or dysmelia), and combinations of abnormalities affecting several parts of the body. Congenital defects of metabolism are also considered congenital disorders.
For more details:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congenital
Improve the Singapore MRT system
I am impressed with the following features of the Taipei MRT system:
a) Good signage
b) Helpful staff
c) Short waiting time
d) Easy to get a seat, even during busy hours
These are conditions that are easy for Singapore MRT to achieve, even though the system is older. What cannot be done through hardware can be achieved through software.
What is needed to get the Singapore system to be less crowded?
Operate more trains. The waiting time for trains during off-peak period is now between 5 to 8 minutes. If the waiting time is reduced by 1 or 2 minutes, the capacity can be increased by 25%. This will impose a small increase in operating cost but a big reduction in waiting time and 25% more people can have a seat.
I accept that during peak hours, our MRT trains are already operating at full capacity. But, we can make the system more comfortable during the off-peak hours, like in Taipei.
a) Good signage
b) Helpful staff
c) Short waiting time
d) Easy to get a seat, even during busy hours
These are conditions that are easy for Singapore MRT to achieve, even though the system is older. What cannot be done through hardware can be achieved through software.
What is needed to get the Singapore system to be less crowded?
Operate more trains. The waiting time for trains during off-peak period is now between 5 to 8 minutes. If the waiting time is reduced by 1 or 2 minutes, the capacity can be increased by 25%. This will impose a small increase in operating cost but a big reduction in waiting time and 25% more people can have a seat.
I accept that during peak hours, our MRT trains are already operating at full capacity. But, we can make the system more comfortable during the off-peak hours, like in Taipei.
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