From Indra Nooyi to Hima Das, every day we are inspired by women who standup for themselves and their beliefs as they chase their dreams. The success journey of all such women is becoming an inspiration for millions of women out there. From women in sports to women in tech, there is an increase in number of women leading the country to victory. In fact, today women are financially empowered and are at par with men in all spheres of life.
With the high cost of living and expanding human needs, women have always been sharing the financial responsibilities of the households with their husbands. But can a woman's financial independence be accounted for the same as their financial security?
When it comes to finances, most women are now like to think about long-term and worry about saving money for their future needs. This attitude, to a larger extent, has made an impact towards growth in buying life insurance as well. Right from handling day to day expenses to taking care of family's financial future, a woman manages it all. Lately, there has been an upright increase in the number of woman life insurance advisors and buyers. Considering the rising number of buying life cover products, Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), for the first time took note of their contribution to this industry in the latest annual report of 2017-18 and as per the data, woman account 48% of the total population and of all the policies purchased, 32% were bought by women.
Whether or not hold down a full time paying job, many women are contributing to the economy for the well-being of their family in important ways – from taking care of household to acting as the primary care for children and aging parents. But considering the current lifestyle, it is now quite easy for one to get diagnosed with a serious illness, any sudden accident or even die. This can play a major role in losing your income and even putting your family in financial crunch. And for the same reason, for a lot of women, specially working women, life insurance is now becoming an indispensable part of their financial portfolio to make sure the future of their family is protected, in case something happens to them.
Under ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Plan, the insured can take health cover against 34 critical illness by just paying little extra premium for the riders. This plan is best suited for women, as in India women suffer from lifestyle related diseases which often turn into critical illness. Under the plan HDFC Life Insurance – 3D Plus Life Option, at affordable premium one has the flexibility of choosing 9 different coverage options. Depending on the specific coverage requirements, a woman can get coverage on various aspects such as critical illnesses, waiver of premium in case of any disability and additional sum assured on death due to an accident. By option for these options, a woman can easily protect herself and her family in case of any financial emergency.
Apart from protection, women nowadays are also concerned about creating wealth for the long term and are planning for their retirement goals. There are new age 4G ULIPs in the market, primarily focus on retirement solutions for the customer. These plans are convenient, transparent and cost effective. Not only this, women are becoming financially independent and hence are investing more money for their own self. They also have specific goals in mind such as buying a property or even begin a small business in future. One can invest in life insurance policy – ULIP that will mature around the time horizon to achieve these goals. Investment oriented life insurance policies can offer you the benefits of protection, savings and even give you tax benefits.
The writer is chief business officer, life insurance, Policybazaar.com