The coronavirus [COVID-19] outbreak might have created panic in your minds about your term insurance policies. Although the pandemic scenario might be intense, you should not fret about the life cover under your respective term insurance plans. As per experts, the current insurance policies can cover the coronavirus cases until and unless specifically excluded. If you wish to file a claim for the coronavirus infection, the regular process of hospitalization can be followed.

Before you buy term insurance plans to safeguard your family members from the COVID-19 outbreak, let’s understand the top four reasons that re-emphasize the need for term insurance under such a scenario:

Term insurance can let you pay low premium

Term plans can be one of the most affordable insurance products, especially if you buy it directly from your insurer’s online portal. When a term policy is bought online, you can avail the benefits of a low cost. Since the online term insurance plans might not involve any commission and external charges, you can qualify to make a low premium payment.

Another way to pay minimal term insurance premiums can be to buy term insurance at a young age. Since you might be physically fit at a young age, your insurer can provide you with a low premium amount. In simple terms, the fitter the health, the lower the premium.

Term insurance can offer tax benefits

Although a term policy offers tax benefits, you should not base the purchase decision on it. It can offer tax exemptions on the term insurance premium as well as maturity proceeds based on Section 80C and Section 10(10D) of the Income Tax Act, 1961. Let’s take a look at each of the available tax benefits under term insurance plans:

1. Section 80C

Premiums should be paid regularly to ensure the continuous flow of a life cover. As a policyholder, you can qualify to claim a deduction up to Rs. 1, 50,000 on your taxable income.

2. Section 10 (10D)

After the maturity period, you can receive a tax-free amount in accordance with Section 10(10D).

Term insurance can safeguard your loved ones

The primary reason for the formulation of term insurance plans can be the financial protection of your loved ones. If anything happens to you due to the coronavirus outbreak, your family can receive a financial payout. With the payout, your family members can stay protected financially as well as maintain their current standard of living in your absence even if it arises out of the coronavirus.

While term insurance plans can offer you with a lump sum maturity amount, you can also receive a combination of the lump-sum amount and monthly income. Moreover, your insurer can allow you to increase the term coverage every month to meet your routine needs as well as fulfill your family’s life goals.

Term insurance can allow you to incorporate riders

Term insurance plans can consist of in-built riders that can enhance your base policy at the nominal price. In the case of riders, such as critical illness rider or terminal illness rider, you should satisfy the terms and conditions of the add-ons to receive its benefits. On the other hand, if you opt for a waiver of premium rider, your insurer can waive the premium off if you contract the COVID-19 virus. The selected term policy will not lapse, and life cover continues.

To conclude, term insurance can play a significant role in the financial protection of your loved ones during the on-going pandemic in the country. Before you opt for term coverage, check with your insurer if it includes COVID-19 under the policy. Moreover, go through the terms and conditions carefully of the policy document after the purchase.

Mutual fund investments call for some basic level of financial knowledge and stock market awareness. When you decide to invest in SIP, you need to conduct in-depth research at first. Once you have successfully completed your journey of learning about how to invest in SIP, you’re actually only halfway through.

You can use a SIP Calculator to calculate the returns you would earn on your SIP investments and also tells you how much you would need to invest every month to earn a target corpus.

After investing in your desired SIP mutual fund, it is quite essential to track them from time to time. It’s easy to get confused and overwhelmed with the surplus information about mutual funds available freely on the internet. This holds especially true for new investors who are clueless about where to start.

A regular overview of your mutual fund investment will allow you to determine if your SIP investment has performed as speculated and whether you were able to achieve your financial goals with said investment.

Let’s look at some mandatory public disclosures made by mutual fund houses that offer insight on mutual fund investments:

Daily NAV

NAV stands for Net Asset Value. Every mutual fund house publishes the NAV of all schemes on its website and AMFI’s [Association of Mutual Funds in India] website on a daily basis. To establish the value of the mutual fund investment, you can simply multiply the number of units held with the NAV.

Monthly portfolio

Every month, mutual fund houses are required to publish the portfolio of various schemes. This portfolio consists the list of securities a particular scheme has invested in and the respective weightage. This document is called a fund fact sheet or a fact sheet. These sheets help investors to track their mutual fund investments and remain updated about key data points.

CAS [Consolidated Account Statement]

A CAS is a document that provides an investor the details of his mutual fund investments [SIP statement] in an orderly manner. It contains all information regarding the purchase, sale, and other transactions that take place during a mutual fund’s tenure. An investor can opt for monthly or half-yearly CAS reports.

Key changes to fund

There are times when the key attributes of a mutual fund scheme change. In such situations, an email is usually sent to investors informing them about the same. These changes might have an impact on the scheme’s performance. Hence, it becomes essential to evaluate the scheme.

The Indian capital markets watchdog SEBI [Securities and Exchange Board of India] has made it mandatory for all mutual fund houses to offer an exit option to their investors.

Using mutual fund-tracking websites

You can find a lot about how a mutual fund scheme has fared when you compare them to similar schemes in its peer group. You can find this information on aggregator websites too. You can also upload the investment details and receive a snapshot of the scheme’s performance.

While it is crucial to track your mutual fund investments, it is recommended to consult a fund expert too. An investment advisor could offer you sound advise and simultaneously monitor and review your investments.

Mutual funds offer excellent flexibility to individuals in terms of a variety of asset classes and modes of mutual fund investment. That being said, the former isn’t that challenging if you carefully assess your financial needs and goals.

However, a little overlooked yet equally important aspect of mutual fund investments is choosing the appropriate mode of investment. There are two distinct ways to invest in mutual funds – SIP or Systematic Investment Plan and Lumpsum.

Some questions never die. They keep haunting time to time. One such everlasting issue is SIP vs lumpsum. Which approach is better – investment through SIP or lumpsum? Which will generate higher returns in the future? Let’s understand these two modes of mutual fund investment.

At the outset, there is a difference between the cash flow of the two investment modes. In lump investing, the individual has money on hand to dispense. On the contrary, in the case of SIP investment, the individual might not have money on hand but regular surplus expected in future. Whether one opts for SIP mutual fund or lumpsum depends on whether the person has regular savings or lumpsum amount of liquid money at the moment to invest. You can use a SIP Calculator to calculate the returns you would earn on your SIP investments and also tells you how much you would need to invest every month to earn a target corpus. Before you begin wondering how to invest in SIP, let’s understand the benefits of SIP investments over lumpsum

SIP vs Lumpsum

1. No need to time the market

New investors are often when to enter the market. If you invest a significant amount at a time, there’s a higher probability of losing a substantial portion when the market crashes. However, with SIP investment, your money is spread over time and thus, only a part of your investment will face market volatility and instability.

2. Rupee cost averaging
SIP mutual fund permits you to invest at different levels of the stock market cycle. When the market is low, the fund manager ends up buying more units at less price and can sell when the market is at its peak. This reduces the average cost of buying each unit.

3. Power of compounding
You must be well-versed with the phrase of investing – ‘The longer you hold, the higher benefits you reap’. SIP helps to accumulate substantial wealth over a period of time. Since your returns further earn returns, your money gets multiplied over some time.

4. Instills the habit of investing
Since investing in SIP mutual fund requires an individual to invest a particular amount regularly, it instills a sense of financial discipline and helps you to meet your financial goals.

5. Easy on your pocket
SIP investment debunks one of the most common myths prevailing against mutual fund investment – you need an awful lot of money to invest in mutual funds. In fact, you can invest the money as low as Rs. 100 per month.

Conclusion

SIP or lumpsum depends solely on an individual’s personal goals, investment horizon and risk appetite. Whichever investing mode you decide to choose, make sure to run it through with your mutual fund advisor.

Retirement can be one of the most crucial milestones in your life. Since your primary goal during your active working years can be a stress-free life after retirement, you should begin your retirement planning when you are young.

However, you might think that starting your retirement planning early can be too soon. Early retirement planning can be beneficial to ensure that you live a peaceful period in the future. Additionally, you can achieve these top five things mentioned below with the help of an early retirement plan

You can meet your post-retirement goals

Many of you might have financial responsibilities at a young age due to unfortunate events, such as single parenthood, death of the earning member, and so on. Since you might have to support your family financially, you might sacrifice your dreams, such as traveling, starting a new venture, etc. when you are young.

Under such a scenario, you might aim to fulfill your goals after retirement. If you plan to meet your life goals after you retire, you should start beginning the retirement planning early to accumulate wealth to fund your goals.

You can deal with unannounced medical emergencies

The uncertainties of life can lead to an unannounced emergency at any given point in your life. Usually, there can be unfortunate events, such as critical illness, physical disability, accidental death that can exhaust your life long savings. If you are not prepared financially during such a circumstance, you might end up in a financial turmoil.

Therefore, you should plan your retirement early to ensure you have adequate funds to tackle any kind of an emergency that life throws at you. Moreover, you can pay the hefty hospital bills and cure contracted diseases with sufficient resources.

You can reap the benefits of the power of compounding

Compounding can be an excellent way to earn interests on your returns. The power of compounding can be utilized effectively at an early phase of your life. Since time is an essential factor in your hands at a young age, the impacts of the power of compounding can be significant. For instance, if you invest Rs. 5,000 at 30 years, your retirement corpus can grow to Rs. 75,000 by the time you retire.

You can stay financially independent

After you retire, the flow of your income stops. When you do not have enough resources to meet your financial requirements, such as household expenses, rent payments, utility bills, and so forth, you might be unable to lead a smooth retirement period.

If you do not have adequate resources to meet your routine needs after retirement, you might have to depend on your children. Therefore, plan your retirement early to ensure you are financially independent as well as in the position to meet your financial needs with ease.

You can support your financial dependents

A lot of you might have financial dependents even after you reach your retirement period. For instance, you might either have to provide for your spouse or your children after retirement. If you do have an ample amount of funds to support your dependents, they might suffer financially.

However, an early retirement plan can ensure you generate an enormous corpus for you and your loved ones. Moreover, you can safeguard the future of your financial dependents even in your absence with early retirement planning.

In a nutshell, many of you might be looking forward to retiring early. Today, the retirement age in India might have come down to 45-50 years. The primary reason for early retirement can be to live a high-quality life and achieve your post-retirement goals.

With the right retirement plan, you can fulfill all your life long goals and lead a comfortable future. While planning for retirement early, you should invest in a pension plan with maximum retirement benefits that can bring you a step closer to your dreams.

Every individual requires term insurance plans for the financial well-being of their family. Although term insurance plans can be the simplest insurance product, it can be difficult to make the right choice at the time of purchase. Since there are multiple term options in the market, you might be unable to understand which policy can be suitable for you and your family.

To avoid confusion while purchasing, let’s go through the top five tips mentioned below that can allow you to buy term insurance correctly in the year 2020:

Consider your financial goals

The most crucial step to buy the right term plan can be to consider your financial goals. Since term insurance plans can provide you with financial support, you should first asses your needs to understand why you require term coverage.

Based on your financial goals, you might be able to pick an adequate coverage amount that can help you or the members of your family with financial sustenance.

Choose a sufficient coverage amount

Coverage can be an essential component of term insurance plans. Since the coverage can decide your financial well-being in the future, you should choose an adequate amount. However, your coverage can depend on your life stages.

Typically, you might require a higher cover if you are married or if you have kids. Today, many insurance companies can allow you to increase the coverage value after crossing specific milestones in your life, such as getting married, planning to have kids, reaching retirement, and so on.

Identify the premium rate

Premiums can be paid in return for life coverage. Since it can ensure the continuous flow of the selected life cover, you should pay it regularly. However, see to it that you calculate the premium amount before purchasing a term policy.

If you choose a term policy without knowing the premium, there can be chances that you might be unable to pay it on time due to an unfortunate event, such as loss of income, critical illness, physical disability, and so forth. If you would be unable to pay the premium amount, your term insurance plan can lapse. Use a term insurance premium calculator to know and compare premiums.

Analyze the claim settlement ratio

A claim settlement ratio can be the total number of claims your insurance company has settled in a year. The claim settlement ratio can determine the reputation of your insurance provider. In simple terms, the higher the claim settlement ratio, the credible your insurer.

If an insurance company has settled minimal claims, you should not opt for the term coverage. Before selecting a term plan, it can be essential to run a background check on the insurance company, confirm their credibility as well as get a close look at their claim settlement ratio.

Incorporate relevant riders

Riders can be additional benefits that can be offered by your insurer on the top of your base term policy. Moreover, it can enhance your original term policy as well as cover scenarios, such as critical illness, physical disability, accidental death, etc. that are not covered under it. The types of riders can depend from one insurer to another. However, you should choose only relevant riders since it can increase the overall cost of your term policy.

To conclude, the primary objective of a term policy can be to offer financial protection to you and your loved ones. Although the main objective of every term insurance plans in India can be similar, you should choose the right term plan after a lot of thought and research. With these top five tips mentioned above, you can ensure your convenience and preferences are met.

Bajaj EMI Store is the next generation online portal that is here to solve all your online shopping woes. It is India’s fastest growing company that allows you to shop in the comfort of your own home with ease! One of the most unique things that Bajaj EMI Store offers is the Bajaj Finserv EMI Network Card – which is your exclusive online wallet to purchase the best products online.

You can buy an amazing range of products with the help of Bajaj Finserv EMI Network Card. It offers brilliant benefits such as No cost EMI with zero hidden costs, no down payment, instant deals and same day/4 hour delivery. There are also more exclusive offers for the Bajaj EMI Network Card holders! Bajaj believes that happiness comes first and payments later. Therefore, the latest and coolest products can be bought at affordable rates with added discounts, cashback offers, amazing instant deals and much more!

Bajaj EMI Network Card can be used both online and offline. There are no hidden costs, no hassles and no heavy documentation process. It is easy and simple! You can now purchase the best selling products with just a few simple clicks. Whether it is the latest electronics such as branded smartphones, laptops, smart TVs, tablets, or home appliances such as refrigerators, washing machines, water purifiers, air conditioners, air coolers, or whether it is doing your flight bookings or even buying insurance premium policies through the Bajaj customer portal, the Bajaj EMI Network Card enables you to do all of this and more.

Bajaj Finserv EMI card is your one stop solution for all your needs, be it electronics, home appliances, fashion, furniture or home decor. To make it even more attractive, all these facilities are available to you at No Cost EMI facility without credit cards while you shop!

To get yourself these irresistible offers, just head over to your favorite item online and select the No Cost EMI option and get pre approved loans for zero down payment which are customized to convenient repayments as per needs.

If you choose to shop with Bajaj Finserv, you can go to these Bajaj Finserv EMI Card accepted shops:

• Flipkart
• Amazon
• MakeMyTrip
• Paytm Mall
• Yatra
• Samsung
• Vivo
• Choose My Bicycle

You may wonder where you can find Bajaj Finserv EMI Card accepted shops, if you choose to shop offline, but we have some good news for you. There are over 84200 stores that accept Bajaj Finserv EMI Card across 1300 cities in India and counting. These stores that accept the Bajaj EMI card are partner stores for the EMI card that function as branded online stores.

Bajaj EMI card can be used to shop for your favorite wish-listed appliances, gadgets. Not only that, but you can even get hands on the furniture, apparel and even your travel bookings using the Bajaj EMI card. Don’t worry when Bajaj Finserv is here!

Choose Bajaj Finserv and be happy!

After the Union Budget 2020 introduced the new tax slabs, you can choose between two tax structures. If you wish to select the new tax regime, you might not be able to claim a deduction as per Section 80C of the Income Tax Act, 1961. With Section 80C, you would qualify to claim Rs. 1,50,000 on your taxable income.

While you might decide to switch to the new structure, a hasty switch decision might not be the right choice to reduce your tax-saving investments. Although the new tax regime can allow you to receive more liquidity, there can be specific investment tools, such as a Unit Linked Insurance Plan [ULIP] that has emerged as a clear winner after the new budget announcement.

Let’s understand how a ULIP investment can let you reap the benefits of the new budget announcement:

A ULIP plan is a financial product, which offers dual-benefits on the two essential things mentioned below:

Investment & insurance

A ULIP policy can be a dual combination of investment and insurance under a single roof. While the investment element can let you participate in the equity market, the insurance component can safeguard your family members in your absence.

Section 80C & Section 10(10D)

A ULIP policy can provide you with tax benefits on premium and maturity proceeds according to Section 80C and Section 10(10D) of the Income Tax Act, 1961. While you can be eligible to claim a deduction up to Rs. 1, 50,000 on your taxable income in accordance with Section 80C, your insurer can provide you with a tax-free payout after the maturity period based on Section 10 (10D).

If you pick the new tax regime, here’s how a ULIP investment can be favourable for you:

1. A ULIP investment can be exempt from the Long Term Capital Gains (LTCG) tax, which can make it possible for you to benefit from the new tax structure.
2. A ULIP policy can allow you to invest in equity funds as well as debt funds, without any applicable tax on switching between these two funds. With this, you can grow your wealth due to the dual benefits of insurance and investment.

There are various uses of a ULIP policy. Apart from dual-benefits, you can achieve the following objectives with a ULIP policy:

1. Accumulation of wealth with the help of the long lock-in period and the benefits of the power of compounding
2. Obtain better returns based on your risk appetite and investment goals
3. Build a retirement corpus for a smooth retirement period in the future
4. Fulfill your life goals, such as buying a new house or a car, funding your child’s education, planning your child’s dream wedding, and so on

If you want to fulfill the above-mentioned objectives, you should invest in a ULIP policy. Purchasing a ULIP policy can be simple. While offline purchases can be time-consuming, an online ULIP policy can be convenient, hassle-free, and affordable. Let’s take a look below to buy a ULIP online:

1. Select a ULIP policy on the online platform of your insurer
2. Make the online premium payment
3. Purchase the selected ULIP policy

As highlighted above, ULIP has emerged as a clear winner amongst the rest of the investment tools, such as Mutual Fund (MF), Equity Linked Savings Scheme (ELSS), and so on after the budget announcement. While the new tax regime would come into effect from April 1, 2020, choose a ULIP investment since it can be applicable under both the tax slabs.

The contribution of a term policy in the insurance industry has been significant. Right from traditional term insurance to smart term policy, it can offer benefits for your long-term safety in the future. While traditional term policies have been in the market for a long time, the smart term plan has been launched recently by many insurance companies.

Due to its new-age features and benefits, you might be unable to figure out how to choose the right smart term policy for you. Therefore, let’s simplify the process of buying the best smart term policy for you with these seven easy steps mentioned below:

1. Choose adequate coverage

The term coverage can decide your and your family’s financial sustainability in the future. Therefore, consider the financial requirements of your entire family and choose the coverage amount accordingly. When you choose coverage under smart term policy, you should not worry about being underinsured since you can increase your term coverage after you reach specific milestones, such as marriage, retirement, and so on.

2. Consider the premium amount

Due to the provision of a life cover, your insurer charges a premium amount. Before purchasing a smart term policy, calculate the premium amount to check if you can afford it or not. Ideally, a smart term plan can be available at a competitive rate. Additionally, if you survive the term policy, your insurer can return the entire premium amount to you after the maturity date.

3. Look for the variants

Apart from a cover, your insurance company can also provide specific variants, such as a joint cover, whole-life cover, child education cover, and so on for your long-term benefits. Under the smart term plan, the variants can let you customize the term life insurance based on your evolving needs. However, the types of available variants can depend from one insurer to the other.

4. Select the payout option

A smart term policy can provide your loved ones with a death payout in your absence. As the nominees, your family can choose the payout options based on their convenience. While many insurance companies can let you receive the sum assured value as a lump-sum amount, the rest of them can provide you with a monthly payout.

5. Consider the easy accessibility

Gone are the days when buying a term policy meant standing in front of your insurer’s office for long hours. Today, term policies can be present on your insurer’s website that can ensure your maximum convenience. With an online term plan, you can operate your term plan from any corner of the world on any device in a single click.

6. Opt for relevant riders

Riders can be an essential part of a term policy. Without riders, your term insurance policies can never be complete. With riders, you can cover specific circumstances, such as loss of income, critical illness, physical disability, and so on, as well as enhance your term coverage. Although the riders can depend on your insurer, an income rider, accidental death rider, a physical disability rider, waiver of premium rider, and critical illness rider can be the most common types of riders.

7. Pick a reputable insurance company

The last and the most crucial step for choosing a smart term policy can be selecting a reputable insurance company. An excellent way to determine the credibility of your insurer can by looking at the claim settlement ratio that is settled by your insurer every year. Besides, conduct thorough research, read the client reviews, and compare the term insurance benefits.

To sum up, term insurance plans can be a value-added addition in your life. Therefore, see to it that you choose the right policy for you and your family. Don’t compromise with the benefits to avail a term policy at a low rate. Moreover, you should read the policy brochure carefully after you purchase a smart term policy to understand the details accurately. If you are unable to understand anything mentioned under the policy document, contact a professional.