AIA Life Insurance Singapore — MoneySmart Review 2021

With so many insurers out there selling a seemingly enormous mix of products, choosing the best life insurance policy for your needs can feel like being a kid in a candy store who’s only allowed to buy one single sweet. (Let’s ignore the fact that unlike candy, life insurance won’t give you diabetes, but can save your family if you die of it.)

Considering an AIA life insurance policy, amongst others? Before meeting an agent, check out their main insurance plans and their high/lowlights.

Why consider life insurance from AIA Singapore?

AIA is an insurance company founded by an American in Hong Kong, and is now one of Asia’s biggest insurers. They have been operating in Singapore since 1931 and are currently considered one of the top five leading insurance companies here.

Read more: A Beginner’s Guide to Major Insurance Companies in Singapore

AIA offers both term life insurance and whole life insurance. All types of life insurance offer payouts if you die, however term life insurance will give you this protection only for a specified term or period of time.

Whole life insurance, on the other hand, is meant to protect you all your life, or at least until a ripe old age. Another key difference is that whole life insurance helps you accumulate cash value over the years, which you can unlock if you decide to surrender the plan one day.

There are many other differences between term and whole life insurance, which you can read up on right here on the MoneySmart blog.

Read more: Life Insurance in Singapore — The Basics of Whole Life and Term Insurance & Term Life vs Whole Life Insurance in Singapore — Which Is Better for You?

While AIA has a seeming plethora of life insurance products, we’ve identified their main term life (AIA Secure Flexi Term) and whole life (AIA Guaranteed Protect Plus II) policies in this article.

AIA Secure Flexi Term (term insurance)

AIA Secure Flexi Term is a life insurance plan offering protection against death, terminal illness and terminal cancer. There is a minimum sum assured of $500,000.

You can choose terms ranging from 5 to 30 years, or until the age of 65, 75 or 100. Note that if you select a term that ends at age 100, you will need to have a minimum sum assured of at least $1 million.

After your term is over, you are guaranteed renewal of the plan up to the age of 101 regardless of health condition, making this one of the most secure term insurance plans in terms of age and renewability.

As is usual with term plans, your premiums stay the same throughout one coverage term, and are then revised after each renewal.

The plan is also convertible should you decide to later switch to an AIA whole life plan, endowment plan or investment-linked policy with no further medical underwriting needed.

You can enhance your protection further with these riders:

• Critical Cover rider – Extend your protection to 43 major critical illnesses.
• Early Critical Cover rider – Extend your protection to 32 early and 29 intermediate critical illnesses and five special conditions.
• Total and Permanent Disability rider – Protects you from total and permanent disability before the age of 70.
• Premium Waiver rider – Excuses you from paying premiums if you get a critical illness or become disabled.

Sample premium: $28.47 a month for 30-year-old non-smoking male with $500,000 sum assured for 20 years.

AIA Guaranteed Protect Plus II (whole life insurance)

Now let’s look at AIA’s signature whole life insurance policy, AIA Guaranteed Protect Plus II.

The plan offers protection from death or permanent disability (the latter up to the age of 70), with minimum coverage of $50,000. To boost your coverage, you can opt for a multiplier of up to 5X your sum assured.

We like that this plan offers critical illness cover via riders, which makes your coverage more comprehensive. There is also an enhanced version of the plan, AIA Guaranteed Protect Plus (II) Special, which comes with additional critical illness coverage.

As is common with whole life plans, you do not have to pay lifelong premiums. In AIA’s case, you can choose to pay premiums for 12 years, 20 years or until the age of 65 or 75. Once the premium payment term is over you stop paying premiums but continue to enjoy insurance protection.

You can add the following riders to beef up your protection:

• Early Critical Cover Extra or Early Critical Protecter Life (II) – Offers protection from 104 multi-stage critical illnesses and special conditions. For children, this rider automatically comes with Child Critical Cover which protects against 16 child critical illnesses and nine child special conditions.
• Critical Cover Extra or Critical Protector Life (II) – Offers protection from 43 major stage critical illnesses till age 100.
• Critical Protector Waiver or Early Critical Protector Waiver – Waives your premiums if you are diagnosed with a critical illness.

Sample premium: $205.58 per month for 30-year-old male non-smoker with $100,000 sum assured, 20 year premium payment period and X2 multiplier

Which AIA life insurance policy is best?

Both AIA life insurance products are interesting options if you are looking for “whole life” coverage, i.e. the assurance of a payout even if you live up to the ripe old age of 100.

In particular, AIA Secure Flexi Term is one of the very few term insurance policies that can cover you up to age 101. That allows you to get the lifelong coverage of a whole life insurance plan, but at a much lower price point.

Although there’s no cash value, your family will almost certainly get a payout (since it’s very likely you’ll pass on by age 101).

However, because the sum assured starts at $500,000, it’s not as cheap as some other “budget” term insurance policies. If you’re looking for something cheap and no-frills because you do not need such a high sum assured, there are term insurance plans that start from $100,000.

Read more: 7 Best Term Insurance Policies in Singapore for Affordable Protection

Meanwhile, if you’re willing to spend more on premiums and are are interested in the wealth accumulation component, the AIA Guaranteed Protect Plus II plan gives you the option of unlocking cash value if you surrender the plan in the future.

Though premiums are much higher, it is quite a comprehensive option if you either add a critical illness protection rider or opt for the Special iteration of the plan.

Compared to other insurers, AIA’s life insurance offerings are on the pricey but more comprehensive side. So, they’re suitable for those who prioritise protection and are willing to pay for it. As a bonus, the plans above are eligible for AIA Vitality, a healthy living rewards programme that’s chock full of perks.

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