Better conduct in insurance sales is for long-term protection

Whatever they are called, insurance agents, financial advisers, brokers and even banks all play the role of a middleman.

- Claire Huang

And, save for banks which also offer a lot of other products, they have one common purpose here – to sell insurance policies of one kind or another.

These middlemen can be very helpful to consumers who can get bogged down by the many terms and conditions of policies they are interested in, be it a whole life participating plan, a yearly renewable travel policy or a short-term endowment plan.

They can also alert busy consumers to new financial products in the market.

So when consumers find responsible middlemen, there is a tendency to stick with them.

But make no mistake, the existence of the middlemen is built on the need to sell. This is where things can go wrong, as I experienced in early September.

A third-party telemarketer made a cold call to promote an insurer's Integrated Shield Plan (IP). This is private health insurance coverage in addition to the national health insurance scheme MediShield Life.

Our conversation flatlined upon my questioning – claims were made, incorrectly, that the Government has been urging people to get IPs in recent years.

One could argue, at the very least, that the telemarketer was ignorant, or that she was simply trying to get me to make an appointment with a financial consultant who would explain the product.

Most likely, she was just out to sell, sell, sell at all costs.

To be clear, MediShield Life is sufficient to cover most public hospital bills.

In mid-July, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said the national scheme is designed to cover nine in 10 subsidised public hospital bills, with very little or no out-of-pocket payment by the patient.