Insurers are probably the most misunderstood group of people. Despite all the benefits accrued from insurance, nobody seems to understand what it is about and insurers are often seen through a negative prism. Most people think it’s another corporate money-making scheme to diddle them out of their hard-earned cash which is far from the truth. Insurance has not been understood as the wealth protection mechanism it is.
Let’s start by demystifying what insurance is all about, but before we get to that, here are a few questions to ponder as we go on, at a personal level; What do I want? What is my retirement plan? Have I planned for a job loss? Have I planned for my dependents? What’s my plan for major illness? If you are a business person, ask yourself; will my business outlive me? What kind of business legacy do I want to leave? Have I secured a legacy? If you can answer yourself truthfully, then well and good, but if not, then it’s not too late to start planning.
So what is insurance? Is it simply speculation, taking advantage of our fears? Many people put insurance in the same category of sports betting. Always praying nothing bad happens so that they don’t have to pay-out. The adverts haven’t helped at all – most adverts show fire, floods and accidents. Is this really what insurance is all about?
In a webinar discussion organized by dfcu Bank for its investment club customers, Martha Aheebwa, dfcu Bank’s Bancassurance Officer talked about what more there is to insurance.
To begin with, the insurance industry is divided into two broad segments: Non-life/General Insurance (property and casualty) and Life Insurance.
Non-life insurance is a wealth protection mechanism i.e. protects your current level of income while facilitating your goal for a higher one. It could be property; house, car, money, liabilities, or expenses. While Life insurance protects one’s (and their dependents) quality of life. It involves family financial protection, retirement and long term investments.
You might ask, isn’t insurance expensive? To answer you, ask yourself again, what is the cost of the loss? Therein lies the answer to your question. According to Martha, if the cost of the loss is more expensive than insurance, then you don’t need it.
“Immediately something happens, notify your insurance provider and start working on the claim documentation. If you don’t know how to go about it, talk to your insurer for guidance. Also, the beauty is that you can choose to have an agent like dfcu Bank, who will assign you a professional that understands what you will require. That person will already know what is required and gets you rolling providing proof establishing the amount lost,” she advised.
“Our customers can look to us for all their insurance queries and solutions, and we are keen to provide solutions that work. We’re using our bancassurance license to provide a more holistic financial service to our customers, based on their needs. Rather than simply sell off-the-shelf products, we’re providing products that complement our current offering, products that provide a real benefit for our customers,” she added.
Dominic Munduga, Chairperson Maisha Investment Club shared their insurance experience as a club.
“We took up the option with dfcuBank and I must say it was a unanimous decision, as the Chairperson then, I was happy that members appreciated insurance. Insurance is not a bet, it’s something we should factor in as a cost of doing business for those in business, and as individuals looking for sustainability,” he remarked.
In 2018, Maisha Investment Club found themselves in an unfortunate circumstance just after taking the Twilight Insurance cover under dfcu Bank. While on a work trip to Kapchorwa in December, the group got into an accident that left 18 of their staff and 5 members dead.
“It was a very hard time for the club I must say. It was like a nightmarefor us. When it happened, we asked what next? Looking for medical assistance, how to give them a decent burial, what happens to the children and their families? I must say, us signing up for this insurance cover greatly prepared us for what happened next. Most of us who were hospitalized, it was insurance that took care of medication and burial arrangements. We notified dfcu Bank about the unfortunate incident and we were able to bounce back and are now growing stronger,” Mudunga recalls.
There’s a better way to secure your legacy with dfcu Bank’s bancassurance, whether it is about protecting your business, assets, securing the education for your children, or securing your quality of life after employment.
