To FC/clients of policies, does buying from a independent company like Manulife or Prudential for example have any major difference when I first start out for financial planning and protection?

Hi Chlo,

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Firstly, by 'independent company' do you mean Independent Financial Advisors? Manulife has set up their own version of IFA (MFA) but Prudential does not.

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Regardless, if you were to buy a Manulife policy from a MFA agent or from a Manulife agent, or even DBS (which distributes Manulife Products), if the product is the same, and the parameters are the same, there is no difference in the plan. The quotation engine is universal and likewise, a Prudential Agent will give you the exact same quotation as a UOB banker for the same Pru policy.

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So rather than focus on this, I would suggest that you look at

1. Your goals and objectives
2. Finding an advisor whom you can be comfortable to share your situation
3. Having some basic understanding of insurance/financial planning but also be open to hearing the recommendations put forth.

In the end, at least for policies, they work the same way. A payout upon a specified event. The finer details will be important but that is probably for your advisor to explain. For example, early cancer coverage for some insurers is limited to certain organs, whereas for other insurers it does not matter as long as the cell is carcinomatous. This kind of difference can make or break a claim but a competent advisor will know the products well.

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Beyond that, you should aim to make sure that you have a good working relationship with your advisor. If one is not open with their advisor, the planning done will be based on incomplete information, leading to unsuitable recommendations, and frustrations for both parties.

Hi Chlo,

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There is no difference between buying a policy through an agent of an insurer, an independent financial adviser, or through a bancassurance channel at the bank. There may be some products which are exclusive to each channel. There may be some cost savings in the form of commission rebates for some.

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If your goal is protection, the consideration should be getting the highest coverage at the lowest cost possible. Most insurers offer very competitive term policies which are great for this purpose. As they are plain vanilla, there isn't much to compare between their scope of coverage. https://www.comparefirst.sg will give you a good sensing of what's available on the market.

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If your goal is having a comprehensive financial plan done, perhaps a qualified financial adviser may be able to help you plan in the areas other than insurance. He or she should be able to cover areas such as financial ratios, cash flow and net worth, CPF, insurance, investments, retirement and children education, tax and estate planning. It may help if he or she is Certified Financial Planner (CFP®) or Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC) accredited.

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You may wish to check out MoneyOwl's Comprehensive Financial Planning tool https://www.moneyowl.com.sg/comprehensive/ to get a clearer view of your current situation and a holistic perspective on the solutions required to help you reach your goals. MoneyOwl helps keep your insurance costs low by offering up to 50% commission rebates on selected policies.