(ENGLISH) Survey: Insurance Planning / Awareness among Young Adults

We are currently in the midst of running a survey called Insurance Planning / Awareness among Young Adults. The response is so overwhelming. We'll post the result of the survey on February 20th.

Stay Tune

(ENGLISH) Injury in Sports

Wednesday is my new ball play day.. By ball I mean basketball.. Been a while since I last played, so it is kinda fun to be meeting old friends and play basketball again..

Most of my friends are avid basketball players.. They (or we) are not professional players but we play a lot of tournament in a year.. Oh, it is not even a semi pro tournament.. Well, for those who are not familiar with basketball, it is deemed as one of the most dangerous games in the world.. Why you might ask.. It's because of the nature of the game which requires you to attack and defend in the game as a team.. It might cause injury like sprain, bleeding or ACL..

One of my friends approached me.. He knew I am doing insurance now so he was trying his luck.. For us insurance agents, it is quite rare for people to come looking for us to get medical card or insurance.. People will only look for us when unfortunate events have hit them.. True enough, my friend require RM25k for ACL surgery.. So he wanted to get Prudential medical card..

Insurance is like a bank.. You can only get insurance when you are healthy.. When you have bad health report, insurance might consider to decline your proposal to take up insurance.. If you are lucky, the area affected on your body will become exclusion or you are required to pay extra premium.. Just like bank, they won't approve your loan application if you have bad credit report.. Bear in mind, insurance is not a welfare, it is a business..

So dude, no, you won't get required amount for your surgery.. I might send a proposal for you for Prudential medical card.. If you're lucky, the left knee of yours will become exclusion or if you're luckier, you have to pay extra premium..

To friends out there, remember, you won't know what will hit you.. Soon could be too late but now can never be too soon.. Get your Prudential medical card today.. I assure you, you are about to get protected by the best medical card in town..

#HIDHIR

(ENGLISH) Lesson Learnt the Hard Way

I was a trainer. In fact, I still am. Prior to work freelance, I was attached to Prudential to train the agency force. It's a fun job, I have to admit. The money was good, the travelling was great, and the people were inspirational.

I traveled a lot. More than the total number of travelling I'd done all my life. I remember, in 2012, I had a day training in Seberang Jaya, Penang. Well, I gotta admit, that was 1 of my favourite place to go. Language perhaps. I was raised in Penang, so it was easy for me to communicate. Oh, and the foods too.

It was a fasting month. Training from 9-5 could be tiring. But it's a passion. I did it anyway. We had a very short teabreak, so that I can rest a little bit. It was about 3.15 PM and when I checked my phone, there were 2 missed calls from my sister. I called her back. She asked can I go visit my uncle. Well, I said, of course I can't. He was in Cameron Highland and I was in Penang. Plus, I didn't drive. I took flight.

Truth was, my uncle was in Penang too. Just a bit background of him. He was almost 65. Retired from army and when he got his retirement money and all, he bought piece of land in Cameron Highland and build a chalet. Today, he and wife own 2 villas and a chalet in Cameron Highland. Quite good I'd say. He's as healthy as horse. Every now and then, he cycled up and down Cameron Highland (well, I'd be complaining if the elevator doesn't work), pretty healthy isn't it? He doesn't smoke and took good care of his diet. And when I said he was in Penang, he was actually in a private hospital for kidney and liver failure. For a guy who looked after himself well, it was quite surprising that he was hit with such illness.

Then I remembered, he did not have insurance. My aunt brought him all the way from Cameron Highland to Penang so that he'd get decent treatment, so I figured they must have money. My uncle did not believe in insurance - AT ALL. He was cheated once; by an MLM guy (and he still thought insurance is some kind of MLM). It'll be interesting to know how much was the total bill. My flight to KL was at 8 PM and I was done with my training at about 4.30 PM. One of my participants was kind enough to drive me to airport but I told him I gotta go to hospital first to see my uncle and he was double kind enough to bring me there as well.

My uncle was supposed to be discharged. And when I reached hospital, there were more than 10 relatives of mine there. It was like a mini Raya gathering I said to myself. Well, truth was told. We were needed there to pay the hospital bill  for him to be discharged and the bill was RM153k (oh, and the room was free of charge - as the hospital's courtesy). My aunt said, they have the money but the hospital refused to accept cheque. Each of us had to swipe the credit card!

Oh well, RM153k was spent in just 8 days! Pretty crazy I think. Don't you think?

#HIDHIR

(BM) Alasan Tipikal

Kelmarin, saya ada buat direct approach dengan seorang jiran. Abang Man, seorang lelaki lewat 40-an, sudah berkahwin, dikurniakan seorang anak perempuan hasil perkahwinan keduanya. Anaknya genap 2 tahun umurnya. Beliau bekerja sebagai pengusaha gerai makan. Isterinya juga bekerja, sebagai juruwang di gerai suaminya. Anak perempuannya dibesarkan di gerai. Sejak kecil lagi anaknya terdedah dengan pelbagai bahaya, kerana di gerainya, bapanya menebar roti canai hanya kurang 3 meter dari buaiannya. Dengan keluasan gerai yang agak terhad, ruang anak kecil ini bermain adalah terhad. Adakalanya dia bermain sekitar kuali panas. Berderau darah saya melihat situasi itu, lantas saya mengambil kesempatan untuk berbicara dengan Abang Man.

Saya sudah dimaklumkan oleh isterinya bahawa Abang Man tidak suka dengan insurans malah isterinya sangat pasti yang Abang Man tidak akan membeli insurans. Oleh itu, saya tidaklah meletakkan harapan yang terlalu tinggi, sekadar ingin berkongsi idea dengan beliau. Saya mulakan bicara dengan meminta izin ketika beliau sedang makan, nasi putih dengan lauk ikan bakar hasil tangannya. Saya tanyakan samada beliau inginkan insurans untuk anaknya, maka jawapan yang diberikan adalah tidak. Saya tanyakan kepada beliau, apakah alasannya, maka beliau katakan belum mampu. Beliau mempunyai sebuah perniagaan gerai makan dengan kakitangan sekurang-kurangnya 4 orang. Pada pandangan mata kasar saya, beliau lebih dari mampu kerana jualan sehari mencecah hampir RM2,000. Saya tanyakan kepada beliau, berapakah peruntukan sehari untuk simpanan anaknya. "Tidak tentu, hari ini tiada", jawab Abang Man. Saya tanyakan lagi kepada beliau, apakah rancangan kewangan beliau untuk anaknya di masa hadapan. Beliau memberitahu yang beliau ada membuat simpanan, tetapi tidak secara tetap, sekadar mampu. Adakalanya RM100 seminggu, adakalanya tiada. Saya maklumkan kepada beliau yang selain perlindungan takaful, Prudential juga ada investment link. Beliau tidak berminat, katanya lebih percaya dengan bank, walaupun saya telah nyatakan pada tahun 2013, Dana Unggul mencatatkan 17% return. Katanya, Bank Islam di pantau oleh  syariah board, jadi beliau rasa yakin dengan tahap keislamannya. Saya juga katakan yang Prudential takaful juga ada syariah boardnya tersendiri selain yang di pantau oleh Bank Negara. Namun, beliau mengeleng kepada tanda tidak setuju.

Kemudian, saya tanyakan beberapa soalan lain seperti, apakah pelan beliau sekirnya memerlukan perubatan di hospital. Katanya, beliau akan ke hospital kerajaan, kerana itu sahaja yang mampu. Hospital swasta hanyalah untuk golongan berada. Saya memberitahu kepada beliau, bahawa kos perubatan di hospital kerajaan juga tidaklah semurah mana untuk penyakit-penyakit serius, jadi, apakah langkah sekiranya wang simpanan tidak mencukupi. Beliau dengan tenang menjawab, beliau tidak akan meminta pertolongan sesiapa, malah redha dengan ketentuan Ilahi. Saya katakan kepada beliau, setiap yang hidup pasti sakit / mati. Tiada siapa yang akan terlepas dari maut. Maka eloklah sekiranya kita persiapkan segala apa yang patut semasa mampu. Beliau terus membidas dengan mengatakan kita tidak boleh memikirkan hal-hal negatif, harus sentiasa positif dan jangan sesekali memikirkan mala petaka yang mendatang.

Saya kemudian beralih ke isu kereta. Adakah beliau mementingkan insurans keretanya. Katanya tidak, hanya kerana terikat dengan undang-undang, beliau terpaksa mengambil insurans kereta. Di situ saya mati akal sebentar. Niat saya hanyalah ingin beliau sedar, betapa pentingnya mengambil insurans. Saya ubah topik kepada khariat kematian. Mengambil contoh seperti khariat kematian, bayaran dibuat dikalangan ahli bagi membantu sesama ahli ketika berlakunya kematian. Begitulah konsep takaful insurans. Beliau terus bertanya, sekiranya khariat kematian jelas siapa ahlinya, bagaimana pula dengan insurans? Saya jawab, yang insurans mempunyai database lengkap mengenai ahli-ahlinya. Kemudian, beliau bertanya lagi, sekiranya berlaku sesuatu musibah, adakah pasti syarikat insurans akan menolong? Saya memberi contoh, adakah tugas masjid atau AJK masjid untuk memeriksa setiap rumah setiap hari untuk mengesan sebarang kematian, atau keluarga si mati yang akan melaporkan kepada AJK masjid? Sudah pasti keluarga si mati akan melaporkannya. Sekiranya keluarga si mati tidak melaporkannya, kemungkinan bantuan juga tidak dapat disalurkan. Begitu juga dengan insurans, sekiranya berlaku musibah, hendak dilaporkan kepada syarikat insurans dan sekiranya seperti apa yang termaktub di dalam polisi, maka syarikat insurans akan membayar mengikut perjanjian. Beliau terus diam, seolah-olah memberi isyarat kepada saya supaya menghabiskan perbualan secepat mungkin, kerana beliau sememangnya tidak berminat dengan insurans.

Saya ceritakan kepada beliau, kenapa saya mengambil insurans untuk diri saya sendiri dan untuk anak-anak saya. Sekiranya saya 'pergi' dahulu ketika anak saya masih kecil, sekurang-kurangnya saya boleh menghembuskan hafas dengan lega kerana akaun anak saya akan tetap berjalan dan insyaAllah sedikit sebanyak dapat menampung perbelanjaan di hari akan datang. Saya juga tidak mahu meninggalkan hutang kepada pewaris saya kerana hutang wajib dibayar. Abang Man terus mencelah, "kau mampu tak apalah, abang tak mampu. Kau dengan cara kau, aku dengan cara aku." Saya juga ada menyatakan yang tidak mahu anak-anak saya menyalahkan saya sekiranya berlaku sesuatu musibah sehingga menyusahkan mereka satu hari kelak. Beliau teruskan dengan berkata, "mereka kena redha dan maafkan abang, kerana abang telah tiada." Saya habiskan topik ini, dengan ayat ringkas, "kita boleh redha dan maafkan orang lain, tapi sesungguhnya, kita tak boleh nak paksa orang lain redha dan maafkan kita, apatah lagi sekiranya mereka mempunyai hak untuk dituntut."

Kemudian kami beralih topik kepada politik dan lain. Entah macam mana, termasuk kembali ke topik insurans. Dengan penuh sopan, saya ingin memberikan contoh rokok. Beliau sememangnya seorang perokok tegar. Jadi, saya tanyakan yang kenepa beliau mempunyai peruntukan harian untuk membeli rokok, tapi tiada peruntukan harian untuk sesuatu yang lebih bermanfaat untuk anaknya seperti insurans / simpanan tetap. Lantas riak wajahnya bertukar. Katanya, tiada sesiapa pernah mempertikaikan rokoknya sebelum ini, malah beliau tidak pernah ada peruntukan untuk membeli rokok, tetapi rokok merupakan satu keperluan untuknya, bukan kehendak. Akan tapi, beliau mengucapkan terima kasih kerana menaikkan isu rokok, sekurang-kurangnya beliau terfikir untuk mengurangkan peruntukan rokoknya.

Di akhir bicara, saya tanyakan soalan rumusan. Apakah alasan utama beliau untuk tidak membeli insurans? Jawabnya, soal prinsipp hidup. Beliau mempunyai prinsip tidak memerlukan insurans, jadi beliau tidak akan membeli insurans. Beliau hanya bergantung kepada Allah, tidak kepada insurans. Maka saya pun memberitahu bahawa segala penerangan saya adalah kerana rasa tanggungjawab saya untuk menerangkan kepada beliau,, apa itu takaful insurans kerana ini adalah tugas saya. Saya tidak akan kaya dengan hanya beliau membeli insurans dengan saya, dan saya juga tidak akan susah sekiranya beliau tidak membeli insurans. Minggu lepas seorang sahabat saya terlibat dalam kemalangan yang meragut nyawa anak bongsunya, dan isteri masih di dalam wad, menunggu tarikh untuk pembedahan tulang belakang. Saya rasa terkilan kerana tidak sempat berkongsi idea dengannya mengenai takaful insurans. Saya harap dengan penerangan saya, serba sedikit, membantu Abang Man untuk faham mengenai insurans.

Sebelum saya melangkah pergi, Abang Man sempat berpesan, "teruskanlah jual insurans, aku rasa kau boleh maju."

#KIMI

Just a Bit of Teaser

Some people call insurance a con. Some call it a scam. Some says it is unnecessary. Some doesn't even believe insurance is genuine. Some says not now. Some says they have more priorities in life.

Whether or not you are part of the people who say all of the above, this blog will give you ideas how real people react towards life insurance. Funny, sad, happy; all emotions will be shared here.

We've seen worst and ugly side of life. People spend unnecessarily on their wants, but begging for help to fulfill their needs.

We are a group of ordinary insurance and takaful agents, with a total different backgrounds, trying to make our living by doing what we love to do. None of us have imagined that we will be one one day, but when we are inside the circle, we know how noble this job is.

We do not look for fame or wealth. We want to open your eyes. It is all about spreading awareness. It is our calling. It is a responsibility. While we do this to put food on our family's table, it is the humanity side of this job that makes us so passionate to keep doing what we do. We want people to experience the good side of us. And we hope, one day, when you are recalling or telling others about the good deeds we have done to you, God will accept it as a prayer to bring us closer to Jannah.

And with this in mind, we step out of the box to reach more people for the sake of awareness. we are going to tell things as they are. Stories about people and insurance. Stories about desperation and responsibility. They are meant to give you ideas about what insurance is all about and how it can help to prepare you in life.


Sit back, enjoy the blog. And you might be asking, why should you take up insurance or takaful from us. Well, we don't have a concrete answer. There are more than 25,000 agents out there. But all we can say is, "we know you won't care about how much we know, but we'll make sure you know how much we care."

Alternatively, you can also:

• Follow out twitter - @LifeEventually
• Like our FB page - Life Eventually
• Drop us an e-mail - LifeEventually.2014@gmail.com

Till then, signing out..