ICICI Prudential Life Insurance on Wednesday said that it has launched ICICI Prudential Guaranteed Pension Plan Flexi with Benefit Enhancer. This product is being billed as the industry’s first annuity plan that provides customers with the option to receive a 100 per cent refund of premiums paid at any time starting from the date of purchase.
To enable customers to tide over unexpected financial obligations, the product provides a loan facility, enabling customers to remain invested in the product and achieve their retirement planning goal.
In line with IRDAI norms
Significantly, this product is in line with the proposed IRDAI regulations, which aim to ensure customers receive a fair and appropriate surrender value, particularly in the event of an early exit from the policy.
Amit Palta, Chief Distribution Officer, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance, said, “We are delighted to introduce ICICI Pru Guaranteed Pension Plan Flexi with Benefit Enhancer, a versatile annuity product designed to address the uncertainties that individuals may face when planning for their retirement. What sets this annuity product apart is the flexibility to get a 100 per cent refund of the premiums paid at any time if they are unable to continue paying premiums”.
This industry-first feature is in alignment with the regulator’s proposal and ICICI Pru Life’s belief that insurance products should not only nudge customers towards long-term savings but also provide an exit route for customers facing financial constraints, he said.
For this product, customers can choose from an array of annuity options such as single-life option, in which the income is paid for as long as they live, or a joint-life option, where after one passes away, the income is paid to the spouse, child, parent or sibling — known as the secondary annuitant.
Notably, the joint-life option comes with a waiver of premium option. In this feature, in case of the unfortunate demise of the customer, all future premiums are waived off and the secondary annuitant receives a life-long guaranteed regular income.