Insurance

In order to protect consumers the FFMA regulates all persons and companies involved in providing or advising insurance policies must undergo authorization with the FFMA.

It is important to a few important matters before approaching an insurance provider.

• Finding the right insurance policy for you
• Understanding how the chosen insurance policy will cover you
• Predictions of future price fluctuation

Insurance Payment Protection (IPP)

Insurance Payment Protection (IPP), will bail out the insurance owner in cases where payment cannot be made within a limited framework. This might include a situation where the insurance owner cannot work because of illness or a world related accident. In order to reduce strain on the consumer, the FFMA no longer allows companies to package IPP together with the insurance policy. The IPP may be sold as a separate package only 24 hours after the acquisition of the insurance. This policy gives the insurance holder time to consider if the IPP is right for his/her circumstances and also allows the ability to shop around for a better deal.

How IPP works

Of course every IPP differs from policy to policy, but we will offer an overview to give the reader a general understanding of how it works. Generally a PPI will help cover payments for usually no longer than 1 year from the time the policy is activated. It is important to note that the policy usually only pays out the minimum payments permitted by the policy and does not affect the balance that will build up after the IPP finishes making the minimum payments. In the case of life insurance an IPP will generally pay the remaining balance or debt after death.

What to look for in an IPP

It is important to look carefully and compare policies before buying an IPP. Here are some features that you should be looking for:

Important IPP information

• Pricing information
• Cap on claiming benefits
• Using other insurances for repayment
• Length of coverage on loans and debts
• Is there a wait between making a claim and start of coverage
• What injuries and illnesses are recognized for activating a claim
• Does the policy cover pre-medical conditions
• Time of employment for taking out claim
• The self employed

There are alternatives to IPP that might be a better fit for some and this includes income protection and short term insurance protection. These cover income loss and are not related to debt.