Wednesday, March 25, 2015

Do You Really Need A Financial Advisor?

In Singapore, financial advisers are often associated with the insurance industry. My first encounter with a financial advisor was when I was still a student around the age of 19. I was starting to get curious on financial planning and wanted a higher interest rate for the little money I had in my bank account. You see, many years ago, the interest rates the banks gave were already at a low of less than 1%. One day while I was walking on the streets, a financial adviser approached and asked me whether I'm interested in a plan that will give me 3% (more than 3 times higher than the bank interest rates), it naturally got me interested.

Throughout the years, I've met more than 10 financial advisers from many different companies. Some were good while some were not so good. Some were so well trained in their sales pitch that I've heard different advisers saying the same thing. I started doing sales when I was at the age of 16 so I could recognise that it was just a sales pitch right away. Even though its a sales pitch, one good advise that I constantly hear is that we should have protection before investments.  It is true that insurance is important for us as well as our loved ones.

However, over the years, I've heard some friends saying they were having a hard time paying for their insurance premiums because they bought too much. Some even had to cancel their insurance policies and lose money just because they couldn't keep up with the payments. Having a wrong financial advisor can be disastrous. So, do we really need a financial advisor?

Buying Insurance Online? 

I thought to myself, what if I could buy insurance online? This is possible now with Do-It-Your-Way-Insurance (DIYInsurance), a web portal by Providend Ltd. The web portal allows us to compare different insurance products from different companies and they provide 30% commission rebate on all purchases when we buy from them.

The good thing about this web portal is you get to learn all about insurance and compare the different insurance products all at the comfort of your own home without having the pressure to buy. They are also licensed and regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore. Let's see how DIYInsurance works.

How DIYInsurance Works? 

With DIYInsurance, you have full control over your insurance purchases. The comparison tool gives you access to a wealth of information on a wide range of insurance products in the market, and you are free to compare and choose the lowest premium or best value product for yourself without any pressure from a salesperson.


Compare & Request Quote Online
Use their comparison tool to find the product you feel best suits your needs. Request for a quote from them.

Personalised Consultation
They'll call you to provide you with cost information and answer any questions you may have about the product.



Get Help with Documentation
They'll assist you with application forms and documents required and submit them for you.


Receive Insurance Policy
After the insurer approves your application, you'll get the policy contract via mail. They'll also return you 30% of the commissions they get from the insurance company, where applicable.


Educate yourself on Financial Planning

What I like about DIYInsurance web portal is they also provide educational materials on financial planning in the form of infographics, articles and videos. 

This life stage planning chart shows us clearly what insurance we need at different stages of our lives:



They even have various calculators for protection, for savings and for retirement for us to plan our financial life better. 

Check out some of their educational videos on financial planning here.

With DIYInsurance, all of us can be financial advisers for our own life and decide on what we want without any pressure. You still can get quality financial advise from them any time when you're not sure about any products. From what I know, their staffs do not have any sales incentives so you won't get pressured to buy anything. You get cheaper insurance but at the same time you also get quality advise.

Check out their website and start your own financial planning today!

DIYInsurance Website: http://www.diyinsurance.com.sg

*This is a sponsored post by Providend Ltd

2 comments:

  1. hi friend,

    may i know what is the most basic investment i can look into? I know nothing about investment yet.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Shiawase,

      There are basically 2 types of investment, passive and active.

      For passive investing, you can read my post here: http://sgyounginvestment.blogspot.sg/2013/07/investing-basics-low-cost-index-fund.html

      For active investing, you can read my post here: http://sgyounginvestment.blogspot.sg/2014/01/buying-company-on-streets-part-1.html

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