Not possible to change the due date of premium payment once the policy becomes active

Life insurance is a contract wherein the terms and conditions remain fixed, including the premium due date and policy renewal dates.

Q1. My 45-year-old NRI brother wants to purchase a term plan. Will it be possible for him to buy a plan in India?

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Yes, it is possible. All insurance companies in India refer to a standard list of countries when catering to Non-Resident Indians (NRIs). If your brother is currently residing in any of the listed countries, he can opt to buy term policies in India, subject to the guidelines of the specific product. Most Indian insurance providers solicit the same policies to NRIs as they do to resident Indians. The easiest way to go about this will be to reach out to the desired insurance provider and understand your brother’s eligibility, concerning his current country and occupation. Once the eligibility is determined, your brother can fill up the additional NRI questionnaire along with the policy proposal and go ahead with appropriate coverage options.

Q2. I have a Money-back policy which is 9 years old. Is it possible to change the due date of the premiums?

Life insurance is a contract wherein the terms and conditions remain fixed, including the premium due date and policy renewal dates. Therefore, it will not be possible for you to change the premium-paying or policy due dates once the policy is processed and active. However, one has the option of changing the frequency of paying premiums for the policy. For example, instead of paying premiums on a monthly basis, one can opt for annual, semi-annual or quarterly, premium paying terms.

Q3. My friend’s father passed away a year back. My friend has just discovered that his father had a life insurance policy for which he is a nominee. What is the process of claiming such an unclaimed amount?

Your friend can reach out to a physical branch or the online helpline of the insurance provider and intimate them of the situation as soon as possible. He will ideally be requested to submit the copy of the Death Certificate, Claimant Statement Form declaring his father as the life assured and your friend as the nominee, the standard KYC documents which will help establish his identity and relationship with the life assured. He also needs to submit a cancelled cheque or bank statement to the insurer to make the NEFT payout of the claims. Most importantly, he will have to submit the original policy documents. In case he does not have the same, he can submit an indemnity bond for the loss of the policy. These documents will be further evaluated by the insurance company before the claim payment is processed.

Q4. I have taken a life insurance policy 10 years back. After 9 years, I have taken a loan against the policy and paid the loan premiums regularly, but now the company has closed the plan. What should I do?

There is no cause to worry as your policy will remain active. You must continue paying the premiums and loan EMIs, as per your plan’s paying terms and dates. A life insurance policy is a contract and its terms and conditions are to be adhered to by all parties involved. Therefore, even if the plan has been discontinued by the company, you will receive the designated maturity amount as per the product guidelines. Of course, one can always reach out to the insurance provider and gain more clarity on the issue. I suggest keeping all your questions and policy details ready pre-emptively before reaching out.

Q5. Is it possible to assign a life insurance policy to anyone? Say, I want to take a loan from an acquaintance and in return want to assign my policy. Is this possible? If yes, what is the procedure?

Yes, this is possible as you are the proposer of the policy and have the right to assign the policy through conditional or absolute reassignment. I recommend getting in touch with your insurer to understand and confirm eligibility as well as procure the assignment form. Once filled, submitted, and processed, the policy will be assigned to the designated person.

The spokesperson is the MD and CEO, Aditya Birla Sun Life Insurance.