The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) issued new guidelines on how tax-exempted maturity amount from a life insurance policy will be calculated in a financial year if the premium paid exceeds a specified level. As per the new guidelines, the maturity amount from life insurance policies bought on or after April 1, 2023, will not be fully tax-exempt.

LIC's Jeevan Azad is a non-linked, non-participating, individual, savings life insurance plan. This is a Limited Premium Endowment plan under which the Premium Payment Term (PPT) is equal to Policy Term minus 8 years.

The Covid-19 pandemic was a wake-up call for both health insurance companies and policyholders. While it exposed the vulnerabilities in the healthcare system, it also offered the regulator an opportunity to eliminate many lacunas and add new features that can offer enhanced and adequate protection to health insurance policy buyers.

Insurance is now being offered for what is called the ABCD illnesses. Depending on the stage or depending on how serious the disease is, they are offering day one cover, which basically means that right after you buy the policy,

"One has to be aware of the list of blacklisted hospitals. Second is the waiting period for specific illnesses. Third is the minimum time of hospitalization which is required for claiming a particular illness in your policy," says Ankit Agrawal, Founder & CEO, Insurance Dekho.

“If you are somebody who already has health insurance and are looking to bump up your cover at a very low cost, top up is a great option to go for. The detectable amount of that top up has to be equivalent to the sum insured that you already have,” says Siddharth Singhal, Business Head, Policybazaar.com

Irrespective of the insurer you buy a policy from, all health insurance plans have notable exclusions which you as a policyholder or buyer should be aware of. A careful scrutiny of such exclusions will save you from a nasty surprise later on.

Given the high inflation, especially in healthcare, many people who have a basic health insurance cover often consider buying a top-up plan. This is intended to ensure adequate financial protection even when medical expenses rise. However, will it work according to your plan? Not necessarily.

The nomination process is crucial to protect the interests of the insured’s family. However, just appointing one nominee shouldn’t be done by default as many do.