No money to buy insurance in Singapore? How about free insurance?

Insurance for people who really cannot afford the insurance premiums in Singapore. A great initiative and demonstration of corporate social responsibility by an insurance company.

Previously NTUC Income Insurance, announced that it paid out $5,000 under its Income Family Micro-Insurance Scheme (IFMIS) to the family of the late Jason Lim Wei Kwan.

The insurer also extended a further $5,000 as a corporate donation to match the IFMIS payout to the bereaved family.

Following media reports about the demise of Mr Lim, NTUC Income immediately decided to extend this assistance at the time of the family’s bereavement. Mr Lim was the driver of a lorry that slipped from a barge into the sea. The barge was en route from Pulau Sebarok to Singapore. As a result of the accident, Mr Lim died.

Under IFMIS, which was launched in April 2010, the insurer will pay out $5,000 when the main caregiver passes away or becomes totally and permanently disabled. It is a free insurance for low-income households with young children.

The insurer has also been actively reviewing past cases to identify potential beneficiaries under IFMIS while raising awareness of the financial assistance it provides. NTUC Income has been reaching out to schools and care giving organisations to do this.

“IFMIS was launched specifically to provide free insurance to low-income Singaporean households, similar to Mr Jason Lim’s case. When I read in the

media of the plight of this family of four kids, it seemed likely that with this profile, they could most likely be a beneficiary under IFMIS. As it turned out, they did,” said NTUC Income Chief Executive Tan Suee Chieh.

“The payout of $5,000 may seem small to some but it is likely to make a meaningful contribution to such families, especially at times like these” he added.

IFMIS currently covers recipients of the ComCare GROW schemes administered by the five Community Development Councils (CDCs), which come under the purview of the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports.

The schemes which benefit from IFMIS are the Centre-based Financial Assistance Scheme for Child Care (CFAC), Kindergarten Financial Assistance Scheme (KiFAS) and the Student Care Fee Assistance (SCFA) programmes. About 26,000 families currently benefit from these schemes.

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