Why NRIs should secure their lives with Indian insurance
financial planning, particularly because it helps mitigate losses. That’s the reason why financial experts always tout the benefits of both life and health insurance. But, are these policies merely for resident Indians or do non-resident Indians (NRIs) also need them? Many NRIs are unsure about this.
UK-based Jaya Mishra (33) is one of them. She had an individual health insurance policy in India but discontinued it when she moved to the UK. She even pays a premium there to avail of UK’s National Health Service (NHS).
“My husband and I visit India once or twice a year but we are not sure if we’ll ever come back and settle down here. If we do, we shall evaluate Indian insurance policies," says Mishra. The couple does not have a term life insurance policy either.
Like Mishra, many NRIs, too, have the perception that they don’t need insurance policies from India. Some say they will get it if they ever decide to move back to India permanently. And many do not even buy a proper travel policy to cover their short trips to the country.
Insurance experts say this is a grave mistake. “One of my clients visited India on a holiday recently. His children had to be hospitalized here due to lactose intolerance.
He had to shell out about ₹2-3 lakh on hospital bills within a couple of days. He did not have a health insurance policy or a travel policy and so had to pay everything from his savings," says Nisha Sanghavi, a certified financial planner and co-founder of Promore Fintech. Sanghavi advises all her NRI clients to protect themselves with life and health cover as a first step before planning investments.
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