Full sum insured paid upfront upon general cancer diagnosis

Coverage can reach 200% of sum insured with refill death benefit

[NH NongHyup Life]
[NH NongHyup Life]

NH NongHyup Life on Thursday launched a new whole-life insurance product that pays out the full sum insured upon a general cancer diagnosis and then restores the death benefit afterward.

The product, called Geongang Chaeum NH Cancer Whole Life Insurance (partial surrender value payment type, non-dividend), pays 150 percent of the main contract's sum insured as a death benefit. If the policyholder is diagnosed with general cancer during the coverage period, they receive 100 percent of the sum insured as an "advance payment," which can be used for treatment costs or living expenses.

After the advance payment is made, a "refill death benefit" restores the death coverage. Upon death, the policy guarantees 100 percent of the sum insured — and when combined with the advance payment already received, the total payout reaches 200 percent of the sum insured.

A mandatory supplementary rider covers diagnoses of breast cancer, prostate cancer and minor cancers. Breast and prostate cancer diagnoses pay 50 percent of the sum insured, while minor cancers pay 10 percent.

If a policyholder is diagnosed with general cancer during the premium payment period, all remaining premiums are waived. Customers who complete the entire payment period without a general cancer diagnosis receive a "health congratulations bonus," which can be withdrawn in full or in part. A separate retirement fund conversion rider also allows policyholders to redirect their surrender value toward retirement savings.

The minimum enrollment age is 15 for standard applicants and 20 for simplified underwriting, with coverage available up to age 70 depending on eligibility. Policyholders may choose a premium payment term of either 10 or 15 years.

"Whole-life insurance is a product designed to protect a family's financial stability against unexpected death," said Shin Myeong-yong, head of product development at NH NongHyup Life. "We designed this product so that policyholders can use it to cover the costs that come with a cancer diagnosis while still restoring the death benefit — preserving the core purpose of whole-life insurance."

The new product is an extension of NH NongHyup Life's strategy to expand protection-type insurance sales. In the first half of this year, the insurer grew sales of high-margin protection products and secured a new business contractual service margin (CSM) of 601.9 billion won ($443 million), up 82.2 percent from 330.4 billion won in the same period last year. As of the end of June, the in-force CSM stood at 4.77 trillion won, an increase of 497.6 billion won from the start of the year.


won@heraldcorp.com