Experts remind that you will encounter trouble in buying insurance claims in Hong Kong, and the exchange rate risk should not be underestimated.
Pay attention to buying insurance in Hong Kong.
"Several of the tour groups we send to Hong Kong every month go to Hong Kong to buy insurance and deposits. Not long ago, a group member smashed 500,000 to buy an insurance for the whole family. " Miss Lin, a tour guide of a large travel agency in Shenzhen, told the reporter.
The reporter learned that due to low investment and high return, more and more Shenzhen people choose to go to Hong Kong to buy insurance. In particular, according to the recently implemented RMB business settlement agreement of Hong Kong banks, Hong Kong insurance products that can only be settled in Hong Kong dollars can also be purchased in RMB, which has triggered a "wave" of buying insurance in Hong Kong and Shenzhen.
In the interview, the reporter found that most of the Shenzhen people who went to Hong Kong to buy insurance were middle-class families with relatively rich lives. In addition to buying popular critical illness insurance and life insurance for themselves, many Shenzhen people go to Hong Kong to buy Hong Kong insurance directly for newborns after giving birth. Among them, although many people invest by buying insurance, more people are interested in the reputation and services of insurance companies in Hong Kong.
However, experts remind that when buying insurance in Hong Kong, you should pay attention to whether it is an "underground insurance policy". While enjoying high returns, we should also consider risks such as going to Hong Kong in person, hiring a Hong Kong lawyer due to policy disputes, and exchange rate. Moreover, once an insurance company insured in Hong Kong goes bankrupt, the insured may lose all his money.
Text/reporter Yan,/reporter Gao Hetao
Shenzhen people are keen to go to Hong Kong to buy insurance, which has become a "trend".
Hong Kong is a region with a highly developed insurance industry. In Hong Kong, there is a saying that "there are more insurance companies than rice shops". According to statistics, there are currently more than 260 insurance companies in Hong Kong, including branches, agencies and brokerage companies, and the total number of insurance institutions exceeds 2,800. The annual premium of these insurance companies is as high as HK$ 654.38 billion.
In recent years, it is nothing new for mainlanders to go to Hong Kong to buy insurance. The reporter learned from the latest data released by the Office of the Commissioner of Insurance of Hong Kong that in 2009, mainland residents invested HK$ 3 billion to buy insurance in Hong Kong. "Judging from the mainland documents I have made at hand, 80% are from Guangdong Province and half are from Shenzhen." Mr. Jin, an insurance broker in Hong Kong, told reporters, "Many mainlanders bought insurance in Hong Kong under the persuasion of friends because the government does not encourage cross-border insurance."
Xiaojin explained to reporters that the law expressly prohibits Hong Kong brokers from selling insurance policies to mainland residents in the Mainland. These Hong Kong insurance policies sold in the Mainland are so-called "underground insurance policies", and mainlanders are allowed to come to Hong Kong to buy insurance. According to the regulations of the insurance regulatory agency in Hong Kong, policies that are not endorsed in Hong Kong are invalid.
A staff member of Shenzhen Insurance Institute told the reporter that if the insurance policy is signed within the territory of an insurance company in Hong Kong, its legal effect is not protected by mainland laws, but it is recognized as a valid policy by Hong Kong laws. If an "underground insurance policy" is signed, not only the agent's sales behavior will be severely investigated, but also the signed insurance policy is invalid.
People in the industry also help.
LISA, who worked as an insurance broker for AIA in Hong Kong from 65438 to 0997, told reporters that Shenzhen people came to Hong Kong to buy insurance mainly for education and medical care. She even met many cases in which people in the industry who worked as insurance brokers in the Mainland chose to buy medical insurance in Hong Kong.
Why is insurance in Hong Kong so attractive? LISA told reporters, "First of all, the insurance industry in Hong Kong has a long history and a solid foundation; Secondly, Hong Kong is a world financial center, and its efficient, transparent and strict financial supervision system enjoys a high reputation internationally. In addition, Hong Kong insurance companies use a wide range of investment channels to conduct investment activities in places with the highest investment return potential in the world to earn higher returns for customers. "
LISA analyzed that the high security of insurance in Hong Kong is particularly evident in medical insurance. "In Hong Kong, teeth are also covered by insurance, but not in the Mainland. In addition, there are some projects that cannot be insured in the Mainland that can be insured in Hong Kong, such as cancer in situ and AIDS among men and women outside the mainland's critical illness insurance catalogue. "
"Insurance policies in Hong Kong pay more attention to protecting customers' interests." LISA stressed that in the Mainland, insurance is basically a long-term plan. During the whole insurance contract period, customers are always in a weak position, while insurance companies are in a strong position. As an "indisputable" clause in the insurance policy in Hong Kong, it is clearly stipulated that the insurance company shall not refuse to cover life insurance claims for more than two years, which limits the power of the insurance company and protects the interests of customers to the maximum extent.
Low investment and high return are very attractive.
Ms. Zhong, who lives in Dongmen, has been buying insurance in Hong Kong since 2004. She told reporters that the reason why she chose to go to Hong Kong to buy insurance was that she took a fancy to low investment and high return.
Ms. Zhong told the reporter that because she had no descendants, she bought a critical illness insurance in Hong Kong and only needed to pay 5,000 Hong Kong dollars a year. However, after paying HK$ 65,438+00, she can get a premium of HK$ 200,000 by herself or her designated successor after a serious illness or death. "I compared it. If it is the same type of critical illness insurance, it will cost 3,000 yuan more to buy in the mainland. "
Ms. Zhong said that in addition, there are many cash dividends when buying insurance in Hong Kong. "Every three years, the insurance company will refund the premium for one year, which means I only need to pay the premium for seven years." Ms. Zhong said, "In addition, the interest rate of buying insurance in Hong Kong is also very objective and cost-effective, and the rate of return is beyond the reach of mainland insurance."
In the interview, the reporter learned that the premium for buying life insurance with critical illness insurance in Hongkong is sometimes only 1/2 to 1/3 in the Mainland. Moreover, critical illness insurance covers 38 diseases except skin cancer, far more than the mainland, and it is subject to the standard medical expenses in Hong Kong.
According to the data learned by the reporter from the insurance industry in Hong Kong, in terms of savings life insurance, the rate of return of insurance in Hong Kong is mostly 5% ~ 10%, and with the annual cash dividend, the highest rate can reach about 30%, while the rate of return of ordinary life insurance in the Mainland is generally maintained at around 2.5%. "This ten-fold yield gap has to be weighed by many Shenzhen people. Finally, they went to Hong Kong to buy insurance, so many tour groups bought insurance. " Miss Lin, a tour guide of a travel agency in Shenzhen, told reporters that half a month ago, a real estate developer in Shenzhen bought a critical illness insurance for the whole family at a cost of 500,000 yuan. "Of course, he must have investment considerations, because his family has already bought insurance in the Mainland."
Buy insurance directly when you give birth to a child in Hong Kong.
According to LISA, as the number of mainlanders who go to Hong Kong to give birth soars, many mothers buy Hong Kong insurance directly for their newborns after giving birth in Hong Kong.
Mrs. Li gave birth to a son and a daughter in Hong Kong. Although both husband and wife are from Jiangsu, they have settled in Shenzhen. Mrs. Li believes that since both children were born in Hong Kong, they have taken out two medical insurances for their children through an intermediary in Hong Kong.
Mrs. Li said that insurance claims in Hong Kong are actually quite convenient. I don't have to go to Hong Kong at all. I'll prepare the documents as required, and then ask the salesman of the insurance company in Hong Kong to come and get them.
"I pay almost HK$ 65,438+RMB 0,000 for hospitalization medical insurance for my two children every year. My eldest daughter is ill. She has already lost more than 20,000 yuan in less than four years of insurance, and as long as the hospitalization invoice and the doctor fill out the form, the insurance company will compensate you in full, saving the trouble of restricting the types of drugs insured in the Mainland. "