This Mobile-First Insurance Provider Offers Plans as Low as P700 Per Year
“Affordable” is not a word we’d typically use to describe insurance of any kind. Monthly premiums can range from P1,000 per month to even P7,000 depending on your case, an amount that’s hardly affordable for Filipinos who don’t fit in the upper-middle-class bracket.
More: Relax, There's Affordable Insurance that Covers Dengue and COVID-19
Enter Singlife Philippines, the newest insurance player in the game that’s slowly but surely gained the attention of a large market that’s been waiting for more affordable insurance plans. Singlife Philippines, a local offshoot of the Singapore-based mother company, entered the local market in early 2020 just as COVID-19 began spreading like wildfire. The pandemic forced the new insurance provider to pivot and provide affordable plans that quickly went popular. Partnering with the Filipino super app GCash, Singlife offers insurance plans that can provide dengue and COVID-19 coverage up to P421,500 for as low as P700... per year. It’s even partnered with GCash’s sister company Globe Telecom to offer a completely free three-month insurance promo that offers up to P140,500 in coverage. Again, for free.
These plans seem extraordinary, but it’s not a hoax. Singlife has already surpassed 100,000 Globe promo joiners and continues to gain thousands of new customers per day, with its peak being about 10,000 in just 24 hours. The secret to its growth and service is the tech that guides this mobile-first provider and an understanding that Filipinos have a taste for insurance-they just want one they can afford.
“Up until now, the industry’s focus has been mainly on the higher income segments when the most affected by unforeseen expenses are the middle class. These hardworking parents, office workers, small business owners, and young professionals who aspire to secure their finances for the benefit of their loved ones are greatly underserved by existing players,” said Rien Hermans, president and CEO of Singlife Philippines.
Here’s How Singlife Tech Works
Singlife Philippines was formed as a digital company from the get-go. Completely “mobile-first,” the insurance provider utilizes smart technologies to fit customers’ needs, budgets, and more.
“Think of it as putting together LEGO pieces, but instead of following the building instructions, we got creative and assembled an entirely different model to deliver financial solutions that are new and relevant to customers,” explained Zayd Tolentino, chief technology officer of Singlife Philippines.
Singlife’s system is built by “microservices that break insurance functions into individual business components,” said Tolentino. In layman’s terms, it simply means that the insurance provider’s system promises a seamless end-to-end digital experience that simplifies insurance. Everything from managing policies, filing claims, and securing payouts happen online and in real-time, which is certainly useful in cases of medical emergencies.
Singlife Philippines’ tech is backed by its parent company in Singapore, Aviva Singlife Holdings, which is a regional leader in tech advancements. It uses Galileo Platforms’ patented blockchain technology to enhance data protection and reduce administrative costs. It also uses Amazon Web Services for all applications and workloads in the Cloud, thus creating a serverless, tech-first setup that operates for a fraction of the typical cost.
“Our technology-first approach enables us to deliver superior products to our customers in a fully digital environment for a fraction of the costs. This will certainly change the way people look at and experience life insurance. More importantly, it will open doors for more people to finally take control of how they save and get protected,” said Hermans.
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