Needs before product names
Modern life education starts from needs: dependants, final expenses, debts, education, retirement gaps, emergency buffers and disability income. List personal vs business needs (key person, partners, employee benefits) separately—one “do-everything” policy is not a plan.
- Personal: dependency years, mortgage, education, retirement, disability income
- Business: key person, owners/partners, group benefits and leave gaps
Insurable interest, utmost good faith and disclosure
Life contracts usually need a legally recognised interest in the life insured; parental interest in a minor is often a statutory extension in the HK curriculum frame—blood ties alone often are not enough. Material facts are those a prudent insurer would use to accept or price risk—“unrelated to the eventual cause of death” is not a free pass.
Benefit contracts, level premium and cash value
Most life cover is a benefit (contracted sum), not property indemnity. Premium thinking often splits mortality, interest assumptions and expenses; natural premiums rise with age, while level premiums smooth cost over time—so cash value, loans and nonforfeiture options can emerge.
Study tips
- Write three lines of dependant-income needs before any product name
- Self-test: one benefit-contract example vs one indemnity example