GREAT Wealth Multiplier Review
A flexible endowment plan which allows you or your loved ones the option of making partial cash withdrawal at any time, the Great Eastern GREAT Wealth Multiplier aids you in attaining your financial needs/goals for the future.
Not only that, but this plan also provides you with a piece of mind by guaranteeing your capital after a certain period.
Criteria
- Minimum premium payment term of 5 years
- No medical underwriting needed
Features
Policy Terms
You can choose between a policy term of 5, 10, or 15 years with the Great Eastern GREAT Wealth Multiplier II.
By choosing the 5 or 10-year premium payment duration, the capital that you invested in will be guaranteed after your 15th policy year.
Whereas for the 15-year premium payment, your capital is only guaranteed after your 20th policy year.
Premium Allocation
100% of your premiums paid will be allocated to purchase the participating fund units.
As of 31st December 2020, the allocation of your premiums is as shown in the table below.
Payout Options
As with most endowment plans, there are two payout options for you.
Firstly, you may make partial withdrawals at any time for any financial needs that you may need. Naturally, this would lower your basic sum assured value.
Secondly, you can also opt to not make withdrawals and let your money accumulate in the policy for greater returns
Maturity Benefits
You will receive a maturity benefit that is guaranteed along with any attaching bonuses if you are still alive at the maturity of your policy, which is when you turn 120 years old.
Flexibility
Option of using Supplementary Retirement Scheme for premium payments
You have the choice of using funds from your Supplementary Retirement Scheme (SRS) account to pay for your policy’s premiums.
By making payments with your SRS, your policy will be managed according to the SRS regulations and any changes made to them in the future.
Appointment of secondary life assured
Those who wish to purchase endowment plans do it with the intention of taking care of their loved ones after they pass away. With Great Eastern GREAT Wealth Multiplier II, you can further protect them by appointing them as a secondary life to be assured by your policy
In doing so, your spouse or child whom you’ve appointed will become the insured person upon your passing, effectively keeping your policy in force.
However, be mindful that any riders under you will cease upon the conversion of the life assured from you to your appointed family member.
Furthermore, take note that the policy term is kept the same and the policy maturity will still be the policy anniversary when you turn 120, despite the conversion.
Only when the following conditions are all fulfilled, can you then appoint a second life assured.
| a | You are an individual | |
| b | The insured person is still living | |
| c | Secondary life assured to be appointed has to be: |
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| d | Secondary life assured to be appointed has to be within the minimum and maximum age of entry established by Great Eastern | |
| e | You have not made any nomination of a beneficiary with reference to your policy | |
| f | Your policy is not subject to a trust | |
| g | Funds from an account under the SRS are not used to pay your policy’s premiums | |
| h | There have not been more than 2 conversions under your policy | |
Nonetheless, you are able to annul the appointment of your secondary life before the death of the policy’s life assured.
Your appointment of a secondary life assured and the conversion has to be approved by Great Eastern.
Should the conversion not be approved despite a prior accepted appointment, you shall receive the death benefit which effectively ends your plan as well.
Your policy is only allowed to have a maximum of 3 conversions.
Bonus features
Your bonuses only become guaranteed after being announced by Great Eastern. This is due to the fact that bonuses are dependent on how the participating fund performs.
Reversionary Bonus
The reversionary bonus may be declared annually and will only be added to your guaranteed benefits after 3 policy years.
Terminal Bonus
You may receive a one-time terminal bonus, which is reviewed by Great Eastern annually when:
- You submit a claim which causes your policy to cease; or
- Your policy matures; or
- Your policy is surrendered by you.
Past rate of return of the investment
Should you decide to take on the GREAT Wealth Multiplier II policy, you can refer to the following table showing past return rates (net of expenses) to have a gauge over the participating fund’s performance.
Do take note that past performance does not dictate the future performance of the fund.
Protection
Death benefit
In the event that the insured passes on, he/she shall receive the higher of
- 110% of annual premiums paid for the basic plan; or
- their guaranteed surrender value
Should the assured have any bonuses, it will be paid out as well.
Total and permanent disability benefit
If you happen to suffer from a total and permanent disability (TPD) which is supported by a registered doctor, you shall receive the death benefit in a lump sum.
The 2 types of TPD are Presumptive TPD and Other forms of TPD.
| Types of TPD covered | Definition | Expiry of cover |
| Presumptive TPD |
|
Applicable on the whole term of coverage |
| Other forms of TPD
(Not Presumptive TPD) |
For Life Insured above age 15:
|
Other forms of TPD must be incurred before the life insured turns 65 |
For Life Insured below age 15
|
The maximum amount you can receive under this benefit is S$5 million.
Terminal Illness benefit
In the event that you’re diagnosed with a terminal illness (TI) whereby you are likely to pass away within a year’s time, you will also receive the death benefit.
Naturally, your diagnosis would have to be backed up by a specialist. At times, Great Eastern may need the diagnosis to be further confirmed by a medical personnel that they appoint.
Surrender/Ending the Policy
If your policy has been effective for minimally 3 years and you have paid 3 years of premiums, you shall receive a surrender value when you surrender your plan.
By surrendering your policy early, you may incur high fees which may exceed the surrender value you expect to receive. This may result in the amount payable to you becoming lower than your premiums paid or even zero.
Besides surrendering your policy, your plan can be terminated upon the earliest of:
| a | The person assured passing away | Provided that:
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| b | You being diagnosed with a TI and have an admitted a claim; or | |
| c | You suffering from TPD and have admitted a claim; or | |
| d | Your policy maturing or lapsing. | |
Hassle-free Application
There is no medical underwriting required under this policy making it hassle-free to apply for.
Coverage Add-ons (Riders)
There is no indication of any riders for the GREAT Wealth Multiplier on Great Eastern’s product summary and website.
Fees and charges
Due to the fact that fees and charges have already been factored into your premium amounts, this means that your premiums are net.
There are essentially no fees and charges for you if you decide to purchase the GREAT Wealth Multiplier II.
How much will I receive upon maturity of the Great Eastern GREAT Wealth Multiplier II?
If you have chosen the 5-year premium payment term (yearly payment of S$4,800), your total premiums paid of S$24,000 will be guaranteed upon your 15th policy year.
See the image below provided by Great Eastern.
The table above assumes the following:
- The return rate of investment is 4.75% per annum.
- A 35-year-old male who does not smoke purchased the policy for his child, Sam.
As we do not have the policy illustration of the GREAT Wealth Multiplier II, we are unable to show how much guaranteed and non-guaranteed cash value you can receive throughout the policy.
Based on the above image, Great Eastern estimates that you will 1.7x your capital in the 20th policy year, 3.6x in the 40th policy year, and 7.4x in the 60th year.
Do take note that no withdrawals were made and the illustration shows how much your total value of the policy is if you do not withdraw.
My Take on the Great Eastern GREAT Wealth Multiplier II
Those looking for security in their premiums paid and are looking to protect their loved ones more thoroughly would certainly like Great Eastern’s GREAT Wealth Multiplier II.
This is because your capital becomes guaranteed after at least 15 policy years.
Not only that, you can also add your loved ones as a secondary life assured which provides them with your plan’s policy coverage should you leave them.
One may consider the lack of regular payouts like most other plans a disadvantage, however, you are given the ability to make partial withdrawals any time you like might be more helpful to you in time of financial need.
Nevertheless, so far the Manulife ReadyBuilder seems like the best endowment plan to me.
That’s because they guarantee your premiums at the 15th year, have regular payouts, more premium term options, and higher illustrated returns as compared to the GREAT Wealth Multiplier II.
However, don’t take my preference as financial advice.
You should always talk to a financial advisor should you be unsure of whether a policy is for you, or if there is a better one available for yourself.
References
source https://singaporefinancialplanners.com/blog/great-wealth-multiplier-review/
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