5 Reasons to consider offshore life insurance

So, when it comes to risk protection, how can such needs benefit from life cover? Here, we outline some of the many benefits to having offshore life insurance cover.

“Discovery Life offers an authentic offshore life insurance product which takes into account trends like increased globalisation and an appetite for more diversified financial portfolios,” says Discovery Life Deputy Chief Executive, Gareth Friedlander.

“Discovery International caters for this kind of accessibility and optionality, providing South Africans with the ability to receive world-class risk protection benefits in a comprehensively designed, bespoke life plan that pays out in U.S Dollars – the world’s reserve currency.”

• Click here for more information about the Discovery Dollar Life Plan

“With this offshore risk protection plan, policyholders also have access to efficient wealth transfer and tax features, offshore severe illness and disability cover, protection for family mobility and cover for a range of offshore liabilities,” he adds.

5 Advantages of Discovery’s Dollar Life Plan

Here, we highlight some of the key features of each available benefit on The Dollar Life Plan:

1. The LifeTime Capital Disability Benefit

“This benefit gives policyholders access to cutting-edge medical technology available around the globe, and which can help a client to afford regaining quality of life,” says Friedlander.

“Clients with disabilities can benefit from being able to access medical devices such as artificial hearts, Exosuits, wearable robotics and cutting-edge tech for the blind – all of which can come at a significant cost. This benefit helps to cover this cost,” he adds.

2. The Severe Illness Benefit

This comprehensively protective benefit covers all major body systems (including the nervous, respiratory, gastrointestinal, heart and artery, endocrine, and musculoskeletal systems). This benefit also includes COVID-19 specific protection under a market-first Multi-Organ Benefit.

“The Severe Illness Benefit is also tailorable,” explains Friedlander. “Clients can opt for The Comprehensive Benefit which pays out a lump sum based on the severity of a diagnosed illness; or the LifeTime Severe Illness Benefit. This option offers a minimum pay out of at least 100% of an insured amount for qualifying

heart attacks, strokes, or cancers. It also pays out up to 215% of the insured amount based on the long-term impact of severe illnesses,” he adds further.

Additional benefits policyholders can consider for tailoring their cover include:

• The Global Treatment Benefit: This benefit covers international healthcare procedures by expert medical practitioners at facilities around the world.
• Unlimited multiple claims: Policyholders have access to the most comprehensive multiple claims facility in the market, which allows multiple related non-progressive claims to be made in excess of the benefit amount.
• The Intensive Care Benefit: This covers any necessary intensive care unit (ICU) admissions relating to both trauma and severe illness events at no additional premium.
• Cancer Relapse Benefit: This benefit automatically applies to the LifeTime and LifeTime Plus Severe Illness cover options, so as to better provide financial support following a recurrence of a cancer after a year’s remission period.
• The Early Cancer Benefit: Provides a pay-out of up to $16 000 for an extensive list of cancers if they are detected early.
• The Cancer Exome Sequencing Benefit: Provides a pay-out to assist in funding the costs of sequencing of certain high-risk tumours to determine the optimal treatment regime

3. The Dollar Global Education Protector

“The Dollar Global Education Protector funds all of your child’s education needs (from crèche to college) if you are unable to due to death, disability or illness – and even if your child doesn’t go to college, the benefit pays out the maximum eligible sum in dollars to the beneficiary.”

The Dollar Global Educator Protector automatically comes with The College Funder Benefit, which enables you to fund up to 100% of your children’s college education. “So, if you manage your health and wellness while your child grows up, the benefit rewards you by paying a lump sum that can be used to fund your child’s international college fees,” adds Friedlander.

4. Vitality Exchange Rate Protector

The Vitality Exchange Rate Protector fixes the Dollar cost of premiums for up to nine years, with discounts of up to 21% of the prevailing exchange rate.  This essentially provides exchange rate certainty on premiums during this period.

“Given that the Dollar appreciates against the Rand by an average of 6% per year over the long term, that’s a benefit worth locking in,” adds Friedlander.

5. The power of integration and how it can reward engagement in health and wellness

“One of the great things about Discovery’s range of Shared-Value products is that clients can link their products across the group for added benefits and features,” says Friedlander.

“Dollar Life Plan policyholders can receive significant value by linking their cover to other Discovery products – such as Vitality, Discovery Health or Discovery Bank. Policyholders have the opportunity to improve their fitness, health and financial states simultaneously; and in so doing improve the value of their integrated cover.”

Policyholders can enjoy initial premium discounts of up to 42%, which can also be maintained over time as they manage their overall health and financial wellness. Clients who are engaged in health and wellness will also benefit from PayBacks every 5 years which returns as much as 50% of their premiums to them.

Contact your financial adviser to find out more about the Dollar Life Plan today.

The Discovery Dollar Life Plan is issued by Discovery Life International, the Guernsey branch of Discovery Life Limited (South Africa), licensed by the Guernsey Financial Services Commission under the Insurance Business (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law 2002 to carry on long-term insurance business.

The Discovery Dollar Life Plan is also subject to the South African Long-term Insurance Act of 1998. Discovery Life Limited. Registration number 1966/003901/06, is a licensed life insurer, an authorised financial services and registered credit provider, NCR Reg No. NCRCP3555.