Everyone knows about LIC in the country, but not many have heard about Postal Life Insurance (PLI). Please note that insurance should never be done as an investment.
History of PLI
PLI started off as welfare scheme for Postal Employees way back in 1884. Extended the cover to employees of Central and State governments | Defence | PSU | Banks | Educational Inst | Local Bodies | Professionals (CA, Engineers, Dr, Lawyers, MBA) | Companies listed in NSE/BSE
We will compare the LIC and PLI from three aspects – Premium Cost vs Returns vs Ease of use. In the end I will also share my personal opinion about my personal experience of using PLI.
Premium Cost
The premium cost of endowment plans for a 44 year old male with face value of 15L for 15 years , came to around 95K in both LIC and PLI. No winner here.
Bonus declared
For the same endowment plans LIC declared 44 INR per 1000 Sum Assured as Bonus. For the same plan, PLI declared 52 per 1000 Sum Assured. PLI clear winner here.
Ease of Purchase/Premium payment
Buying the plan in PLI is a bit cumbersome since you need to go through a postal agent. LIC allows online purchase these days. Payment of premium is online in both PLI/LIC. LIC clear winner here.
It is important to note that PLI is the safest with the guarantee provided by the Govt of India. Overall with a bit of pain, I would highly recommend trying out PLI, if you are sure to buy an endowment plan.
Finally – Please separate insurance and investment 🙂
