Wednesday, October 03, 2007 Insurance thru text to be launched
A FINANCIAL services company is initially introducing in Cebu insurance products that will appeal to the “sachet” market.
Sun Life Financial has partnered with e-Philippine Long Distance Telephone (ePLDT) Inc. in introducing the ProTXT line of insurance products in pre-paid card forms.
The Lakbay ProTXT and Family ProTXT are personal accident insurance policies as low as P20 and can provide services according to the client’s needs.
Through a text message, the card holder could be insured for 15 days or one year.
“We always wanted to spread the goodness of the product to as many people as possible,” said Raoul Littaua, Sun Life senior vice president (VP) for marketing said during the signing of the memorandum of agreement and launching of the products at the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel and Casino in Lahug last Saturday.
He noted that less than 10 percent of the country’s population took advantage of their products.
Of the country’s 84 million population, only 12 percent have insurance policies “which signifies that millions of families are still insecure about their future,” Henry Joseph Herrera, Sun Life Financial Philipines president and chief executive officer, said in a statement.
Need
The ProTXT line is a start “to reach out to these people who mostly belong to the C, D and E markets, which are composed of workers and white collar professionals” who need the insurance coverage the most, Herrera said.
He said having such a noble mission and firm belief in every Filipino’s right to have a secure future, Sun Life is introducing innovative personal accident insurance packages as starter kits toward financial consciousness.
The company chose Cebu to be the pilot area for the products because “we believe we will learn a lot from the Cebuanos. Even in the laun-ching, they have a lot of questions already,” Littaua told reporters.
The products will be available in strategic places around Cebu City.
Available
Since they want it to be available everywhere, it could be purchased like mobile phone e-loads and other “sachet” amenities, Josette Lloren, ePLDT eCommerce services group head, said.
ePLDT, for its part, will support the information technology (IT) system aspect and will enable an infrastructure that would provide telephone communication services to Sun Life and its customers, ePLDT Asia director and VP for technical services Emma-nual Faraon said.
The alliance signifies both companies’ intention to make the products available to the majority.
Aside from providing affordable insurance plans, Sun Life is also conducting a market education campaign that aims to increase every Fi-lipino’s consciousness about managing finances wisely, Littaua said.
He said through the ProTXT products, the card-holder will be given information about the benefits of a life insurance policy for himself and his dependents.
Established in 1871, Sun Life Financial is an international financial services organization focused on providing financial services to individuals and business throughout their lifetime.
On the hand, ePLDT Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of PLDT Co. and provides information and communications technology services to a wide range of enterprises across various industries. (TEP)
