ICICI Prudential Child Plans

Amongst the entire private life insurers in the country, ICICI has enjoyed a dominant position for more than twenty years by offering world-class products and quality consistent services. The range of products offered by ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company includes Protection plans in the form of term plans, Child Plans, Savings, and Investment Plans which are available in both conventional or ULIPs form and pension plans. With a wide range of products, the company strives to meet every individual's insurance-related requirement at a single source.

Why Child Plans?

Child Insurance plans have become very important because they specifically provide for a child’s future even in the absence of a parent. Moreover, the rising costs of education can be dealt with if a parent is equipped with a child's education insurance plan. The inbuilt premium waiver rider ensures that the plan continues even after the parent’s death and the benefits accrue and when they are payable so that the benefits can be utilized for the purpose for which it was initially planned, i.e. for the child’s future. 

For example, an individual with a child currently aged 5 years buys a 20 years child plan which promises money backs at the 15th, 17th, and 20th policy anniversary. The policyholder has planned the money-back periods to coincide with the child's educational milestones and would receive the funds when the child reaches 20 years, 22 years, and 25 years. The funds will be utilized to take care of the child’s higher education. If the insured dies, the plan will not be terminated. Future premiums will be paid by the company and the money-backs will be paid as and when promised. 

This is why it’s so important to invest in child education insurance plans. These policies ensure that the money will be utilized only for the child’s education, which is the usual rationale behind the purchase of such plans.

ICICI Prudential Life Child Plans

ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company offers only one kind of child insurance plan which has an exhaustive list of features and benefits. Let us take a look at this child education insurance plan by ICICI Prudential in detail.

ICICI Pru Smart Kid Assure Plan

It is a unit-linked child plan which offers the following benefits to the customer:

• It offers two options in investment portfolio strategies which are Lifecycle based Portfolio Strategy and Fixed Portfolio Strategy. 

• Under the Lifecycle Based Portfolio Strategy, the premium is initially distributed between two funds namely Multi-Cap Growth Fund and Income Fund based on the age of the policyholder.  Multi-Cap Growth Fund is a high risk and high return fund with the maximum allocation of premium in the initial years while Income Fund is a low-risk low return fund. 

• With the passage of the policy term and the increasing age of the policyholder, the investment will be redistributed gradually every year with money being transferred from the Multi-Cap Growth Fund to the Income Fund to protect it from high volatility. 

• As the policy nears maturity, the bulk of the investment will be in the Income Fund which offers a low-risk profile. The distribution and balancing of the allocation are done by the company automatically.

• Under the Fixed Portfolio Strategy, the company offers a choice of 6 funds and the policyholder will have to choose the fund according to his risk appetite. The funds available under the options are Opportunities Fund, Multi-Cap Growth Fund, Blue Chip Fund, Multi-Cap Balanced Fund, Income Fund, and Money Market Fund.

• There is a feature of Automatic Transfer under the Fixed Portfolio strategy through which the policyholder may choose to invest all or a part of his premium in the Money Market Fund. From there, a chosen amount may be transferred automatically to the Blue Chip Fund or Multi-Cap Growth Fund, or Opportunities Fund as per the policyholder's choice.

• These options make this child education insurance plan by ICICI Prudential a good investment, given the opportunities to create a significant wealth corpus through a combination of high and low-risk funds. 

• On the maturity of the plan, the available fund value is payable to the policyholder. The policyholder may choose to receive the fund value on maturity in a lump sum or keep the proceeds invested with the company for further 5 years under the Settlement Option. During these 5 years, the policyholder can avail the fund value in installments. This particular feature makes for a good choice for parents looking to invest in this child's education insurance plan by ICICI Prudential. 

• In the case of death of the insured during the tenure of the plan, the Basic Sum Assured chosen at the time of buying is paid. Moreover, future premiums are waived off and the plan runs unaffected. On maturity, the available fund value is again paid to the beneficiary who is the child. 

• There is an option of adding the Income Benefit Rider wherein, in the case of death of the insured, 10% of the Rider Sum Assured will be paid to the beneficiary every year post-death till the maturity of the plan. This amount is in addition to the death benefit payable.

• Accidental Death and Disability Benefit Rider is also available under the plan which promises additional payment in case the insured succumbs to accidental death or disability

• The plan offers Guaranteed Additions which are added to the fund value at the end of 15 years. The additional income with this child education insurance plan by ICICI Prudential makes way for a bigger education corpus for the child.

• From the 6th year of the policy, there will be an additional allocation of premium @ 2%. Thus, from the 6th policy year, 102% of the premiums paid will be allocated to the fund.

• The Sum Assured can be increased or decreased subject to certain terms and conditions.

• Additional premiums can be paid through top-ups with a minimum value of Rs.2000.

• Switching between funds is allowed under the Fixed Portfolio Strategy with a minimum value of Rs.2000

• One free partial withdrawal is allowed every three policy years subject to a maximum of 20% of the available fund value as of the date of withdrawal.

• A change in a portfolio strategy is allowed once every year.

• Wealth Booster additions are made to the coverage amount under this child education insurance plan by ICICI Prudential. These are added on every 5th policy year starting from the 10 years. 

Eligibility Details

Applying for a Child Education Insurance Plan at ICICI Prudential

ICICI Pru Child Education Plan can be purchased either online or offline through intermediaries. Each option comes with standard procedures as described below:

1. Online

   The company offers specific plans which are available online only. The customer needs to log into the company's website, choose the required plan, choose the coverage and provide the details. The premium will be determined using the filled details. The customer then needs to pay the premium online through credit card, debit card, or net banking facilities and the policy will be issued

2. Intermediaries

   Plans which are not available online can be purchased from agents, brokers, banks, etc. where the intermediaries help with the application process.

How Does a Child Benefit From the Child Education Insurance Plan by ICICI Prudential?

The child is the primary beneficiary in a child plan. As a result, all the benefits received from the plan can be used by her/him to fulfill their needs. A child's education insurance plan is purchased to pay for the child’s education costs, marriage, or to even help her/him start a business. In the unfortunate event that the earning parent dies within the policy period, the child's finances remain covered. Even without the need to pay premiums (on account of the premium waiver benefit), the plan remains active and the sum assured is paid at the decision point of time. Therefore, the child education insurance plan offered by ICICI Prudential helps the child in every way possible till he or she becomes financially independent.

How Does a Parent Benefit from the Child Plan by ICICI Prudential?

The parent is the policyholder in a child's plan. As a result, (s)he pays the premiums and keeps the plan active. In this unit-linked child education insurance plan by ICICI Prudential, the benefits prove to be extremely important because once the premiums are paid, the fund begins to build up. This, subsequently, helps ease the parent’s financial burdens. 

Education is one of the costliest sectors today and so paying for a child’s education can be taxing. But the child education plan helps you here, as you can opt to receive lump-sum amounts of money when you need them most – at the time of your child's school admission, college admission, etc. 

You can also set up a fund for your child’s marriage with the ICICI Pru Smart Kid Assure Plan. A child education cum insurance plan, such as this, helps you save early and gradually accumulate enough for the big moments in your child’s life.

How Exactly is a Child’s Future Protected With The Help of a Child Education Insurance Plan?

The pointers discussed above clearly indicate how a child’s future is secured with the child education plan offered by ICICI Prudential. Not only does it assist the parents in paying for the child’s education, marriage, etc, a child plan also ensures that the child continues to get a good education even if the parent suddenly dies.

Therefore, the child education insurance plan by ICICI Pru not only provides for the expenses of the child’s future educational expenses but also covers the risk of the parent's life. This makes sure that if the parent dies prematurely, the child’s education is not affected.

Child Education Insurance Plan by ICICI Prudential - FAQs