2012 News Releases

Makati City - How ready are you for retirement? Financial experts warn that simply relying on government benefits might not be enough.

“Retirement actually comes sooner than most people think,” said Indren Naidoo, president and CEO of Manulife Philippines.

“The problem is most people aren’t prepared for it so by the time they want to retire, they don’t have enough funds. People end up either working for a longer period or they become financially dependent on relatives and friends,” he added.

According to Naidoo, ideally, the best way to ensure that people are ready for retirement is to start planning for it early on in their career. This is particularly important because for most people do not yet know what they may want to do in their retirement.

“Some people may just want to relax, incurring just daily and incidental expenses. Others may wish to pursue leisure activities, vacations or even lifetime ambitions. Either way, they will still need funds and the earlier they start planning, the more options they will have later on,” explained Naidoo.

With this in mind, Manulife Philippines through its subsidiary Manulife Financial Plans, Inc. (MFP), recently bolstered its Plan Right pension product which is a retirement and savings plan that provides guaranteed pension at the time that policyholders need it most.

“Government pensions don't kick in until employees have put in up to 20 years of service and are at least 60 years old. Whereas with Plan Right, planholders have more flexibility by choosing a maturity period that can be short as 12 years,” said Naidoo.

Plan Right is a comprehensive and flexible plan that is designed to meet the savings and retirement needs of Manulife’s clients. It provides guaranteed cash benefits upon maturity plus numerous protection benefits such as: Credit Life where the plan is considered fully paid in case of the planholder’s death within the premium-paying period; and Waiver of Installments due to Total and Permanent Disability. Optional riders include Term Life, where cash assistance will be given to the planholder’s beneficiaries in case of his/her demise, and Accidental Death and Dismemberment benefit.

Additionally, the plan comes with a transferability option wherein the original policyholder can choose to delegate all rights and option of the plan to other people.

Manulife also offers Corporate Plan Right to employers seeking a way to easily address the financial as well as retirement benefit objectives of the company for their employees.

“The bottom line is that with this plan, we want to encourage not just our current policyholders but also potential ones to start thinking about their future, particularly when it comes to their financial needs,” concluded Naidoo.

To know more about Plan Right, contact Manulife at (02) 884-7000 or e-mail phcustomercare@manulife.com or your Manulife agent.

About Manulife Philippines
The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company opened its doors for business in the Philippines in 1907. Since then, Manulife’s Philippine Branch and later The Manufacturers Life Insurance Co. (Phils.), Inc. (Manulife Philippines) has grown to become one of the leading life insurance companies in the country. Manulife Philippines is a wholly-owned domestic subsidiary of Manulife Financial Corporation.

Manulife Financial Plans, Inc. (MFP) is a subsidiary of Manulife Philippines.

About Manulife Financial
Manulife Financial is a leading Canada-based financial services group with principal operations in Asia, Canada and the United States. In 2012, we celebrate 125 years of providing clients strong, reliable, trustworthy and forward-thinking solutions for their most significant financial decisions. Our international network of employees, agents and distribution partners offers financial protection and wealth management products and services to millions of clients. We also provide asset management services to institutional customers. Funds under management by Manulife Financial and its subsidiaries were C$512 billion (US$512 billion) as at March 31, 2011. The Company operates as Manulife Financial in Canada and Asia and primarily as John Hancock in the United States.

Manulife Financial Corporation trades as ‘MFC’ on the TSX, NYSE and PSE, and under ‘945’ on the SEHK. Manulife Financial can be found on the Internet at manulife.com.