An endowment plan is a life insurance contract designed to pay a lump sum after a specific term (on its ‘maturity’) or on death. Typical maturities are ten, fifteen or twenty years up to a certain age limit. Endowment policy also pay out in the case of critical illness. Endowment policy are typically traditional with-profits or unit-linked including those with unitised with-profits funds the holder then receives the surrender value which is determined by the insurance company depending on how long the policy has been running and how much has been paid into it.

Types of Endowment Policy:

• Unit Linked Endowment Plan-This is a fixed-term saving plan which also provides the benefit of life coverage. Under this plan option the premium paid by the insured is bifurcated into different units held under a particular investment fund, as chosen by the insured person. The return on investment entirely depends on the market performance of the fund. This plan option is best suitable for individuals who have a high-risk appetite and who want to gain high return on investment.
• Full/With Profit Endowment- Under this plan option, the basic sum assured amount equal to the death benefit is provided to the insured person. This amount is guaranteed from the starting of the policy. Moreover, the final payout paid to the insured is comparatively higher, as it includes total sum assured amount plus additional bonus (if any).
• Low-Cost Endowment-This type of endowment plans are specifically designed to help the insured to accumulate a fund for the future, which have to be paid after a particular time period. Generally, low-cost endowment plans are used for the repayment of mortgage, loans, etc. In case of demise of the insured during the policy term, the target amount is paid as minimum sum assured to the beneficiary of the policy.
• Non-profit Endowment-In non-profit traditional endowment policy, a sum assured amount is paid to the policyholder as maturity benefit or to the beneficiary of the policy as a death benefit.
• Guaranteed Policy- Endowment insurance policies guarantee that a sum of money will be given to you or your beneficiaries whether you live until the insurance policy matures or you die early. The face value of an endowment policy will be given to the policyholder on the “maturity date” or to the beneficiary of the life insurance policy in the event the insured dies. The bonuses under the policy are not guaranteed. Thus, with endowment policy you get the dual advantage of guaranteed policy benefits and non-guaranteed bonues.