"Another batch of good products has been taken off the shelves", "As an annuity leader, the internal rate of return has reached 4%, but it will be removed from the shelves in the next two days" similar marketing copywriting flooded the circle of friends of insurance salespeople.
Taking advantage of the downward trend of interest rates, savings insurance once again ushered in the peak sales season. On February 28, a reporter from Beijing Business Daily found that the recent "speculation and suspension of sales" on savings insurance has risen again, and the news that related products will be taken off the shelves has swiped the circle of friends. Is the product really going to be taken off the shelves or is it nothing?For consumers, do you want to buy now?
Stir-fry stopped" reappeared.
In recent days, the best first-echelon savings insurance will be taken off the shelves as a whole"""Ace increased whole life insurance, guaranteed + dividends, is expected to be removed from the shelves on February 29......In recent days, the marketing copy of insurance products "off the shelves" and "off sale" has been swiped in the circle of friends.
Since 2023, savings insurance products represented by increased whole life insurance have continued to heat up in the downward cycle of interest rates by virtue of their advantages such as income and mandatory savings.
Savings insurance is hot, and "speculation and stop selling" behavior is also rising. An insurance broker shared a ** with a reporter from Beijing Business Daily showing that dozens of savings insurance products in the market will face suspension at the end of February, including some "Internet celebrity" products.
What is the authenticity of the product discontinued?A reporter from Beijing Business Daily randomly called the customer service of the insurance company for some of the products on the ** and found that the product suspension information on the ** was half-true and half-false. For example, Zhongyi Life's "Lifetime Zhongyi Whole Life Insurance (Participating)" will be removed from the shelves on February 29, but the customer service staff of the insurance company said that it is only for the adjustment of the removal of the agency channel, and customers can directly contact the insurance company if they want to apply for insurance. In addition, the reporter confirmed with the customer service staff of the insurance company that the news that another "Internet celebrity" product, "Increasing Duo No. 5 Increasing Whole Life Insurance", was taken off the shelves.
A reporter from Beijing Business Daily combed through and found that most of the relevant insurance companies did not have an official clear notice on the "suspension of sales" of insurance products, and most of the subjects of "speculation and suspension of sales" were insurance brokerage companies and insurance brokers. In addition, in the process of publicity, salespeople often compare savings insurance products to wealth management products, one-sided comparison of returns, and ignore their protection functions.
Whether to "get on the bus" or not
Why has there been a recent resurgence of "speculation and stoppage"?Industry insiders told the Beijing Business Daily reporter that it is common for insurance products to be removed from the shelves and new, and in addition, in the past six months, supervision has also guided insurance companies to follow the "integration of newspapers and banks" and reduce the cost of debt. Before the product is removed from the shelves and adjusted, the insurance salesperson hopes to complete the current sales task through "speculation and stop selling".
Recently, a number of large state-owned banks and a number of joint-stock banks have lowered their deposit interest rates again, which objectively increases the attractiveness of some savings insurance products. In the face of some products being taken off the shelves or stopped selling, in the context of declining market interest rates, should consumers hurry up to "get on the bus" to insure?
Song Zhanjun, deputy secretary-general of the China Insurance Research Institute of Beijing Technology and Business University, said that there is no best product, only the right product at a specific time and place. Consumers buy insurance products because they meet their needs for insurance protection or wealth management. The discontinued product may be the most suitable product at the moment, or it may not be necessary. Consumers should thoroughly evaluate their existing protection options, household cash flow and financial planning decisions.
Jiang Han, a senior researcher at Pangu Think Tank, also said that for insurance consumers, the criteria for judging whether to buy savings insurance products should include the protection content of the product, the expected return, the credibility of the insurance company and the quality of service. You shouldn't buy blindly just because a product is about to be discontinued. Consumers should rationally look at the so-called "speculation and suspension of sales", carefully analyze the real reasons for the suspension of sales, compare different products, and choose insurance products that meet their needs and risk tolerance.
Repeated bans. In fact, the essence of "speculation and stop selling" is to take advantage of the opacity of information to make consumers have the urge to buy in a tight situation.
"Speculation and suspension of sales" is an act expressly prohibited by the regulator. The Measures for the Administration of Insurance Terms and Insurance Rates of Life Insurance Companies clearly stipulate that if an insurance company decides to stop using insurance terms and insurance rates in some areas, it shall not mislead in advertising and selling on the grounds that the insurance terms and insurance rates are no longer used. The Measures for the Administration of Insurance Sales Behavior, which will come into force on March 1 this year, also clearly require that insurance salespersons shall not announce to others that a certain insurance product is about to stop or adjust ** before an insurance company issues an announcement on the cessation of sales or adjustment** of an insurance product.
Previously, some insurance institutions and relevant responsible persons were also fined for "speculation and suspension of sales". The person in charge of the marketing service department of a leading life insurance company was fined for falsely publishing information on product discontinuation. Even, in 2017, the former China Insurance Regulatory Commission issued the "Consumer Reminder on Speculation and Suspension of "Return-type Health Insurance"", which strictly prohibits the "speculation" of such insurance products.
Although the regulator has been maintaining a high-pressure posture on "speculation and suspension", related problems are still repeatedly prohibited. Song Zhanjun pointed out that the behavior of "speculation and suspension of sales" is generally at the individual level of insurance people, and millions of people publicize violations at the level of personal social networking, which is difficult for regulators to reach. For this phenomenon of repeated prohibitions, the root cause is that the main responsibility of the insurance company is not fulfilled in place. In the future, from the regulatory level, we should explore public opinion or social ** regulatory technology, and investigate and deal with violations in a timely manner.
Jiang Han said that the reasons for the repeated prohibition of "speculation and stop sales" include salespeople's pursuit of performance and commissions, fierce market competition and consumers' desire for high profits. In order to prevent violations by salespeople, the insurance industry should strengthen internal management and supervision, improve the professionalism and compliance awareness of salespeople, increase penalties for violations, and improve the public's awareness of insurance products and risk awareness through consumer education.
From the perspective of insurance companies, some industry insiders said that insurance companies can also reduce the occurrence of market speculation and misleading behaviors by strengthening product publicity and information disclosure.
Beijing Business Daily reporter Li Xiumei.