SUD Life Protect Shield is a term insurance policy offered by the Star Union Dai-Ichi Life Insurance Company.

SUD Life Protect Shield is fairly priced compared to other products in the market and offers several claim payout options to customise how your family receives the claim amount.

On the flip side, it doesn't provide some important customisations like increasing cover, many limited pay options, etc. Also, the insurer has received a significant number of complaints concerning claim settlement and policy purchase processes, as compared to other insurers, indicating a poor track record in these areas.

Here is a detailed review of the SUD Life Protect Shield review.

What are the features and benefits of the SUD Life Protect Shield Plan?

The benefits and features of the SUD Life Protect Shield Plan are as follows -

Life Cover Benefit: With this term plan, your family will receive an assured sum of money if you pass away during the policy duration. With this term insurance policy, you can claim tax benefits under Section 80C of the Income Tax Act. However, there is no maturity benefit in this policy - meaning, you won’t get anything back in case you survive the policy term.
Early Entry Option: This option lets you opt out of the plan while it is active. You can do so during a specific timeframe determined by the insurer and you’ll receive a refund of all the premiums you’ve paid up to that point. However, this plan has no early exit option.
Cover Duration: This plan offers you a life cover, up to the age of 70 years. This means you can enjoy the cover benefits post-retirement as well.
Increasing Cover: The SUD Life Protect Shield term plan does not provide the increasing cover option to grow your cover automatically. So, every time you want to upgrade your coverage, you will have to buy a new term insurance policy.
Limited Pay Option: Using this option, you can finish paying off all your premiums in larger and quicker instalments within 5, 7, 10, 12 or 15 years. This feature is suitable if you want to get the burden of premiums off your chest while you still have a dependable income.
Claim Payout Options: The SUD Life Protect Shield Plan provides several options to customize how your family will receive the claim amount. They are -
- One-time lump sum: Here, your nominee will receive the entire claim payout in one large payment.
- Monthly income: Here, your nominee will be paid a regular income on a monthly basis for a specific number of years.
- Lump-Sum with monthly income: Here, your nominee will receive a part of the claim amount as a lump sum. The remaining claim amount will be divided into several smaller payments and will be paid on a monthly income basis.

Which riders are available with the SUD Life Protect Shield Plan?

Riders are additional benefits that you can opt for by paying an extra premium. SUD Life Protect Shield Plan provides only Comprehensive Critical Illness Rider. This add-on pays an additional amount as a lump sum, in case you get diagnosed with a serious disease listed in the policy document. This money can be used to replace the loss of income and to pay for any additional health-related expenses your family might incur as a result of the disease.

Why should you consider buying a policy from SUD Life Insurance Company?

Here are a few reasons why you can consider purchasing from SUD Life Insurance Company -

Online Tracking of Claims: SUD Life Insurance provides your nominee the option to track the status of the claim online as well.
Claim Settlement Ratio: The claim settlement ratio of SUD Life Insurance is 96.07% and their claim amount settlement ratio is 91.41%.

What are the limitations of buying from SUD Life Insurance Company?

Here are some of the disadvantages and limitations of buying from SUD Life Insurance Company -

Speed of claims: SUD Life Insurance has settled 88.65% of its claims in less than 30 days. This indicates that your family or nominee might have to wait a little longer to receive the claim payout after submitting the claims documents.
Claims Complaint: As per our research, we found that SUD Life Insurance Company has received a higher number of claim-related complaints in comparison to other insurers, accounting to 0.34%.
Length of the Claim Form: SUD Life, has a moderately lengthier claim form compared to other insurers. This indicates your family is likely to face some hassle while filling out the claim form.
Home Pick-up for Claims: The insurer does not provide the option to pick up the documents from home. Your family will have to visit the branch to submit the documents personally.
Personal relationship manager: SUD Life Insurance Company does not provide a personal relationship manager - someone to assist your nominee throughout the claim settlement process.

How is the customer service provided by SUD Life Insurance Company?

Response on Toll-Free Service: When it comes to customer service, our research found the insurer’s response over the toll-free number to be quick compared to other insurers.
Response on Twitter: Your nominee can also connect over Twitter for any doubts or queries with regard to their claims. Our research suggests that SUD Life Insurance Company’s response rate over social media is average.

So, it is recommended that your nominee contacts the company via their toll-free number to receive prompt assistance.

About the Insurer - SUD Life Insurance Company

SUD Life, also referred to as Star Union Dai-Ichi Life Insurance, is a life insurance company in India. Founded in 2009, it is a joint venture between Bank of India and Union Bank of India, two of India's leading public sector banks, and Dai-ichi Life Holdings, a leading life insurance company in Japan. Headquartered in Mumbai, its CEO/MD is Mr. Abhay Tewari.

Final review of SUD Life Protect Shield Plan

Considering all the product benefits, customer service, and claims experience, and on the basis of 100+ parameters analyzed by our in-house research team, the SUD Life Protect Shield Plan gets a Beshak⭐Rating of 1.9/5.