KUALA LUMPUR: Allianz Life Insurance Malaysia Bhd (Allianz Life) recorded a 35-fold jump in new insurance businesses which were set up with the estate planning concept in 2021, compared with 2020.

       Chief executive officer Charles Ong said the public’s awareness of estate planning has increased since last year.

       "This is an encouraging trend and the company will continue to find ways to increase estate planning awareness among Malaysians.

       "We were actively pushing the Insurance Trust concept and introduced the Allianz Estate Planner in 2021, amidst the challenging and uncertain year,” Ong said in a statement today.

       Apart from that, Allianz Life has worked with several parties, including the Malaysian Financial Planning Council (MFPC) and RHB Trustees Bhd to ensure that their agents have in-depth knowledge of estate planning which would help them in increasing the people’s knowledge of the subject.

       "We want to emphasise to the people that getting an estate plan is a means of protection for your loved ones, especially young children.

       "Without proper estate planning, your assets are at risk of being frozen, which will affect your family in terms of delayed inheritance, and in a worst-case scenario, discontinued income,” added Ong.

       The company had taken various steps to boost the public’s awareness on the importance of estate planning.

       In 2020, Allianz Life and MFPC inked a training services agreement that allows Allianz Life agents to enrol in the council’s Professional Estate Planning Adviser Programme and gain in-depth knowledge on integrating these services into effective financial or estate planning.

       It had also partnered with RHB Trustees to provide customers with trustee services to help manage and protect their legacy for their families. - Bernama