In this article, we are going to talk about things you need to know before buying maid insurance for yourself. Also, we are going to tell you about what does maid insurance cove and how to choose the best policy for FDW.
What are maids, and why are they kept?
Maids are those people who are kept in almost every household to support the people. Maids are also called household helper people to give them kind of respect. This is done so that all the maids, whether it is male or female, are happy with their job. If any employee or person is happy with a job, they tend to do it even better and with focus.
There are at least 250,000 maids who are there in Singapore, and those are currently employed. There is a need for a maid in Singapore because almost everyone is working, and they need help in the household. So they keep these people on the job who are responsible for keeping their house clean and also their utensils.
According to the rules set by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), every maid should be insurance. That is because you never know when a maid might feel sick or needs to be hospitalized. This insurance will cover any kind of expense that occurs due to the maid. It does not matter whether the maid is from outside of Singapore or not.
You will have to take insurance, show it to the authorities then hire the maid. Maid insurance Singapore is not a thing like a car and home, so it is not talked about much in the market. Some governments are trying to promote this insurance for the safety of the workers.
Most of the maids are hired from agencies, so there is no need of taking insurance. So people do not take any kind of policy as the maid is covered by the company. Also, the maid agency takes insurance for their maid in case anything happens to him or her.
What is the coverage requirement for Foreign Domestic Worker (FDW) insurance?
According to the rules set by the government and the Ministry of Manpower, every employer should take insurance. This insurance has to be maid insurance to cover all the expenses of the maid’s healthcare. They do this to ensure the safety and also the happiness of the maid in the field of work. You can take this kind of policy either by an insurance company or through a broker. These are the necessary thing which needs to be included in the policy.
- This should include medical insurance of $15,000 for hospitalization and surgery charges.
- Personal Accident Insurance (PAI) with a cover of $60,000 per year.
- They should also include a security bond for those workers who are not Malaysian helpers.
The above requirements are a must, and every company has included these in their policy. Maid insurance policies are available for 16 months and also for 24 months. You can hire the maid for either two years or maybe even three years depends on your choice.
You can also buy a 26-month plan to save 30% on expenses which are made on the maid. The personal accident insurance will cover those expenses which happen due to any kind of accident. The accident can happen either inside the house or on the streets when the maid is sent to buy groceries.
What does maid insurance cover in Singapore?
Not all the maid insurance policies will cover all the expenses and give you other benefits. Each policy from a different company will cost you differently and with different terms. Most of the insurance provides cover for health and administrative expenses. Below are some of the benefits which you can get from normal maid insurance.
- Coverage for surgical expense
- You will get cover for repatriation cost
- This will give you a personal liability cover
- This will cover the medical and also dental charges of the maid.
For some of the insurer, there are also other benefits which are given. Here is a list of the extra benefits which are given to other insurers.
- You will get free wage compensation coverage.
- You will get coverage with third-party liability.
- You are also covered for any loss that occurs due to theft.
To understand better, we have broken down these benefits to make you understand better.
- Medical expense for hospitalization and surgery
You can take HL assurance critical illness insurance, which will cover all the hospital charges. It is compulsory for a person to include medical and also health coverage of the maid in their policy. That is because of the laws which are set by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM).
Certain policies in the market cover different pre-hospitalization charges and also post. This helps the employer to stay safe and also to stay protected from any kind of loss. They will only cover those expenses which have happened due to natural means. They won’t cover the expenses which have occurred to the maid willingly.
- Personal accident cover
This is a cover that is taken for the maid when she has met with an accident. This covers all the expenses from her treatment to the medicines for her wellbeing. You will have to take a policy of a minimum of $60,000 to cover the expenses of the accident.
- Wage compensation and relief
If your helper is hospitalized and cannot work to get the salary they need. You can take this loan before so that they can send some money back to their home. This policy will help in the payment of salary and with the medical bill payment.
- Repatriation expenses
These are those expenses that occur when the maid is going back to their home. That is because the maid cannot work further due to any injury or disease. This will also cover those expenses which occur when the maid wants to go back to her country.
- Third-party liability
This covers those expenses where a maid has caused damage to someone else’s property or being unintentional.
