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Is the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan truly the “smart” way to build wealth and insure your future — or just another ULIP with glossy features and hidden trade-offs?
Does Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan stack up against more transparent alternatives like term + mutual funds — or does it fall short when you separate insurance and investment?
Does Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan genuinely deliver meaningful growth and protection — or do the charges and lock-in dull its shine?
This review takes a closer look at the plan’s features, benefits, and drawbacks, along with a detailed illustration to help you understand how it actually works.
Table of Contents:
What is the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan?
What are the features of the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan?
Who is eligible for the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan?
What are the benefits of the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan?
What are the investment strategies and fund options of the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan?
What are the charges of the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan?
Grace Period, Discontinuance and Revival of the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan
Free Look Period of the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan
Surrendering the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan
What are the advantages of the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan?
What are the disadvantages of the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan?
Research Methodology of Pramerica Life Smar Wealth+ Plan
Benefit Illustration – IRR Analysis of Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan
Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan Vs. Other Investments
Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan Vs. Pure-term + PPF/Equity Mutual Fund
Final verdict on Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan
What is the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan?
The Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan is a Unit Linked Non-Participating Individual Savings Life Insurance Plan. It facilitates wealth creation for your planned milestones in life. Fund conservation helps to safeguard your fund value from market fluctuations.
What are the features of the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan?
- Flexibility to choose between regular or limited premium payment terms.
- Designed to help you build wealth for your life’s key milestones.
- Loyalty additions rewarded through Persistency Units.
- Access to ten fund options, each catering to different risk and growth preferences.
- Fund conservation option to help protect your fund value during market volatility.
Who is eligible for the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan?
What are the benefits of the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan?
Death benefit
In case of an unfortunate demise of the Life Insured during the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan Policy Term, the Policy will pay the Death Benefit, which is equal to the higher of
- Sum Assured or
- Fund Value, which is subject to a minimum of 105% of the Total premiums paid till date of death,
Where Sum Assured is defined as a multiple of the Annualised Premium.
| Sum Assured Multiplier | |||
| Premium Paying Term | Age at entry < 45 Years | Age at entry >= 45 Years to < 50 years | Age>=50 years |
| 5 | 7 or 10 | 7 | 5 |
| 10, 15, 20 | 7 or 10 | 7 or 10 | 5 or 10 |
Maturity Benefit
On survival of the Life Insured till the maturity date and subject to the Policy being in force for full risk benefits, the Policy will pay the fund value to the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan Policyholder.
Persistency Units
As a reward for continuing your policy, Persistency units equal to 1% of the average of Fund Value at preceding 36 months would be allocated to the Policyholder’s unit account at the end of the 10th, 15th, and 20th Policy anniversaries, provided the policy is in force and all due premiums are paid
What are the investment strategies and fund options of the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan?
You have an option to choose from ten funds to invest your money in. You can look at the investment objectives of each of our funds and match those with your investment goals, and then decide the proportion of money you would like to invest in each of them.
If you are opting for more than one fund, the minimum investment in any fund should be at least 10% of the Premium allocated. The fund and fund objectives are as follows:
| S.no | Fund Name | Asset Allocation | Risk Profile | ||
| Equity & Equity-related instruments | Govt. Securities & Corp. Bonds | Money market instruments | |||
| 1 | Debt fund | 0% | 50-100% | 0-40% | Low |
| 2 | Balance Fund | 10-50% | 0-50% | 0-40% | High |
| 3 | Growth Fund | 40-80% | 0-30% | 0-40% | High |
| 4 | Large-cap Equity fund | 60-100% | 0% | 0-40% | High |
| 5 | Multi-cap opportunities | 50-100% | 0-30% | 0-50% | High |
| 6 | Balanced Equilibrium Fund | 65-75% | 25-35% | 25-35% | Medium |
| 7 | Growth Momentum fund | 75-85% | 15-25% | 15-25% | High |
| 8 | Large-cap advantage fund | 85-100% | 0-15% | 0-15% | High |
| 9 | Flexi Cap Opportunities Fund | 85-100% | 0-15% | 0-15% | High |
| 10 | Pramerica Nifty Mid Cap 50 Correlation Fund | 90-100% | 0-10% | 0-10% | High |
| Discontinued policy fund | 0% | 60-100% | 0-40% | Low | |
Fund Conservation Option
This is an option to preserve your capital towards the end of your Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan Policy, when your investments are due to be paid back.
All your investments are systematically transferred from funds of your choice to the Debt Fund in the last three years of your Policy, on a half-yearly basis.
The exposure in your chosen funds is systematically diverted to the Debt Fund at the beginning of every half-year.
What are the charges of the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan?
i. Premium Allocation Charge
This will be deducted from the Premium amount at the time of Premium payment before allocating the same to the unit account.
| Policy Year | Premium Allocation Charge |
| 1 | 5.15% |
| 2 onwards | 2.50% |
ii. Policy Administration Charge
Policy administration charges will be deducted at the beginning of each month by deducting units from the unit account.
| Policy Year | Policy Administration Charge per month |
| 1 | 0.25% of Annualised Premium per month |
| 2 onwards | 0.30% of Annualised Premium per month |
iii. Mortality Charge
Mortality charge will apply to the sum at risk. It will be deducted monthly by cancellation of units from the unit account. Annual charges per 1000 sum at risk for a healthy male are as follows:
| Attained Age of Life Insured | 25 | 30 | 35 | 40 |
| Mortality charge | 1.19 | 1.28 | 1.58 | 2.26 |
iv. Fund Management Charges (FMC)
| S.no | Fund Name | Fund Management Charges (FMC) |
| 1 | Debt fund | 1.20% |
| 2 | Balance Fund | 1.35% |
| 3 | Growth Fund | 1.35% |
| 4 | Large-cap Equity fund | 1.35% |
| 5 | Multi-cap opportunities | 1.35% |
| 6 | Balanced Equilibrium Fund | 1.35% |
| 7 | Growth Momentum fund | 1.35% |
| 8 | Large-cap advantage fund | 1.35% |
| 9 | Flexi Cap Opportunities Fund | 1.35% |
| 10 | Pramerica Nifty Mid Cap 50 Correlation Fund | 1.25% |
| Discontinued policy fund | 0.50% |
v. Discontinuance Charge
It depends on the Policy Year in which the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan policy is discontinued and the premium amount. There is no discontinuity charges from the 5th policy year onwards.
vi. Switching charges
4 free switches are available every year. Subsequent switches will be charged at the rate of ₹ 250 per switch.
vii. Partial Withdrawal Charges
First partial withdrawals in a Policy year are available free of cost. Any subsequent withdrawals will be charged a fee of ₹250. A total of 10 partial withdrawals is allowed during the entire term of the contract.
viii. Miscellaneous Charges
Two redirection requests in a Policy year are free, and any subsequent redirection will be charged a fee of ₹250.
Inference from the charges: The plan’s charges are relatively high compared to other market-linked investment options. These charges apply throughout the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan policy term, reducing your investable premium and, consequently, lowering your overall returns over time.
Grace Period, Discontinuance and Revival of the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan
Grace Period
A grace period of 30 days in case of non-monthly mode policies and a 15-day grace period in case of monthly mode policies from the due date to pay the Premium is given.
Discontinuance
Discontinued during the first five Policy years (Lock-in Period): the fund value after deducting the applicable discontinuance charges shall be credited to the discontinued policy fund, and the risk cover and rider cover, if any, shall cease.
At the end of the lock-in period, the proceeds of the discontinuance fund shall be paid to the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan Policyholder.
Discontinued after the first five Policy years: the policy shall be converted into a reduced paid-up policy with the paid-up sum assured, i.e. original sum assured multiplied by a ratio of “total period for which premiums have already been paid” to the “maximum period for which premiums were originally payable”.
At the end of the revival period, the proceeds of the policy fund shall be paid to the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan Policyholder.
Revival
You have an option to revive your discontinued policy within three years from the date of the first unpaid premium.
Free Look Period of the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan
You will have a period of 30 days from the date of receipt of the Policy document to review the terms and conditions of the Policy, and if you disagree with any of these terms and conditions, you have the option to return the Policy.
Surrendering the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan
Surrender during the first five Policy years (Lock-in Period): the policyholder has an option to surrender the policy anytime, and proceeds of the discontinued policy shall be payable at the end of the lock-in period or date of surrender, whichever is later
Surrender after the first five Policy years: the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan Policyholder has an option to surrender the policy anytime, and the proceeds of the policy fund shall be payable.
What are the advantages of the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan?
- You can switch your investments among the available funds based on your financial goals and investment preferences.
- The premium redirection feature allows you to adjust the allocation of your premiums across different funds as per your changing needs.
- Partial withdrawals are permitted only after completing 5 policy years, which serves as the lock-in period.
- At maturity, you have the option to receive your maturity benefits as structured payouts spread over a period of up to 5 years through the settlement option.
What are the disadvantages of the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan?
- No loan facility is available under this plan.
- The returns are relatively low compared to other investment options.
- The sum assured is inadequate to provide sufficient financial protection.
- There is no liquidity during the first 5 policy years.
- The policy term is fixed at 20 years, offering no flexibility in duration
Research Methodology of Pramerica Life Smar Wealth+ Plan
The Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan provides a market-linked investment opportunity, which naturally carries inherent risks.
As an investor, it’s important to assess whether the potential returns justify the level of risk involved. Let’s analyse a sample scenario from the policy brochure to estimate the Internal Rate of Return (IRR).
Benefit Illustration – IRR Analysis of Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan
A 35-year-old male purchases the plan with a sum assured of ₹10 lakhs, opting for a 20-year policy term and a 10-year premium payment term, paying an annual premium of ₹1 lakh.
| Male | 35 years |
| Sum Assured | ₹ 10,00,000 |
| Policy Term | 20 years |
| Premium Paying Term | 10 years |
| Annualised Premium | ₹ 1,00,000 |
If all premiums are paid regularly, the maturity benefit will be the fund value at the end of the term. The illustration assumes future investment returns of 4% and 8% per annum, which are not guaranteed and merely serve as hypothetical projections.
| At 4% p.a. | At 8% p.a. | ||||
| Age | Year | Annualised premium / Maturity benefit | Death benefit | Annualised premium / Maturity benefit | Death benefit |
| 35 | 1 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 |
| 36 | 2 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 |
| 37 | 3 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 |
| 38 | 4 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 |
| 39 | 5 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 |
| 40 | 6 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 |
| 41 | 7 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 |
| 42 | 8 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 |
| 43 | 9 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 |
| 44 | 10 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 |
| 45 | 11 | 0 | 10,00,000 | 0 | 10,00,000 |
| 46 | 12 | 0 | 10,00,000 | 0 | 10,00,000 |
| 47 | 13 | 0 | 10,00,000 | 0 | 10,00,000 |
| 48 | 14 | 0 | 10,00,000 | 0 | 10,00,000 |
| 49 | 15 | 0 | 10,00,000 | 0 | 10,00,000 |
| 50 | 16 | 0 | 10,00,000 | 0 | 10,00,000 |
| 51 | 17 | 0 | 10,00,000 | 0 | 10,00,000 |
| 52 | 18 | 0 | 10,00,000 | 0 | 10,00,000 |
| 53 | 19 | 0 | 10,00,000 | 0 | 10,00,000 |
| 54 | 20 | 0 | 10,00,000 | 0 | 10,00,000 |
| 55 | 13,08,755 | 24,08,783 | |||
| IRR | 1.74% | 5.75% | |||
At a 4% return, the fund value is projected at ₹13.08 lakhs, resulting in an IRR of just 1.74% as per the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan maturity calculator, which is lower than a typical savings account interest rate.
At an 8% return, the fund value increases to ₹24.08 lakhs, giving an IRR of 5.75% as per the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan maturity calculator. However, this return does not adequately compensate for the market risk taken.
Investors generally expect equity-linked products to deliver inflation-beating returns and generate alpha over time.
Unfortunately, the potential returns from the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan are not even comparable to debt instruments, making it unsuitable as an equity investment within your portfolio.
Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan Vs. Other Investments
The Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan positions itself as a market-linked product, but its returns are far from convincing.
In contrast, other market-linked investment options offer better yields, greater transparency, and more flexibility. Let’s analyse comparable alternatives to understand how they perform against this plan.
Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan Vs. Pure-term + PPF/Equity Mutual Fund
The Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan combines life insurance coverage and investment, so for a fair comparison, we’ll separate these two components.
A pure term insurance policy with a sum assured of ₹10 lakhs costs around ₹7,500 per year for a 20-year term with a 10-year premium payment period. This allows you to save ₹92,500 annually, which can instead be invested elsewhere.
| Pure Term Life Insurance Policy | |
| Sum Assured | ₹ 10,00,000 |
| Policy Term | 20 years |
| Premium Paying Term | 10 years |
| Annualised Premium | ₹ 7,500 |
| Investment | ₹ 92,500 |
Depending on your risk tolerance, you could opt for either equity (high-risk) or debt (low-risk) investment options. The following scenarios illustrate both cases:
| Term Insurance + PPF | Term insurance + Equity Mutual Fund | ||||
| Age | Year | Term Insurance premium + PPF | Death benefit | Term Insurance premium + Equity Mutual Fund | Death benefit |
| 35 | 1 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 |
| 36 | 2 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 |
| 37 | 3 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 |
| 38 | 4 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 |
| 39 | 5 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 |
| 40 | 6 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 |
| 41 | 7 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 |
| 42 | 8 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 |
| 43 | 9 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 |
| 44 | 10 | -97,500 | 10,00,000 | -1,00,000 | 10,00,000 |
| 45 | 11 | -500 | 10,00,000 | 0 | 10,00,000 |
| 46 | 12 | -500 | 10,00,000 | 0 | 10,00,000 |
| 47 | 13 | -500 | 10,00,000 | 0 | 10,00,000 |
| 48 | 14 | -500 | 10,00,000 | 0 | 10,00,000 |
| 49 | 15 | -500 | 10,00,000 | 0 | 10,00,000 |
| 50 | 16 | 0 | 10,00,000 | 0 | 10,00,000 |
| 51 | 17 | 0 | 10,00,000 | 0 | 10,00,000 |
| 52 | 18 | 0 | 10,00,000 | 0 | 10,00,000 |
| 53 | 19 | 0 | 10,00,000 | 0 | 10,00,000 |
| 54 | 20 | 0 | 10,00,000 | 0 | 10,00,000 |
| 55 | 27,29,733 | 50,72,011 | |||
| IRR | 6.58% | 10.74% | |||
Low-risk option – PPF (Public Provident Fund):
With a 15-year investment period (and minor adjustment in the final year), the maturity value after 20 years works out to ₹27.29 lakhs, giving an IRR of 6.58%.
High-risk option – Equity Mutual Fund:
Over 20 years, the fund value has grown to ₹56.46 lakhs. After accounting for capital gains tax, the post-tax maturity value is ₹50.72 lakhs, resulting in a post-tax IRR of 10.74%.
| Equity Mutual Fund Tax Calculation | |
| Maturity value after 20 years | 56,46,584 |
| Purchase price | 9,25,000 |
| Long-Term Capital Gains | 47,21,584 |
| Exemption limit | 1,25,000 |
| Taxable LTCG | 45,96,584 |
| Tax paid on LTCG | 5,74,573 |
| Maturity value after tax | 50,72,011 |
Both these alternatives outperform the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan by a wide margin. Their returns comfortably beat inflation, ensuring faster wealth creation and greater financial growth over time.
Separating insurance and investment is a smarter strategy — it delivers higher returns, better liquidity, and greater transparency compared to bundled ULIP products like the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan.
Final verdict on Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan
The Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan provides multiple fund options catering to different investment preferences, and the final maturity value, including persistency units, is paid out at the end of the term.
However, these fund choices don’t offer substantial value because the returns are relatively poor for a long-term investment. The high charges associated with the plan are the primary reason for its underwhelming performance.
Ideally, a market-linked product should enable long-term wealth creation, but the Pramerica Life Smart Wealth+ Plan fails to deliver on that front.
Moreover, the sum assured is insufficient, further reducing its effectiveness and it also has a high agent commission.
The combination of low returns, limited flexibility, and inadequate coverage makes this plan unsuitable for your investment portfolio.
Never combine insurance and investment in a single product. As discussed earlier, separating the two allows you to get optimal benefits from both.
Choosing a pure-term life insurance policy ensures adequate protection, while investing separately in products aligned with your risk appetite, financial goals, and time horizon helps you build real wealth.
Do Quora, Facebook, and Twitter have the final say when it comes to financial advice?
To make the most informed choices, it’s advisable to consult a certified financial planner. They can help you design a personalised financial strategy that meets your insurance needs and investment objectives effectively.
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