By Ben Mattlin, FA-mag.com In late-September, the news nearly sent shivers through the insurance world. "Strap on the Fitbit," read a headline over Reuters newswire. "John Hancock to sell only interactive life insurance."
This came after the insurance giant itself issued a press release titled, "John Hancock Leaves Traditional Life Insurance Model Behind to Incentivize Longer, Healthier Lives."
What did it all mean? Readers could be forgiven for getting the impression that, henceforth, all Hancock life insurance policies would be based on interactive health-related data: what policyholders had to eat, how much they exercised, whether they took the stairs or used the elevator, and so forth. The implication, it was assumed, was that the 150-year-old provider would stop underwriting traditional life insurance and instead sell ONLY policies that tracked such fitness and health data through wearable devices and smartphones. What would happen to those less athletically inclined was anybody's guess.
But this was not exactly the truth.
"Using a wearable device or smartphone is completely optional," Brooks Tingle, president and CEO of John Hancock Insurance, explained later. "There are no penalties for not participating in the program. The customer simply will not earn rewards."
Optional? Yes. The option is a rewards program called Vitality, and it's been available to some Hancock policyholders since 2015. Some, but not all. That's what's about to change.
"Moving forward, all John Hancock life insurance policies will come with Vitality," said Tingle.
He defined Vitality as "a tech-enabled wellness program that rewards customers for the healthier choices they make linked to fitness, mindfulness and nutrition." There are two tiers:
1) Vitality GO, a free version that will come with every life insurance policy from now on, offers online fitness and nutritional advice. Users can set personalized health goals and, if they reach them, they are rewarded with "discounts at major brand outlets," Tingle elaborated.
2) For $2 a month, policyholders can sign on to Vitality PLUS, in which the rewards include vouchers and coupons for even more products, and discounted premiums.
"How much a customer participates will be up to them," stressed Tingle. With either version, participants are "rewarded for the everyday steps they take to live longer, healthier lives—including walking, eating well and visiting a doctor for a health screening."