Members of Toronto-based Manulife Financial Corp.’s Vitality life insurance program will have a new motivation to engage in healthy behaviours, with the opportunity to earn discounts on an Apple Watch, the insurance company announced on Monday.
Manulife Vitality is a life insurance program launched in 2016. Under the program, policyholders can earn points for engaging in various healthy behaviours — such as exercising, getting a flu shot and undergoing various annual health tests. Those points can lead to lower insurance premiums and other rewards.
Under a new element of the program, members will have the opportunity to get an Apple Watch at a discount, by meeting certain physical activity targets.
Clients can choose to get an Apple Watch Series 1 or Series 3 through the Vitality program by paying an initial fee ranging from $17 to $39, plus applicable taxes based on the value of the device. Clients will then pay a monthly fee ranging from $0 to $16.25 toward the device over the course of 24 months, depending on how many points they earn under the program.
For example, for clients who earn at least 500 Vitality points per month, their monthly fee toward the Apple Watch will be waived. Clients who earn at least 360 points would pay a monthly fee ranging from $6.50 to $8.50, depending on which device they choose. Clients who earn less than 240 points would pay a fee ranging from $13 to $16.25.
“By offering Apple Watch, we are helping Canadians be active and live healthier today, while aiming to protect their financial future,” said Michael Doughty, president and CEO of Manulife Canada, in a statement.
Manulife’s U.S. division, John Hancock, introduced a similar Apple Watch program as part of its Vitality program last year. Since then, the company has witnessed a noticeable increase in activity among members, according to Tal Gilbert, CEO of Vitality Group USA.
“The data from U.S. Apple Watch users is encouraging — we’ve motivated Vitality members to be more active, with the number of active days per week increasing by 40%,” Gilbert said. “Not only have we seen people getting more active, we’ve seen the largest increases in the most at-risk populations, and we’ve seen those improvements persist over time with the program running for over a year now.”
In addition to the Apple Watch program, Manulife will also continue to offer clients who sign up for Manulife Vitality the Garmin Vivofit 3 fitness-tracking device as a complimentary perquisite of joining the program. Using a fitness-tracking device is one way for members of the program to demonstrate their level of physical activity in order to earn points.
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