(Bloomberg) -- It’s not just your spouse who thinks you really should be jogging more. Now it’s your life insurer, too.
Manulife Financial Corp.’s John Hancock Life Insurance will discount premiums by as much as 15 percent for policy holders who track and perform well on metrics such as daily exercise, annual health screenings and flu shots, the company said Wednesday in a statement. New customers will also receive a Fitbit Inc. fitness tracker to monitor their every step.
“We want to make life insurance more immediate and relevant in the daily lives of our policyholders and help them connect their financial well-being to their long-term health,” John Hancock President Michael Doughty said in the statement.
The program will be run by Discovery Ltd.’s Vitality Group division, which operates wellness programs for companies.
Insurers are using technology to track customers and encourage safe behaviors. Auto-insurer Progressive Corp. runs a monitoring program known as Snapshot that rewards customers who drive fewer miles, avoid hard braking and minimize travel from midnight to 4 a.m. Health insurers have also gotten into the game, with 80 percent of all large companies tying their plans to wellness programs to control costs, according to benefits consultant Towers Watson.
