Индийская семья из 18 человек защищает здоровье за 7 тысяч рублей в год, используя золото и страховку

A wealth advisor has shared an unusual health insurance and savings strategy used by a Marwadi joint family. According to the post, a grandfather manages health cover for 18 family members for about ₹7,000 a year, with each member reportedly covered for up to ₹1 crore through super top-up insurance. The family structure described in the post includes the grandparents, four sons, their four wives and eight children. Instead of purchasing separate conventional health insurance policies with relatively low coverage, the grandfather reportedly combines high-deductible insurance with a family-managed emergency fund. Also Read: Ex-C-suite executive shares how a HR mistake gave her a Rs 50 lakh pay hike and all-paid MBA The strategy does not rely only on insurance. A large part of the family's annual contribution is reportedly used to buy physical gold, which is kept aside specifically for medical emergencies. Marwadi Health Emergency Strategy: How the 18-member family manages its money According to the wealth advisor, the four sons contribute ₹2,000 each every month. The grandfather adds ₹11,000 a year. That brings the total annual contribution to ₹1.07 lakh. The money is then divided into two parts. About ₹7,000 is reportedly spent on super top-up insurance, while the remaining ₹1 lakh is used to purchase gold. The idea is to avoid spending the entire amount on insurance premiums while still keeping protection against a major medical emergency. ₹1 crore cover for 18 family members The key part of the strategy is the super top-up policy. The post claims that every member of the family has a super top-up cover that starts after a ₹10 lakh deductible and extends up to ₹1 crore. Because the deductible is high, the advisor says the premium works out to only around ₹1,200 per family member, with the total annual insurance cost coming to about ₹7,000. A super top-up policy is designed to provide additional coverage once medical expenses cross a specified deductible, subject to the policy's terms. The exact premium, however, depends on factors such as age, health profile, insurer and policy conditions. The X post does not provide the insurer or policy documents to independently verify the ₹7,000 figure. The bigger part of the money goes into gold The unusual part of the strategy comes after the insurance premium is paid. The grandfather reportedly puts around ₹1 lakh every year into physical gold. But this is not treated as an ordinary investment that family members can sell whenever they need money. The advisor says the family follows a strict rule: the gold is reserved for medical emergencies and hospitalisation. That effectively creates a self-insurance layer for the first part of a major medical expense. The family retains the money in the form of an asset, while the super top-up policy is intended to protect it from a much larger medical bill. Why he reportedly buys gold once a year The grandfather also does not follow a conventional monthly investment approach for the gold. The four sons contribute ₹2,000 every month, but the gold is reportedly purchased once a year, on April 1. This leaves some money available during the year for unexpected expenses. The wealth advisor gives the example of a ₹40,000 medical bill arriving in October. Instead of selling gold immediately, the family can reportedly use the cash accumulated from the monthly contributions. The gold therefore remains untouched unless the family faces a substantially bigger medical emergency. What the strategy reportedly achieved in 12 years The wealth advisor claims that the family deployed ₹12 lakh over 12 years under this arrangement. During that period, the family reportedly accumulated 250 grams of gold after accounting for medical expenses. The post values that holding at around ₹40 lakh today. The central argument is that the family has not treated health insurance premiums as its only form of financial protection. Instead, it has combined insurance with an asset that remains within the family. However, the ₹40 lakh valuation depends on the prevailing price of gold and is not a guaranteed return. Gold prices can rise or fall, and the actual value received on sale can also be affected by transaction costs and other charges. How the family plans to handle a big medical emergency The strategy becomes particularly important when a medical bill is large enough to cross the insurance deductible. If a hospitalisation results in a ₹10 lakh deductible, the family could reportedly sell part of its gold holdings to meet that initial expense. The super top-up policy would then cover eligible expenses beyond the deductible, up to the policy limit and subject to its terms and conditions. In simple terms, the family is taking responsibility for the smaller portion of the risk while using insurance for the potentially much larger expense. The wealth advisor's five-point takeaway The post does not suggest that every family should simply replicate the same numbers. Instead, it puts forward a broader approach to managing financial risk. The first principle is to self-insure expenses that a family can comfortably absorb. Insurance can then be used for risks that could seriously damage household finances. The advisor also recommends building an emergency fund early and maintaining a separate cash buffer. This can reduce the need to sell long-term assets when an unexpected bill arrives. The final element is discipline. In this case, the grandfather reportedly controls the pool and follows written rules about when the gold can be used. Should families copy this strategy? The concept may sound attractive, but the numbers in the X post should not automatically be treated as a template for every household. A family considering a super top-up needs to examine the deductible, waiting periods, exclusions, claim conditions, co-pay requirements and other policy terms. It also needs enough liquid money to meet the deductible when a claim arises. Gold can provide a financial reserve, but its price is not fixed and it may not always be the most suitable emergency asset. The interesting part of the strategy is therefore less about the claimed ₹7,000 premium and more about how the family has divided its financial risk: cash for smaller emergencies, gold as a larger reserve and insurance for catastrophic medical expenses. That combination, according to the wealth advisor's post, is what allows the 18-member family to keep a relatively large amount of its money within its own financial pool while still maintaining substantial health insurance protection. Add as a Reliable and Trusted News Source (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel ) (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel )