You will get free insurance
The PF scheme run under EPFO is very beneficial for employees working in the private sector. Since this is a government scheme, the risk in it is negligible. But do you know that under EPF scheme you get free insurance cover. Yes, if you are employed and EPF is deducted from your salary, then a special scheme of the government gives you free insurance cover of up to Rs 7 lakh. Every EPF member gets this facility under the Employees’ Deposit Linked Insurance Scheme (EDLI), 1976 of the Employees’ Provident Fund Organization (EPFO).
The special thing is that the employee does not have to pay any premium for this. The company itself deposits 0.50 percent of basic salary and DA i.e. up to a cap of Rs 15,000. Under the scheme, in case of illness, accident or natural death of the employee, the nominee gets a lump sum amount of minimum Rs 2.5 lakh and maximum Rs 7 lakh. The amount is calculated on the basis of average basic salary + DA of the last 12 months and the amount deposited in the PF account.
How can I claim?
Even if the employee has worked for multiple companies in the 12 months prior to death, he or she is still covered. To make a claim in this scheme, the nominee or legal heir has to fill Form 5IF and get it verified by the company. If the employer is not available, verification can be done from an authorized person like Gazetted Officer, MP-MLA, Bank Manager or Village Head.
Required documents include death certificate, succession certificate and bank details. Experts say that most of the employees remain unaware of this free facility. EPFO has appealed to all the members to keep the nominee in their PF account updated, so that the family can get immediate help in difficult times.