Critical Illness Insurance (CI) pays a tax-free lump-sum amount to you, if you are diagnosed with heart attack, stroke, or cancer. Many CI policies also include other illnesses listed below. Payout is typically paid out 30 days after the diagnosis of the condition.
 
With advances in medical science, the chances of surviving after the diagnosis of a serious illness have improved. There is definitely a need to protect you and your family for time taken off work due to medical treatments. Some individuals opt to use the money to fund out-of-country treatment. The money is yours to use as you see fit.
 
Illnesses Covered by Many Critical Illness Insurance Policies:

Alzheimers Disease
Aortic Surgery
Aplastic Anaemia
Bacterial Meningitis
Benign Brain Tumour
Blindness
Coma
Coronary Bypass Surgery
Deafness
Heart Attack
Heart Valve Replacement
Kidney Failture
Life-Threatening Cancer
Loss of Independent Existence
Loss of Limbs
Loss of Speech
Major Organ Transplant
Motor Neuron Disease
Multiple Sclerosis
Occupational HIV Infection
Paralysis
Parkinson's Disease
Severe Burns
Stroke

REQUEST A FREE CRITICAL ILLNESS INFORMATION KIT
or
Request a phone interview for a CI Quote

Disability Insurance (DI) is designed to replace your monthly income should you become injured or sick and cannot work.
 
Benefits will start either 30, 60, 90 (or longer) days after you become injured or sick. The earlier the benefit starts, the higher the premium. Benefit terms can last 2, 5 ,10 years, or until age 65, depending on your job class. The longer the benefit period, the higher the premiums.
 
While some medium to large sized companies often carry disability insurance as part of their employee benefits plan, many do not. Should you become injured and cannot work, a disability insurance policy can ensure monthly cash flow until you are able to work again, or up to age 65.
 
Example:
A Canadian employee makes $50,000 per year. Over a 40 year working life, that amounts to $2 million in wages (not counting inflation and raises)! A disability mid-way through her career could mean a loss of $1million or more in wages. A disability insurance policy can replace most of that income up until age 65.
 
A good quality DI policy can offer you the option to return up to 70% of your premiums, at the policy expiry date or every 10th anniversay, if you have made a minimum amount of claims.
 
If you are a self-employed professional or you run your own business you are an especially good candidate for disability insurance because your income is directly related to your activity! How will you business operate if you are disabled for 1 year? How about 5 years? Indefinitely?
 
Some DI plans will cover your business overhead expenses, such as rent, salary, and utilities, for up to 2 years, if you should become disabled. This allows you time to heal and get back to work, or to keep your business running in good condition, until you can sell it.
 
 

REQUEST A FREE DISABILITY INSURANCE INFO KIT
or
Request a phone interview for a CI Quote

A Health and Dental Plan can provide you with extra coverage in case you need extended medical treatment, dental work, or the purchase of prescription drugs. These benefits are above and beyond your regular MSP (provincial Medical Service Plan). Some plans also offer prescription eyewear coverage and the convenience of a drug card to make purchases easy at your pharmacy.

As a business owner, you can write off these premiums as business expenses--a further tax savings!

Request a Telephone Quote for a Health & Dental Plan

Don't Accept Your Bank's Offer for Mortgage Protection

Most lending institutions offer mortgage life insurance as part of their mortgage packaging. But look carefully before you sign on the dotted line. You could find yourself locked into insurance that does more to protect your bank than you.

With personal life insurance, your coverage doesn't decrease as your mortgage is paid down. Most importantly, should your family face tragedy, your personal life insurance will be paid out to your family, who can then decide what is best for them. The bank's insurance benefit will go straight to themselves. Wouldn't you want your family to have the freedom of choice?

Coverage DECREASES With Bank Sponsored Mortgage Protection

With personal insurance, your coverage STAYS LEVEL.

Term life insurance is the most basic form of life insurance available. Term insurance provides coverage for a set period of time, such as 10 years (T10) or 20 years (T20). At the end of each term, the policy holder has the option of renewing for another term. Premiums typically increase at the time of renewal.
 
Because it is relatively inexpensive you can get much more coverage with term insurance than you could with whole life or universal life insurance, which makes it ideal for young families.
Traditionally, term insurance expires at the age of 65 or 75. But many life insurance companies now offer term insurance with expiry ages of 80 or 100.
 
Term life insurance carries no "cash value", like whole life or universal life insurance. This means that once the policy expires, the policy holder does not receive a cash refund. But should the insured die during the policy lifetime, the death benefit--the amount of money received by the beneficiaries--is completely tax free.
 
Buying personal term insurance policy is a better alternative to accepting the bank's offer for mortgage life insurance. Click on Mortgage Life Insurance below to find out more.

Universal life insurance is somewhat of a hybrid between Term and Whole Life. It is very flexible, but it usually requires more management than other kinds of life insurance.
 
Universal life insurance policies are permanent, meaning you will have insurance coverage for as long as you pay the minimum premiums.
 
Premiums for universal life policies are determined by two different things: 1) the actual cost of insurance (COI) and, 2) the amount of extra premium, which is deposited into an investment side account.
 
Let's say for example, you purchase a $500,000 universal life policy. The actual cost of the policy (again for example purposes), might be $100 per month. This is the minimum premium. You can decide to deposit $200 per month instead, so the extra $100 will go into the investment side account.
 
Investment options vary depending on the insurance company, but the overall effect is that you can grow your cash value--like a whole life policy. Depending on the amount of premiums you pay and the number of years you deposit, your policy can be full self-supporting in 5,10, 15, or how many years you determine.
 
Investing in a universal life policy carries the same risk as investment in your mutual fund portfolio. Give us a call and we can show you how the tax-free growth within a universal life insurance policy can benefit you.
 
If you're a business owner, did you know that interest on your business investment portfolio is over 47%? Find out how you can reduce this to 0% with our Universal Life Strategy! Contact us now.

Whole life insurance, like all Canadian life insurance policies, pays out a tax-free death benefit to the beneficiaries if the person insured dies. The key difference with whole life is the cash value associated with the policy.
 
Whole life insurance policy holders receive annual dividends from the life insurance company. These dividends create a growing cash value in the policy. As the cash value grows, the death benefit (payout upon death) also grows.
 
Many whole life policies offer a limited pay-period, meaning that you can have a fully paid-up policy in 15 or 20 years. This means that the premiums are higher initially, but after 20 years, you no longer have to pay any premiums, while continuing to receive dividends and a growing insurance value.
 
Over the long-term, whole life insurance policies can pay for themselves. At the end of your pay period, it is possible that the cash value accumulated is higher than the total amount of premiums you've paid into the policy. This is almost like getting free life insurance coverage! Let us show you how do do this.
 
Whole life insurance cash values are a great way to fund your retirement! You can design your whole life policy to create a "pension" when you retire, and have a steady cash flow while maintaining your insurance coverage. Ask us how you can do this!

Don't Have a Will Yet? The government gets to decide how to settle your estate.*

Dying without a will ("intestate") is a big mistake that you can avoid today. If there is no legal will to direct the affairs of your estate, the government will decide on who should be appointed administrator, perhaps against your own liking. If the courts cannot agree on who should be the administator, they will assign a public trustee, as long as one is available, and the wait could be very long.

If you have a trust fund for your children, a will can give a surviving spouse the permission to use the funds for their children. Without a will, they would have to apply for a court order everytime a withdrawal is needed.

Without a will, your children could be placed under the care of someone that you would not like. Custody battles for children are often expensive and heart-breaking.

If you have no children, spouse, or relatives, when you die, the government will take your entire estate by value of "escheats". If you don't want this to happen, prepare a legal will today!

In British Columbia, if a married person dies without a will and the estate exceeds $65,000:

1. The first $65,000 goes to the surviving spouse
2. The remainder is divided so that 1/3 goes to the surviving spouse and the other 2/3 is divided evenly amongst any children.

While it is possible to create a legal will yourself, it would be best to have a laywer draft your will. This is especially important if you have minor children, trust accounts, own a business, or have investments and assets that you would like to divide according to your wishes.

Ask for our Free Estate Planning Kit to help you organize your financial affairs. It includes a Personal Records organizer, and important information for your family and for your Executor

REQUEST OUR FREE WILLS & ESTATE PLANNING KIT NOW

* This information should not be considered legal advice and is posted for reference purposes only. You should consult a lawyer for your legal questions.