Best Life Insurance Companies in Canada
Even if you live a relatively tame life, it’s impossible to be prepared for everything. Life’s unpredictable and it’s hard to know when you might experience a setback, let alone a life-altering or life-threatening incident. Life insurance protects individuals from risk associated with their personal injury or fatality.
About one third of Canadians don’t have life insurance. This is reasonable for many people, but others may have other relying on them for income or other support. In the event of your death, you might not be alive to worry about financial or other support, but your family and loved ones will. For example, if you have children or dependents, they may suffer from income loss should something happen to you.
Luckily, there are plenty of providers and policies for life insurance to choose from. The two main forms of life insurance are term life and permanent life. Term life insurance offers coverage for an agreed-upon term length, at a lower cost, while permanent life insurance offers coverage for one’s lifetime, at a higher cost.
Here are some popular insurance providers and some of the plans that they offer:
Policy Advisor
Policy Advisor is an independent insurance advisory company that helps Canadians compare and purchase insurance that best fits their needs. Their team is built of insurance experts, developers, designers, and marketers. They value innovation and ease in the life insurance process. Instead of providing plans themselves, they direct clients to other insurance providers, acting like an intermediary between the insurer and insured.
Policy Advisor offers instant quotes online. For the most accurate pricing or to find a life insurance policy for you, it is recommended that you schedule a call with one of their advisors.
PolicyMe
PolicyMe is a relatively new digital company founded in 2018 that offers life insurance through their partner, Canadian Premier. Canadian Premier is a subsidiary of Securian Financial, which is one of the most reputable insurance companies in North America. Their platform aims to cut out the customer service, long wait times, and costly attributes of traditional life insurance providers. In theory, this means prices should be lower than other providers while offering the same coverage.
For information about specific coverage, pricing, and to register, it is recommended that you make an appointment with an advisor.
Manulife Financial
Manulife Financial has operated across North America for the last 130 years. They offer a variety of financial services, including retirement planning, investment solutions, banking services, and various types of insurance, such as travel insurance, health insurance, and of course, life insurance. They offer two broad types of life insurance coverage:
Term Life Insurance: Coverage from $100,000 to $20,000,000, convertible to permanent life insurance, terms of 10 or 20 years, with fixed rates and an affordable family option that offers lower premiums if more people are covered under the policy.
Permanent Life Insurance: Coverage starting from $25,000, flexible payments and skipping payments in special circumstances, and guaranteed cash value.
To get more information and register for life insurance, contact a Manulife advisor.
Desjardins
Originating in Quebec 120 years ago, Desjardins is a reputable insurance and investment solutions provider in Canada. They offer a range of insurance, including loan and credit insurance, home and auto insurance, and life insurance. Desjardins offers one plan each for term life insurance, permanent life insurance, participating life insurance, and universal life insurance. Below are more details on each plan.
Term Life Insurance: 10-, 20-, or 30-year terms, 65 age limits, add-ons for children, premium holidays, flexibility in changing term length for lower rates is included with this plan.
Permanent Life Insurance: Ages 50-100 (depending on the plan), immediate coverage, one plan with personalized coverage specific to death circumstances, 30-day return period, local home care and psychological assistance services, 2-in-1 coverage for critical illness and long-term care is included with this plan.
Participating Life Insurance: Insurance with dividend options to maximize cash value, age limit of 100-, 10- and 20-year terms is included with this plan.
Universal Life Insurance: Life insurance component and tax-deferred investment component is included with this plan.
To obtain more details and register, make an appointment online or call a Desjardins representative.
RBC Insurance
The Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) is one of the largest banks in Canada, and also operates across the US and 34 other countries. RBC was established in the 1860s in the city of Halifax. They offer personal and business banking, investment solutions, wealth management services, and various types of insurance. Below are details on the life insurance plans offered by RBC.
Term Life Insurance: Instant quotes, quick application, coverage from $50,000 to 1,000,000, low-cost option, tax-free benefit, and flexible coverage terms are included with this plan.
Whole (Permanent) Life Insurance: Tax-free death benefit, coverage from $25,000 to $25,000,000, dividend options, and coverage for dependents are included with this plan.
Universal Life Insurance: Customizable coverage and premiums, wide range of investment options, flexibility in payment amounts and schedule, and access to liquidity are included with this plan.
Personal Accident Insurance: Coverage specific for the event of your death resulting from an accident, between $50,000 and $250,000, as little as $4.75 per month, and relatively open eligibility are included with this plan.
To obtain an accurate quote on pricing or to register for life insurance with RBC, you should contact an RBC advisor. RBC does boast one of the most affordable rates for life insurance, at only $12.67 per month for the Simplified Term Life Insurance, with Family Friendly Pricing.
Sun Life Financial
Sun Life Financial is an international financial company offering insurance, investments, asset management, and financial and retirement planning services. They’re one of the biggest financial service companies in Canada, serving individuals, groups, and institutions.
Sun Life offers four types of life insurance, with various specific plans under each category to best meet your needs.
Term Life Insurance: Sun Life offers four term life insurance plans to fit your needs, with coverage varying from $50,000 to $15,000,000, and terms from 10 to 30 years.
Permanent Life Insurance: Sun Life offers three permanent life insurance plans with coverage varying from $5,000 to $10,000,000.
Participating Life Insurance: Three different participating life insurance plans, each offering either short-term or long-term cash value and death benefit growth.
Universal Life Insurance: Three different universal life insurance plans, each with customized life insurance options combined with investment accounts, and flexibility in payment schedules
To register or find more information about pricing, contact a Sun Life Financial advisor.
Canada Life
Canada Life is a conglomerate of three related financial companies - Canada Life, Great West Life, and London Life. Operating for the last 170 years, Canada Life offers wealth management and insurance products, including life insurance. Below are details about their two life insurance plans.
Term Life Insurance: Flexible term lengths, affordable pricing, and convertible to permanent life insurance.
Permanent Life Insurance: Participating and universal insurance options offering cash values and dividends, and payment flexibility.
For more information on pricing, or to register for a plan, contact a Canada Life advisor.
Industrial Alliance Insurance
Industrial Alliance, also known as IA Financial Group, was established in 1892. They are one of Canada’s largest wealth management and insurance groups. IA offers four different life insurance plans:
Term Life Insurance: Two plans with 10, 15, 20, 25, 40-year term lengths, open eligibility, flexible option for young families that covers mortgage and other loans.
Permanent Life Insurance: Four plans that offer coverage maximums between $500,000 and $10,000,000, and specialized plans for individuals with children, and individuals over the age of 65.
Participating Life Insurance: Flexibility in premium payment schedule, dividends each year, and access to liquidity in cash.
Universal Life Insurance: Two plans each with consideration of families and businesses, with guaranteed tax-deferred savings.
To register for an IA life insurance plan, or to obtain more information about pricing, contact an advisor.
Choosing the Best Life Insurance Policy for You
Many Canadians find life insurance confusing since there are so many options. In addition, most people overlook the importance of life insurance. Whether you’re a business owner that wants more liquidity, an employee in a high-risk occupation, a young family planning ahead, or a senior citizen planning their estate, life insurance can be customized to suit your individual lifestyle and personal circumstances. Keep in mind that life insurance may not be necessary for everyone, but at least think about your options before declining coverage.
