What we protect
Everything we place, in one place
Seven lines of coverage, one broker, one office. Point at any circle for what
it pays, who it suits, and the exclusion that catches people out.
Hover a circle and he points at it. Click to open the detail.
Travel and visitor insurance
Emergency medical cover for people who are not covered by a provincial health
plan, and for Canadians travelling outside their province. This is the file we handle most.
Who it is for
- Parents and grandparents arriving on a Super Visa
- Visitors, and family staying on a visitor record
- International students before or between school plans
- New permanent residents inside the provincial waiting period
- Foreign workers, and Canadians travelling abroad
What it typically pays
- Emergency hospital, physician and diagnostic costs
- Prescriptions and ambulance tied to the emergency
- Follow-up treatment arising from the covered event
- Repatriation and return of remains
- On a travel policy, sometimes trip interruption and baggage
Watch for
- The stability period. Most policies only cover a pre-existing condition if it has
been stable, no change to medication or treatment, for a set number of months before
departure. This single clause decides most refused claims.
- Direct billing versus reimbursement. A policy that pays the hospital directly is
worth a lot on a large claim.
- Call the assistance line first. Where the situation allows, the insurer must be
contacted before treatment or the benefit can be reduced.
- Deductible. A higher deductible lowers the premium and raises what you pay on
the day. That trade is a decision, not a detail.
For a Super Visa, IRCC sets a minimum coverage amount and term. We confirm the
current requirement before the policy is issued.
Health and dental
Private cover for what the provincial plan does not pay: prescriptions,
dental, vision and paramedical care.
Who it is for
- Self-employed people and contractors with no group plan
- Anyone leaving a group plan, through a job change or retirement
- Retirees losing employer benefits
- New arrivals once the provincial waiting period ends
- Small business owners covering a handful of staff
What it typically pays
- A share of prescription drug costs
- Routine dental, and major dental after a waiting period
- Eye exams, glasses and contacts
- Physiotherapy, massage, chiropractic and psychology, each with its own annual cap
- Medical equipment, and often travel medical for short trips
Watch for
- Category maximums. The headline is rarely the limit that matters. Read the
per-category caps.
- Waiting periods. Major dental commonly waits six to twelve months.
- Leaving a group plan is a deadline. Conversion to an individual plan without
medical questions usually expires around sixty days after coverage ends.
- Guaranteed issue plans skip the medical but pay less in the first year.
Life insurance
A tax-free lump sum to the people who depend on your income, paid to the
beneficiary you name.
Who it is for
- Anyone carrying a mortgage or debt that would land on family
- Parents of children who are years from independent
- Newcomers building a household here
- Business owners with a partner, a loan, or a key employee
What it typically pays
- A death benefit, received tax-free in Canada
- Paid to a named beneficiary, outside the estate and normally clear of probate
- Term for ten, twenty or thirty years, where the need has an end date
- Whole life or universal life where the need is permanent, with cash value that
builds inside the policy
Watch for
- Mortgage insurance from the lender pays the lender. The balance falls, the
premium usually does not, and the coverage does not follow you to another bank. A personal
policy is yours, with your own beneficiary.
- Answer the medical questions accurately. Inside the first two years an insurer
can void a policy for a misstatement.
- Convertibility. A convertible term lets you move to permanent cover later with
no new medical. It costs nothing to have and it matters if your health changes.
Accident insurance
Pays on accidental injury or death. No medical questions, low premium, quick
to put in place.
Who it is for
- People declined or rated because of health history
- Trades and manual work
- Gig and contract workers with no group cover
- Families wanting a layer in place while a fuller policy is underwritten
What it typically pays
- Accidental death, and a scale for loss of limb or sight
- A schedule for fractures, burns and dislocations
- A daily benefit for hospital stays after an accident
- Sometimes an accident-only disability income benefit
Watch for
- It pays on accident only. Illness is not covered. That is the entire trade, and
it is why the premium is small.
- Treat it as a supplement. It is not a substitute for life, disability or critical
illness cover.
Disability insurance
Replaces part of your income when illness or injury stops you working. The
policy most people skip, and the one most working households actually need.
Who it is for
- Self-employed people, who have no group plan behind them
- Commissioned earners and professionals
- Anyone whose household cannot absorb several months with no pay
What it typically pays
- A monthly benefit, after an elimination period you choose, commonly 30, 60, 90 or
120 days
- For a benefit period of two years, five years, or to age 65
- Paid personally with after-tax money, the benefit arrives tax-free
Watch for
- The definition of disability is the contract. Own occupation pays if you cannot
do your own job. Any occupation is far harder to claim on. The word matters more than
the price.
- Non-cancellable means the insurer cannot raise the premium or change the terms.
Guaranteed renewable is weaker.
- Check for partial or residual benefits, for returning to work part way, and
whether the benefit is indexed to inflation.
Critical illness insurance
A tax-free lump sum on diagnosis of a covered condition, once you survive the
waiting period. The money is yours to spend however the situation demands.
Who it is for
- Single earners with nobody to fall back on
- Business owners who need the doors to stay open
- Families with a history of cancer, heart disease or stroke
- Anyone who wants cash on hand that disability cover does not provide
What it typically pays
- A lump sum, usually after a survival period of about thirty days
- Cancer, heart attack and stroke drive the large majority of claims; most contracts list
twenty or more conditions
- Unrestricted use: treatment that is not publicly funded, a spouse taking time off,
travel, the mortgage, whatever the situation needs
Watch for
- Early-stage and non-invasive conditions often pay a partial benefit, or nothing.
- Pre-existing condition exclusions apply, and the definitions of each covered
condition are precise and vary by insurer. This is a contract to read, not skim.
- Return of premium riders refund your money if you never claim, at a higher
premium. Worth pricing both ways.
Investment and savings
Registered and non-registered savings held inside insurance contracts, with a
beneficiary named on the contract itself.
Who it is for
- Savers who want money to pass to a named person rather than through the estate
- Business owners with creditor exposure
- People who want a guarantee sitting under a market-linked contract
- Retirement, education and income planning
What it covers
- Segregated fund contracts held as RRSP, TFSA, RRIF or non-registered
- Annuities, where guaranteed income for life is the objective
- Maturity and death benefit guarantees on the contract
- Payment direct to a named beneficiary, normally outside the estate and probate, with
potential creditor protection where the designation qualifies
Watch for
- Guarantees cost money. Management fees run higher than a comparable mutual fund.
Whether that trade is worth it is the actual decision.
- Guarantees apply at maturity or on death, not on a withdrawal you choose to make
early.
- We are licensed for segregated funds and annuities. Where a securities licence is
required, we work with registered partners.
