Why Business Owners Need Critical Illness Insurance Business owners often plan for the death of key persons or the succession of retiring founders, but many overlook a very important piece of the puzzle – what happens if a key person or owner is critically injured but does not pass away? This person is unable to work for a time and may not return to work but is still an active shareholder and important part of the company. In addition to the loss of revenue that person brings in, what happens if the other partners need to buy them out? For these reasons, critical illness insurance is the solu ..read more

The insurance industry is known for being conservative when it comes to adoption of technology. However, this trend is currently changing for more and more insurance companies. Today we are getting perspectives from several experts who are deeply involved in insurance tech. They share their thoughts with respect to life insurance and technology. Alexey Saltykov is a Digital Strategy Practice Leader at Burnie Group, a boutique management consulting firm. Terri Botosan is the President of Hub International Brandon Chapman is an experienced Hub Financial broker at SaaS Wealth Insurance Expansio ..read more

Background: As we approach the end of the year, it’s a time of reflection and planning for many individuals and organizations. Among the many considerations that people grapple with, one that often rises to the top is the need to reassess life insurance. This period presents an opportune moment for people and businesses to review their current policies, evaluate needs, and strategize on how best to move forward in the year ahead. So, we asked a number of industry thought leaders about their views on this, how both people and organizations can prepare, and what each company was doing to help th ..read more

Genetic Testing: Background Genetic testing (also called DNA testing), as a scientific procedure, involves examining a person’s DNA—the special molecules that dictate how our bodies form and function. This testing can reveal changes or mutations in genes that may cause illness or disease. Genetic tests are available for a variety of diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, neurological disorders, and rare genetic conditions. These tests can not only provide information about a person’s risk of developing certain health conditions but also help identify carriers of inherited diseases w ..read more

Background: transgender people and life insurance risk Historically, gender has been a significant factor in the insurance application process. However, the issue extends beyond merely classifying applicants into one of two gender categories. A considerable number of individuals identify as transgender, leading insurers to develop unique approaches for these application scenarios. Let’s delve deeper into this complex subject to gain a better understanding. Transgender and cisgender are terms used to describe one’s gender identity. Transgender: This term refers to individuals whose gender ide ..read more

Life Insurance Company Bankruptcy: Background Wondering what would happen if your life insurance company went bankrupt? It’s a valid question and there is prescient for this. So, let’s dive and learn what the risk is, and what protection consumers have when life insurance companies go bankrupt. Even the most reputable insurance companies can face financial failure. Canada has witnessed the bankruptcy of three insurance companies in the past: Les Coopérants in 1992, Sovereign Life in 1993, and Confederation Life in 1994. More recently, in 2002, American insurers FedNat, Weston Property & C ..read more

What is Bankruptcy and How Does it Impact Insurance? Bankruptcy is a legal process that allows individuals or entities who are unable to pay their debts to creditors to seek relief. Being bankrupt or having a history of bankruptcy can make an individual a riskier prospect for life insurance companies, as they may not be able to meet their obligations in the future. Let’s take a closer look at how bankruptcy impacts life insurance applications, but first, let’s learn more about how many Canadians face this issue. Recent statistics on bankruptcy in Canada show that insolvency filings are on the ..read more

Inflation can take a serious bite out of your savings. According to Statistics Canada, there was 5.2% year-over-year inflation in February 2023. This is actually a decrease from the preceding months, but sky-high compared to the past four decades. Before this past year, many Canadian adults had never experienced high, sustained inflation. In an unpredictable economy, it is normal to be scared to invest. Unfortunately, failing to act means choosing to lose money. High inflation erodes your savings and means losing buying power. With some financial savvy though, there are concrete steps you ca ..read more

Manulife Vitality, a program that rewards policyholders for making healthy choices with the help of technology, is helping people save money and live better. Read on to learn more. What Does Activity Monitoring Have to do with Insurance? The idea of combining technology and insurance is not new. In particular, activity monitoring has become a common term in the context of insurance. It all started with car insurance, where the idea of monitoring driving behaviours and rewarding good driving habits with lower car insurance premiums found its place across numerous insurance companies. The monit ..read more

Canadian interest rates changes: The topic of interest rates impacts numerous aspects of daily life. While the interest rates in Canada have been low for over a decade, last year Canadians saw unprecedented rate increases, reaching levels last seen in 2008. The chart below illustrates the evolution of the interest rates between January 2015 and January 2023. While interest varied between 0.5% and 1.8% between January 2015 and July 2022, rates skyrocketed to 4.3% by the end of 2022. Interest rates affect real estate affordability and the cost of borrowing money. For example, over the past year ..read more