If you are married or have kids, life insurance is a must-have.

It provides much-needed peace of mind knowing that if you pass away unexpectedly, your loved ones will receive a cash payment. It could help your spouse cover everyday living expenses, pay off the mortgage, and pay for your children’s education. Additionally, mortgage life insurance can be considered, though it may not be the best option for everyone and should be evaluated carefully.

It may also make sense to buy life insurance coverage for additional events other than death, such as a disability or critical illness. Child’s term life insurance is another type of coverage worth looking into.

A family insurance policy is a general term that covers any type of life insurance that’s meant to protect your family. Let’s dive into the details.

What is Family Life Insurance?

Family life insurance is a collection of different types of insurance that provide protection for your family from the unexpected.

Family life insurance companies play a crucial role in offering a range of coverage options to ensure financial stability for families after the loss of a provider.

For example, you may choose family insurance coverage that includes:

• a whole life insurance policy to provide permanent coverage and build supplemental retirement income and
• a universal life insurance policy to provide flexible premiums and potential cash value growth and
• a disability insurance policy to protect your paycheck

Or you may choose:

• a 20-year term life insurance policy to cover your expenses until your children are financially independent and
• a small permanent insurance plan to pay for funeral expenses.

Another option? You could go with:

• a single life insurance policy and
• add such riders as a child's term rider, spousal term rider, disability insurance rider, and critical illness rider to protect your loved ones from all possible disaster scenarios. 

Although the exact coverage included in a family life insurance policy differs from company to company, it usually includes some or all of these types of coverage: 

• Life insurance
• Disability insurance
• Critical illness insurance
• Children's term insurance

Choosing the best family life insurance type

Life insurance policies are either term or permanent, and selecting the right insurance company is crucial to ensure you get the best provider for your needs. Which one is better for you depends on your personal situation, financial responsibilities, and budget.

Term Life Insurance

Term life insurance is the simplest form of life insurance since it has only one goal: to reduce the financial impact of your death on your loved ones.

Coverage lasts for a specific period, such as 5, 10, 20 years, or until you reach a certain age.

If you outlive the coverage period, the policy ends. You can renew your term life insurance policy, though the renewal premium will be higher after the initial policy term period.

Term life insurance rates are much cheaper than permanent life insurance rates. As such, it is a popular option when looking for affordable premiums and life insurance rates. The premiums for a 35-year-old non-smoking male can be as low as $18 a month!

Benefits of term life insurance

• Term life insurance costs 10-15 times less than a permanent life insurance policy for the same amount of coverage
• Offers guaranteed level premiums and a death benefit, meaning your price and the payout remain the same for the entire term
• Provides peace of mind for your family's future as they will be covered during the most vulnerable years (e.g., until your children become financially independent individuals) with the possibility to renew coverage if your life insurance policies needs to change down the road

Permanent Life Insurance

It has no expiration date. If you pay your premiums, your coverage will last as long as you do. Apart from lifetime protection, permanent life policies, including universal life insurance, also accumulate cash value on a tax-advantaged basis. Universal life insurance offers flexibility with adjustable premiums and death benefits, and it allows policyholders to manage the investment component to enhance the policy's value.

Part of your premium payments covers the net cost of pure insurance and various administrative fees, while another part is used to grow cash value.

Policy owners can access the cash value while they are still alive in various ways, including taking a policy loan or making a cash value withdrawal. In most cases, the policy beneficiaries only receive the death benefit upon the insured’s death, not the unused cash value.

Benefits:

• Pays out regardless of when you die
• Helps cover financial liabilities that do not have an end date (e.g., a special-needs child)
• Can be used for estate and tax planning
• Grows cash value and lets you access it at any time and for any purpose during your lifetime

It comes in two flavors: whole life insurance and universal life insurance. Whole life insurance plans are slightly more expensive than comparable universal life policies, but they can be a better option for those who have little appetite for risk.

Here is a quick rundown of the key differences between the two.

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Disability and Critical Illness Insurance

A family life insurance plan helps your loved ones deal with the financial impact of your passing away and secures your family's future. But financially speaking, a severe illness or injury to you could be no less devastating. 

If you were to lose the ability to work due to a disability, would your family be able to maintain their standard of living?

If you were to fall critically ill, would you be able to pay out-of-pocket medical expenses without dipping into your savings?

If you answered no to any of these questions, you likely need disability and critical illness insurance.

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Disability Insurance

Disability insurance aims to replace a part of your income if you are too sick or injured to work. However, securing an own life insurance policy is equally important as it ensures financial security for your family, particularly for the overall financial well-being of your children. In the event of a disability, your policy will pay a fixed amount every month for a set period of time.

Disability payments, however, do not start immediately. Instead, they would start after a certain period has elapsed since the day you were disabled. This period, known as the elimination or waiting period, is usually 30, 60, 90, 180, or 365 days.

For instance, if you have a disability insurance policy with a 60-day waiting period, the benefits start from day 61. You will receive the first payment on the 90th day (i.e., at the end of the first month following the waiting period). After that, the insurer will issue a payment at the end of each month until you recover and return to work or until the benefit term expires if that is not possible.

You can purchase a disability insurance policy or add a disability rider to your life insurance plan to cover circumstances when you are ill or injured and can no longer work. Medical conditions that may qualify for disability insurance benefits include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Cardiovascular conditions, such as heart failure
• Musculoskeletal problems, such as back injuries
• Mental disorders, such as depression
• Cancer
• Kidney disease
• Immune system disorders, such as rheumatoid arthritis

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Critical Illness Insurance

Critical illness provides you with a one-time, tax-free payment upon diagnosis of a covered illness. You can buy this affordable coverage as an add-on to your life insurance plan or a separate policy. How you use this money is up to you. You can use it to cover medical expenses not covered by your health insurance or non-medical costs, like child care. 

Like disability insurance, critical illness plans include a waiting period (usually 30 days). So if you are diagnosed with a covered illness, and your policy has a 30-day waiting period, you will receive the payout on day 31. 

Although they differ from insurer to insurer, typical illnesses and conditions covered by critical illness may include: 

• Heart attack
• Cancer
• Stroke
• Alzheimer's
• Blindness
• Organ transplants
• Multiple sclerosis
• Kidney failure

Children’s life insurance

You can buy a separate policy to cover your child. They are often affordable and can help you cover unexpected expenses and time off work in the event of a loss. Alternatively, add the child term rider to your life insurance policy. This rider covers all your children, including those not yet born.

How much does family life insurance cost?

How much you will pay for a family life insurance plan depends on several factors, including:

• The type of coverage: Permanent life insurance offers lifetime protection and accumulates wealth but can be 10-15 times more expensive than term life. Within-term life insurance, policies that have a shorter term (e.g., 10 years) are more affordable life insurance than those with longer terms, say 30 years.
• The amount of life insurance coverage: Your personal situation and financial responsibilities will determine how much coverage is needed. Someone with young kids and a large mortgage balance would want more protection than a person with older children and no mortgage. The greater the coverage amount, the higher the premiums.
• Insured’s age and health: Life insurance companies reserve their best rates for young and healthy applicants. If you are older than 40 or have one or more underlying health conditions, expect to pay more than your younger or healthier counterparts.
• Smoking status: Life insurance can be two to five times more expensive for smokers than for non-smokers.
• Additional riders: Life insurance riders, such as a disability insurance rider, critical illness insurance rider or child term’s insurance rider, can provide additional coverage or ways to receive a cash sum while you are still alive. However, the extra protection comes at a cost. The more riders you add to your policy, the greater the overall cost will be.

Canadian life insurance companies play a significant role in determining the cost of family life insurance, as they offer various policies and coverage options that can impact the overall premiums.

Conclusion

Family life insurance covers more than one type of coverage. Most insurers allow you to create a package that works best for you. 

Not sure which types of coverage to include in your family life insurance bundle?

Rather than wade through a sea of options, let Dundas Life help you find the best life insurance for your needs. Based on these needs, our life insurance experts will recommend the best family life insurance policy and help you secure a great price. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Is family life insurance worth it?

Although not for everyone, family life insurance can be worth the cost for those with a family. Life insurance helps families. With the right policy, you can rest easier knowing your loved ones are protected from life's uncertainties.

How long should my family life insurance last?

You may ask this question if you are buying term life insurance. Because permanent insurance has no expiry date, you do not have to worry about your policy ending before your financial obligations do. But that is not the case with a term life plan, which lasts for a set period. Your term life policy should last long enough to meet your longest obligation.

For example, if you expect to pay off your mortgage in another 15 years, send your children off to college in the next 18 years, and save money for retirement over the next 20 years, you should buy a 20-year term life insurance plan.

What to consider when you buy life insurance? 

Consider the following things if you are purchasing life insurance:

• Type of life insurance coverage
• Life insurance term (in the case of term life insurance)
• Your age and your dependents' age
• Your total debt