A Duck Hunt for the right life insurance

Do you remember playing Duck Hunt on Nintendo? You had to shoot the ducks as they flew around on the TV screen.

As you advanced in the game the ducks would fly faster and faster. It became increasingly difficult to react and focus. Choosing the appropriate life insurance can be the same way. The more you look into it, the more options you realize there are and the more flustered you can become.

Traditionally, life insurance companies require you to provide a full declaration of your health and undergo additional underwriting such as blood and urine tests. The insurance company could come back and seek additional input from you, your doctor or even require you to do more tests. This could be lengthy and less than comfortable. However, there are alternatives for those that either don’t have time or impeccable health.

Simple issue policies generally have fewer questions and are faster to issue, but at a slightly higher cost. I tend to think of it as paying for convenience. Like ordering pizza and having it delivered.

The simplified process can be for healthy or hard to insurance people. If you are healthy but don’t have much time, you can apply for a policy in about twenty minutes, skip medical samples and get a policy issued in as quick as a day. If you are not as healthy you can still fast track your application in just as short of time, without medical samples and have your coverage in just a few days.

The cost and limits will be different but my point is convenience and ultimately experience. If you know or feel that traditional insurance will be a challenge to put in place you may be a candidate for a simplified issue policy.

One strategy is to get this in place then go through a traditional process that will take longer and may require more robust medical underwriting. In the meantime you will have the security of coverage.

Guaranteed issue policies are for the hardest to insure Canadians. There is still a level of health declarations. But you can answer as little as two questions and get coverage.

Perhaps you have received some of these offers in the mail or even on TV. There are usually limits to the coverage amount and of course the costs tend to be higher. They generally have some pre-existing condition clauses built in.

This means that they may not cover you for concerns you already have for the life of the policy or a time period. There is usually a period called deferment as well. This means that for a period of 1-2 years they will not pay you unless the death is from an accident.

They tend to limit the conversion options that are available on these plans. Although there are limitations you can still get coverage as compared to going through a traditional plan process and getting declined.

So if you are too busy to purchase insurance, are concerned about your health and ability to obtain insurance, you will want to investigate your options further before applying for coverage. Although there are various methods to purchasing it, remember this old saying “if it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, then it is a duck.” This holds true with life insurance since upon death your beneficiary will receive a tax free lump sum of cash.

Steve Meldrum B.Mgt. CFP CLU is the founder of Swell Private Wealth Ltd. For over a decade he has specialized in helping individuals and businesses expand protect and perpetuate their wealth. For further information or tailored advice, contact him at 403487-0490, steve@swellwealth.com or connect on social media.