Business Overhead Insurance of BOE
This type of insurance is designed for businesses with owners or partners who actively generate income; it helps pay ongoing fixed expenses like salaries, rent, and property taxes in the event the owners or partners become disabled and can’t work.
Disability insurance and BOE insurance are complementary: they function similarly, and one provides coverage where the other does not.
BOEs typically have a shorter benefit period of either 18 or 24 months, and a good policy should pay 100 percent of a company’s monthly operating expenses up to the maximum monthly benefit amount.
Disability Insurance
Studies show that one in six Canadians will be disabled for three months or more before turning 50 – and a typical 30-year-old has a four times greater chance of becoming disabled than of dying before reaching 65.
Therefore, insurance against accident or disease is just as important, if not more important, as life insurance. The best quote we’ve ever heard from a disability specialist is that disability insurance should be as important to you as you next paycheque. It’s not something we sell, it’s something you need.
If you work for a large company, you likely already have long-term disability insurance through your group employee benefits plan. But group insurance usually comes with restrictions most people we talk to are unaware of. Such as; capped coverage amounts especially if you have taxable income above $80,000, and a change in definition after two years that protects the insurer from paying longer term claims. A personal disability policy complements group insurance and fully protects you and your family.
Buy-Sell Life Insurance
This form of coverage provides funds for buying out the ownership interest of a partner if you become disabled.
Buy-sell policies are vital given that your beneficiaries may not want to become involved in the business, and your business partner(s) likely won’t want them to be involved either - although you will want your beneficiaries to be entitled to the fair market value equivalent of your interest in the business.
Ideally, a collaborative approach should be taking in developing a buy-sell policy. Have your corporate lawyer draft an agreement. Your accountant should review the tax ramifications, and we can help you with the best way to fund it, which may not always result in insurance as the solution. Call us to find out all of your options.
Key Person Insurance
Think about the most invaluable person in your company other than you? What happens if you lose that person to death, disability or illness? With keyperson insurance, the impact of that loss is mitigated, with benefits that go towards replacing lost skills, managing payments, and as a reserve against the drop in revenue that may occur while your company regroups.
A wide range of key person coverage is available, and policies can be maintained until the insured employee retires or leaves the company. Recommendations can be easily tailored by us to ensure that you have the funds necessary to continue operating with minimal disruption.
Business Succession Insurance
A good business succession plan outlines exactly how you plan to transfer your shares to another party or parties while maximizing your equity for retirement. If you have a plan to sell shares of your company in the future to a buyer, whether it’s a family member or a third party, it behooves you to make sure the proceeds of sale that have yet to materialize are realized. There is always risk in planning a buyout over 3-5 years versus a lump sum payment today.
A wide range of insurance options for this predicament is available and should address issues of death, disability and critical illness.
Divorce or Separation Insurance
According to Statistics Canada, over 40 percent of Canadian marriages end in divorce, but up until recently there was no recourse for couples seeking insurance to soften the financial strain associated with breakups.
If you or your ex is on the hook for spousal or child support, and your agreement requires you to insure the amount of all future payments, we can shop the market and match an insurance plan to your specific timeline and obligations.
Critical Illness Insurance
Illness can strike at any time and be devastating to your financial security. In fact, life-altering illnesses reportedly affect one in three Canadians in their lifetime. As an essential part of any financial plan, critical illness insurance provides financial support when you’re sick and want to focus on healing, without worrying about money.
Your contract defines all of the conditions you can receive tax-free payments for, the most common illnesses that result in a claim include cancer, heart attack, and stroke. Many plans in Canada now have standardized illness but every company has customized bells and whistles to attract business. Shopping the market for critical illness insurance can be like comparing apples to oranges. We specialize in understanding these differences.
Group Employee Benefits
This type of coverage bundles life, critical illness, extended health care, dental care, and many other forms of insurance for the benefit of company employees and their dependents.
If you’re thinking of ways to attract, retain, and engage employees, adding a group benefit plan may be a great solution. Also, group benefit plans provide coverage at rates that are less expensive than individually owned plans on the market because they are annually renewable which means if the insurer doesn’t like your companies claims rates they are not obligated to renew the coverage the next policy year.
