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Term Life Insurance

Term Life Insurance provides temporary affordable life insurance coverage 

Happy Family with enough term life insurance

In this term life insurance buyers guide we'll cover

What is term life insurance?
How does term life insurance work?
What are the benefits of term life insurance?
How to buy term life insurance?
How much does term life insurance cost?

What is Term Life Insurance?

Term life insurance is a temporary type of life insurance policy (contract) that provides temporary coverage for a specific term or period, such as 1 year or for 5,10,15, 20, 25, 30 or 40 years. Designed to provide simple affordable financial protection for a predetermined number of years along with fixed monthly premium amounts (also called level premiums). Term life provide great cheap life insurance for those times when you need it.

 

Try our free life insurance quote platform

 

While term life insurance is the most affordable type of life insurance there are 2 main downsides to term life:

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First, if you change your mind and decide you need more life insurance after the end of your current policy term, renewal premiums after age 50 become that much more expensive (most people take lower coverage amounts).

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Second, there is no cash value accumulation (after 25 years you can usually get most of your cash back from permanent life insurance). Having access to cash when you need it has personally helped me and my family through some challenging times. 

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Term life insurance premiums don't increase during the term of the policy. As long as you pay those regular premiums your coverage is maintained and will payout a lump sum amount if you die during the time period your policy contract is in force

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Term life insurance also offers a number of additional  policy contract riders with benefits that you can add

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Your term life insurance policy premiums are based on factors such as your age, health, policy type, coverage amount, and the number of years covered in the policy contract

How does term life insurance work?

Term life insurance has features that provide additional benefits:

Try our 1 second life insurance quote challenge.

  • After you enter the very basic information on the instant life insurance quote platform you will have a good idea of the coverage amounts, price band ranges and whether you can get more coverage for a few dollars more each month

 

Decide how much coverage you need?

  • After you decide which of your financial risks you want to purchase protection for Then its time to consider if you need any bells and whistles covered in the following lists

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Decide how long you want the coverage to last?

  • Select the term for a specified number of years. Your Term life insurance policy provides coverage for a fixed term in increments of Pick-A-Term of 1 year increments. Most other term policies offer 5 and 10 years term increments. Provides coverage from ages 0 to 100. You can choose the length of term based on your specific needs. Try our life insurance calculator

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Death benefit $ amount

  • If you pass away during the term of the policy, the death benefit is paid to your designated beneficiaries tax-free. lump sum amount

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Level premiums

Premiums remain the same amount each month amount for the duration of the policy's life time

  • Your term life insurance does not accumulate cash value over time. Term life insurance provides only temporary death benefit coverage with no savings component or investment feature. Unlike permanent life insurance (such as whole life or universal life) that lasts much longer and includes a savings and investment component

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No policy loans

  • Since term life insurance lacks a cash value component, there are no policy loans or withdrawals available

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Guaranteed Convertible

  • Your term life insurance policy includes a guaranteed convertibility option, allowing you to convert the term policy into a whole life insurance policy (permanent) without the need for a medical exam. You can decide to  purchase another policy to take advantage of the no medical guarantees. This is beneficial if your needs change, or you develop cancer and you need lifelong coverage or cash value accumulation

 

​Guaranteed Renewable

  • Your term life insurance policy includes a guaranteed renewable option, which means you can renew the coverage for another term before the initial term expires. You will pay higher premiums at renewal time which are based on your age at that time. Renewal premiums after age 50 take a large jump in price

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Affordable Coverage

  • Term life insurance provides affordable coverage when compared to whole life insurance. Offering a cost-effective way to obtain high coverage amounts during periods of increased financial responsibilities. Helpful when raising a family or paying off a mortgage

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Temporary Coverage

  • Term life insurance is well-suited for specific financial obligations that have an end date. The policy will provide income replacement during working years, cover mortgage or loan obligations, or fund a child's education

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Simplified Underwriting

  • Term life insurance policies under $750,000 often involves a questionnaire, no underwriting or no medical exams fewer as compared to most permanent life insurance policies. If you are in excellent health are a non smoker you may qualify for these types of policies. Usually for amounts over $750,000 you'll need full underwriting. Many of the banks now offer simplified underwriting up to $1,000,000. 

  • Term life insurance has simpler underwriting and requires fewer medical exams or health questions compared to some permanent life insurance policies

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No tax free lumpsum payout

  • If you outlive the term of the policy and the coverage expires

What are the benefits of term life insurance?

For as little as $3 to $10 per month you can add a fantastic range of additional benefits to you term life policy by adding riders.

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Term Life Insurance Riders

Term life insurance riders are additional features that can be added to a term life insurance policy to enhance coverage and tailor it to your specific needs. Riders cost extra in addition to the base premium. The availability of riders depends on the insurance company and the specific policy

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Common term life insurance benefits (riders):

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  • Accelerated Death Benefit Rider (ADB): This rider allows you to receive a portion of the death benefit in advance if you are diagnosed with a terminal illness or a specified critical illness. It provides financial support to cover medical expenses or other needs during a challenging health situation

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  • Waiver of Premium Rider (WP): If you become disabled and unable to work, this rider waives the premium payments, keeping the policy in force during your disability period. The policy remains active, providing continued coverage without requiring premium payments

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  • Accidental Death Benefit Rider (ADB): If you die as a result of an accident, this rider pays an additional death benefit on top of the base death benefit. It increases the policy's payout amount

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  • Child Rider: This rider provides term life insurance coverage for your children. In the event of a child's death, it pays a death benefit to the insured parent. It's an affordable way to provide coverage for children and can later be converted into a separate policy for your child when they turn 16

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  • Spouse Rider: Similar to the child rider, this rider offers term life insurance coverage for the your partner. In the event your partners death, it pays a death benefit to the insured. It's an option for couples to add coverage for each other to their respective policies

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  • Return of Premium Rider (ROP): This rider refunds the total amount of premiums paid over the policy term if the insured survives the term. It offers a full or partial premium refund at the end of the policy if you outlive the term. Usually found in critical illness policies

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  • Long-Term Care (LTC) Rider: This rider allows you to access a portion of the death benefit to cover long-term care expenses if you need assistance with activities of daily living. It helps preserve your policy's value while providing financial support for care needs

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  • Disability Income Rider (DIR): If the you become disabled and unable to work, this rider provides a regular income stream to replace lost earnings during the disability period. It can help maintain your financial stability during a time of reduced income.

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  • Guaranteed Insurability Rider(GIR): This rider allows you to purchase additional coverage at specific life events (e.g., marriage, birth of a child) without the need for additional underwriting. It offers you the option to increase coverage as life circumstances change

Example of BMO term life insurance

Affordable Protection

BMO offers 5 plan types, designed to meet your personal or business financial obligations:

Term 10 provides level life insurance protection to age 85 with guaranteed premiums renewing every 10 years

Term 15 provides level life insurance protection to age 85 with guaranteed premiums renewing every 15 years

Term 20 provides level life insurance protection to age 85 with guaranteed premiums renewing every 20 years

Term 25 provides level life insurance protection for 25 years

Term 30 provides level life insurance protection for 30 years


Great Features

All plans offer single life, combined life or joint last to die type coverage

  • Term conversion with reset

  • Term 10-15 Exchange Program

  • Terminal Illness Life Advance

  • Credit card payment for the first annual premium ($100,000 maximum)

  • Accelerated Underwriting

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BMO offers accelerated underwriting (no fluids) up to and including age 60

  • This means that you will get the coverage you need faster

  • Available for ages18-50 up to and including $2,000,000

  • For ages 51-60 includes up $500,000

How to buy term life insurance?

  1. Most people need $500,000 to $1,000,000 term life coverage

  2. Read information about life insurance and term life insurance

  3. Often you'll find that you can get another $300,000 coverage for a few dollars more per month.

  4. Consider which riders and additional life insurance benefits to add to your life insurance policy quotes. This will increase the monthly premium and provide enhanced coverage with more benefits. Usually for a few dollars more each month

  5. Consider 2 or 3 policies, with 10-20-30 year terms with a disability premium holiday riders and a critical illness policy (compare policies with or with out return of premium) then you have a policy with some cash value. Cash value in a policy always comes in handy

  6. Consider a joint first to die or joint last to die policy as a lower cost form of term life insurance for 2.

  7. All of the insurance companies use price banding in ranges of $100,000 to $200,000 to group their pricing. Life insurance pricing is based on the historical claims experience the insurer had with their polices

  8. I've seen cases where it was the same price to buy another $50,000 of coverage due to the price banding that particular company was using

  9. If you look at the examples below you'll notice that men pay 25% to 50% more for their life insurance policies than women. Life insurance is always cheaper for women as they live longer and make fewer claims

  10. Life insurance companies target slightly different markets and offer difference premium pricing for different demographics

  11. To find the best life insurance it pays to shop for multiple quotes. It always pays to consider everything you need to cover with your life insurance policy and take out more coverage when your younger as its much cheaper

  12. Try the Pick-A-Term offered by a few of the biggest insurance providers. Allows you to pick 11-12-13-14-15-and more term policies

Secrets on How to buy term life insurance?

Your probably wondering how to get started?

When we work with clients like you we need to find out some background information that help target the first round  of quotes. You can use this platform to do some thinking and shopping before you make your decision

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  1. ​Are you having difficulties being insured? or have you had been refused life insurance in the past? This determines where to start looking for life insurance? (insert the link to the 3 types of life insurance – underwritten-simplified issue-guaranteed issue-no medical life insurance)​

  2. Are your needs temporary or permanent? (insert link comparing term life to permanent life insurance features and benefits)

  3. What amounts do you plan to spend?  Anticipate spending anywhere from $30 to $250 per month depending on your age, health, budget and needs to purchase $500,000. With the amounts of current mortgages minimum life insurance coverage amount are definitely increasing.

  4. All brokers have to use the same life insurance premium quotation tools. No one has different life insurance prices. Prices are set by the life insurance companies

  5. For now every agency and broker selling life insurance are paid on commission even if they pay their staff a salary they also have sales quotas

  6. The value that agents or brokers offer is to provide creative unbiased life insurance policy designs and comparative life insurance quotes

  7. Many brokers are on revenue tier bonuses designed to encourage our industry to focus more on a fewer life insurance companies

  8. Always obtain 3-4 life insurance quotes without and with various riders and benefits comparisons

  9. Compare policy amounts in increments of  $200,000 up to $1,000,000

  10. Compare each incremental amount  of $200,000 to  10-20-30-40 year terms

  11. When you zero in to a few policies that you find interesting compare the lowest cost policy to the highest cost policy

  12. Can you fit a $10,000 to $50,000 whole life policy in your budge, Paying for your whole life guarantees you'll always have some life insurance in place?

  13. What about layering life insurance or bundles? Did you consider a few different policies with different features and benefits? When we are helping our clients we always look a broad range of options for your consideration

Three ways to compare and buy Term Life Insurance?

3 ways to compare a life insurance quote using this complimentary, no obligation and free online quote platform

Rather than show you life insurance age premiums comparisons lets examine the range of price quotes from the lowest to the highest life insurance policy

 

We usually start with a Hi to Low Analysis to compare the cheapest term life insurance quote to the highest cost term life insurance quote and to compare regular health premiums  to Preferred Health Premiums

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How much does a $500,000 term life insurance policy cost for Term 20?

Take the following example for a

man age 30 non smoker with regular health profile looking for a

$500,000 term 20 – term life insurance policy

= $29.70 per month vs $80.10 per month

Using the same quote platform on this website we summarized the following:

Empire Life                             quoted $29.70 per month 

Beneva                                     quoted $37.80 per month 

Canada Protection Plan    quoted $80.10 per month simplified no medical term life policy 

 

Term 20 term life quote comparison for $500,000 preferred health

Take the following example for a

man age 30 non smoker with Preferred Plus health profile looking for a

$500,000 term 20 – term life insurance policy

= $26.55 vs $57.24 per month

Primerica                                 quoted $24.17  (we don’t recommend using this company)

Sun Life                                    quoted $26.55

RBC                                           quoted $57.24 

Canada Protection Plan    quoted $80.10 per month simplified elite no medical term life policy 

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Whole life vs term life insurance for a $500,000 policy

Take the following example for a man age 30 non smoker with regular health profile looking for

$500,000 term 20 vs whole life insurance policy = $29.70 vs $257.40 per month

Foresters Life Insurance Company for Non-Par whole life       = $257.40 

The Empire Life Insurance Company for Life Pay (par)              =$512.10

 

Summary

Compare a $29.70 for a term life quote to $257.40 or $512.10 per month for a whole life quote and you might think that whole life participating is a rip off and more expensive.  Until you understanding that after about 25 to 30 years you can pull out $250,000 to $500,000 cash out of the. All policies are not created equal. Its important to do like with like quote comparisons.

How much does $500,000 term life insurance cost? 

Term life insurance quotes 20 year level term for $500,000

Premium price examples for male Non Smoker age 21 

Sun Life Term Insurance              $25.65 per month

RBC insurance quote                    $26.82 per month

UV Insurance                                    $27.00 per month

RBC Life Insurance Term Life    $29.62 per month

Empire Life insurance                   $29.70 per month

 

Term life insurance quotes for 20 year level term for $200,000

Premium price examples for male Non Smoker age 21

Empire Life insurance                  $15.66 per month

UV Insurance                                   $16.38 per month

Humania Term Life Insurance   $16.83 per month

IA Term life insurance                   $17.28 per month

Equitable term life insurance     $17.37 per month

 

Term life insurance quotes 20 year level term for $200,000

Premium price examples for female Non Smoker age 21

UV Insurance                                   $12.96 per month

Empire Life insurance                   $13.14 per month

Humania Term Life Insurance   $13.59 per month

IA Term Life Insurance                 $14.40 per month

Manulife Term Life Insurance    $14.71 per month


 

Term life insurance quotes for 20 year level term for $500,000

Price price examples for female Non Smoker age 21

Humania Term Life Insurance     $16.83 per month

IA Term life insurance                     $17.28.per month

Equitable term life insurance      $17.37 per month

RBC Life Insurance Term Life      $18.63 per month

UV Insurance                                      $19.35 per month

Empire Life insurance                     $20.70 per month

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