Below is a brief description of the three basic types of life insurance available in Canada.
Term insurance
Term insurance is life insurance that provides death-benefit coverage for the insured, provided that death occurs within a specified period of time. Terms are usually for five, 10, 15 or 20 years. Most term insurance can be converted to permanent, which has no time limit and lasts for your lifetime.
Whole life insurance
Whole life insurance is permanent life insurance with benefits payable on the death of the insured, whenever that occurs. The premium payments are inflexible and are payable until the death of the insured person. Some whole life policies are "participating" policies, meaning that dividends may be credited to the policy.
Universal life insurance
Universal life insurance is permanent life insurance that offers greater flexibility than term or whole life insurance. Premiums can be credited to an investment account from which monthly charges for life insurance coverage are deducted and to which interest is credited and then sheltered from accrual taxation. The policy owner can manage the investment portion of the universal life insurance policy. For more information, see Exploring Universal Life Insurance.
To learn more about the benefits of MD Life Plan follow the links below, then contact your MD advisor or call 1 800 267-2332 to be put in touch with a MD Management office near you.
