End-of-life or funeral pre-planning is a hot topic. As seniors in Canada become a larger segment of our population, the demand for services geared towards them continues to increase dramatically. Statistically, every single day, one thousand Canadians reach the age of 65. Wow, now that’s a lot of birthday candles!

“In 2016, the number of seniors… in the total population surpassed the number of children…for the first time in Canada’s history. According to all scenarios, this situation would continue” Stats Canada, Population Projections for Canada (2018 to 2068)

Assurant Life of Canada is the single largest provider of preneed life insurance plans in Canada that fund final expense or funeral costs. 

This long-standing insurer began as the Pierce Brothers Family Mortuaries in 1902. As a family-owned business, they pioneered funeral pre-planning in Canada as we know it. They saw firsthand the grief and financial strain their clients experienced, so they innovated a better and more affordable way for people to plan burials.

Their new approach involved purchasing a life insurance company and offering consumers portable funeral insurance policies that pay out tax-free benefits in cash.

Over many decades this company evolved into Assurant Life of Canada and now has assets of almost $2 billion. Their parent company, Assurant Inc., offers similar pre-need services in the US through American Memorial Life Insurance.

They also have substantial holdings internationally in other risk management market sectors. Assurant distributes its final expense plans through 3,000 funeral homes in Canada and the U.S.

In Canada, they operate through two brand names, Canada Purple Shield and Assurant Preneed. Canada Purple Shield is associated with Assurant’s final expense business primarily in Atlantic Canada and Western Canada.  

Nobody uses the name Purple Shield in Ontario or Quebec to market these plans, bur both brands’ funeral plans are underwritten by Assurant. For example, if you go to the domain, purpleshield.ca, it takes you to the Assurantlife.ca homepage.  

Having scoured the web, it appears Assurant solutions or Canada Purple Shield have no google reviews to speak of. In fact, it’s hard to find any positive or negative reviews anywhere. But of course, if you look hard enough, you can always find some complaints.

Did you know, only 15 out 1000 people leave an online review of a product or service? Is it a good idea to base your entire buying decision on what 1.5% of people think? Not to mention, how do you know they used the product or service?

For example, a son who thought his mother paid more for a plan than her estate received said: “Don’t get ripped off by Canada Purple Shield (Assurant Life of Canada).” This is not necessarily the fault of Assurant as they have a distribution system with thousands of advisors and licensed funeral pre-planners across Canada. Is it fair to paint Assurant in a bad light because one of their distributors didn’t meet a client’s expectations? 

Frankly we don’t even know all the details of the plan and monies received. 

My honest is opinion is that you should take some time to read reviews and balance them with the other information you find out when doing your homework. 

Other complaints directed towards the Elephas group allege that they have policies that are insufficient to cover the actual cost of a funeral. According to sources, Assurant Life of Canada has received several complaints through the Financial Services Commission of Ontario (FSCO) regarding these practices, but I don’t know if the situation has been resolved.

It’s the advisor or agent’s responsibility to make sure their clients understand the product they purchase. Sadly, many consumers appear to have plans they don’t understand, can’t afford or that have substandard guarantees. 

An Assurant funeral insurance policy is designed for consumers who want to have everything planned and pre-paid for in advance.

Whether it’s a burial or cremation you decide on the specific products and services you want. Every last detail is planned out, so your loved ones aren’t burdened with the cost or worry of having to make any last-minute decisions.

In most Provinces, funeral homes are required by law to guarantee the price of those Goods & Services when a prearrangement is made and funded through insurance or trust. That means your licensed funeral provider provides those same services for $8,467.99 whether you pass away today or 20 years from now. 

This is the primary reason for purchasing an Assurant Preneed life insurance policy: peace of mind and the funeral service arrangements are made and funded.

NOTE* It’s a good idea to confirm the exact services that are included in the package. Sometimes, Funeral homes cannot guarantee all the costs, especially those arranged with third-party vendors.

With an Assurant pre-need funeral insurance plan, you have the option of paying the entire amount upfront or over a period of 3, 5, 10 or 20 years.

Like most seniors who decide to go with a payment plan, you have to sign a funeral goods & services contract. This document designates the home providing the services, the owner of the policy (likely you). The Assurant Life of Canada policy is used to fund the contract. 

In funeral insurance lingo this is called Fixed Premium Insurance Accumulation (FPIA). If you’re healthy, the policy covers you from day one for the entire cost of the funeral. 

For example, a 70-year-old paying for an $8000 burial plan over 15 years, pays approximately $96 per month. If this senior passes away after making payments for only 3 years, Assurant pays out the full $8000 death benefit. 

And yes, you did your math correctly…that’s $17,280 paid over 15 years for $8000 of funeral services. More about the cost later.

If you have any health issues, your life insurance burial policy may come with a 2-year waiting period. This means it is a Guaranteed Issue plan. A Preferred plan has no waiting period. 

This means If you die within the first 2 years of starting the plan, Assurant will NOT pay out the death benefit. Your family or loved ones are responsible for any balance owing on your funeral plan.

When death occurs after 2 years, you’re covered for the full amount. 

In case you were wondering, this is standard practice for most funeral insurance carriers. It’s their way of providing insurance to someone with moderate to serious health issues while mitigating risk. That means you qualify for one of these plans even if you are terminally ill. 

Compared to other traditional life insurance companies, Assurant’s risk assessments are more conservative. Click here to find out more information about guaranteed and simplified issue life insurance. 

Assurant final expense insurance policies are for consumers who want to communicate their final wishes but leave the specific details up to their loved ones. These plans are more flexible as they pay out a tax-free benefit directly to your beneficiaries who then use the funds to pay the funeral provider. 

An Assurant Life of Canada Final Expense plan does NOT require you sign a Funeral Goods & Services contract with a funeral home when you purchase the policy. Based on the end-of-life plan you create with your advisor; the policy is issued prior to any contract.

It’s important to know that when the final expense policy is written through an Assurant Distribution Partner, it is more easily “assigned” to a funeral home to cover the goods and services in accordance with your family’s wishes.

As such, Assurant final expense insurance does not lock in the cost or services of any cremation or burial. That’s why it’s important to anticipate what the costs will be 10 or 20 years from now, so you have the right amount of coverage. 

For example, an $8000 burial today costs $11,887 20 years from now, based on an annual inflation rate of 2%. 

Similar to Assurant preneed funeral insurance, you can pay the entire amount upfront or over a period of 3, 5, 10 or 20 years. Likewise, depending on your health, the policy is issued Preferred or Guaranteed. 

“That’s why it’s really important to “kick the tires” on any purchase of a final expense or preneed plan. You have to make absolutely sure that you understand the goods and services you are buying. If your funeral home partner or insurance agent appears to be evasive when it comes to the details of your plan, go to someone else.” 

Assurant travel protection includes:

• All paperwork including consular documents if death is outside of country
• Preparation and transportation of your remains at a funeral provider near the place of death before final transportation home
• Transportation home of one travelling companion
• Transportation of one family member to place of death to accompany deceased home

Assurant Life of Canada prepares all necessary documents:

• Assessment of Government applications, pensions, memberships, etc. to determine what paperwork is required
• All paperwork, including consular documentation if the insured dies outside of Country
• A customized guide to help your family member or executor through the entire process
• Ongoing assistance for your family or executor for 365 days following your death

Protects you and your estate from the theft of personal documents such as passport, drivers’ license or other government issued identification after death. Assurant life of Canada takes the following steps to make sure your credit is not compromised:

• Investigate any suspicious or fraudulent accounts on your credit profile and communicate with law enforcement and government agencies as required
• Issue fraud alerts and restore credit accuracy with national credit bureaus
• Notify the Passport Office, any financial institutions, utilities, revenue Canada and Provincial health plans as needed
• Provide ongoing support to family or executor until the situation is resolved

Purple Shield and Assurant products are distributed in Canada through a network of approximately 3000 advisors. The majority of agents who sell these funeral insurance plans to consumers are exclusive brokers.

This means Assurant/ Canada Purple Shield is the ONLY program they sell. 

This is good news if you’re planning on buying a plan through your local funeral home. However, if you want to do some comparison shopping, this may make it difficult.

Also, partners who sell Assurant preneed life insurance are required by law to be licensed funeral pre planners and/or licensed funeral directors. 

If you want to apply, visit their website, assurantlife.ca and go to the Contact Us page. There’s an online form you can fill out to get in touch with a representative in your area. 

You don’t have to undergo a medical exam, but the application process does involve answering some basic health questions. 

If you answer “yes” to any of the following 5 questions, you are considered higher risk and your coverage is guaranteed issue with a 2-year waiting period. But take note, answering “no” to all of the questions qualifies you for preferred issue and your coverage goes into force immediately:

1. Are you currently confined to a hospital or nursing home, or have you ever been diagnosed as having a terminal illness, Alzheimer’s or HIV?
2. During the past 5 years, have you ever been treated for, or been diagnosed as having:

1. • Disease of disorder of the heart, circulatory or vascular systems, stroke or any cancer?
   • Disease or disorder of the lungs, liver or kidney; alcoholism or drug abuse?
   • Brain disorder or tumor, seizure, paralysis, psychosis, lupus or MS?
   • Blood disease or disorder, or both high blood pressure and diabetes together?

NOTE: there are no questions regarding gender or smoking status.

Whether you choose to go with Assurant preneed life insurance, final expense insurance or executor protection, payment options are similar:

• Depending on your age at the time of issue, you can pay over a 3, 5, 10, 15 or 20 year period. You can also pay the whole amount up front if that works for you. 
• There are no blood tests required to apply
• Full benefit is paid out regardless of how many payments you’ve made at the time of your death.
• Depending on your health, the policy may be issued preferred or Guaranteed (2-year waiting period).

Generally speaking, Assurant Life of Canada’s rates are higher than other final expense companies in Canada. Their competitors include: 

• Canada Protection Plan (CPP)
• BMO
• Specialty Life Insurance (SLi)
• Industrial Alliance (iA)
• Wawanesa Life
• American Income Life
• Knights of Columbus
• Orange Benefit Fund, etc. 

First off, it’s impossible to find Canada Purple Shield or Assurant rates online. Does that mean they’re trying to hide something? Not really…it’s hard to find accurate rates online with any carrier.

One of the reasons is that every consumer is unique in terms of their age, gender and health. 

At some point though, to get an accurate idea of the cost, you need to speak with a human being. In my first attempt to get an accurate quote, the 3rd party agent I spoke with told me he would only provide this information in person, not over the phone.

When I called Assurant directly, the gentleman I spoke with was professional and was very happy to provide me with the detailed information I was looking for. 

To compare apples to apples, we’re going to look at the difference between an Assurant Final Expense Policy and a no-medical whole life insurance policy from one of their competitors, Canada Protection Plan.

Both insurance plans are designed to pay out a tax-free benefit to your loved ones directly. 

For the purposes of this illustration, we’re looking at rates for a 65-year-old, male, non-smoker in average health. Let’s call him David.

Keep in mind, average means someone who is more or less healthy but may still have mild medical issues. Things like well-managed diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol are good examples. 

We’re also comparing plans paid up in 20 years (20 Pay) vs plans you pay for life (100 Pay).

For the purposes of the next example, we are comparing the cost of finale expense policies. These are typically called 100-pay plans. You pay premiums until you pass away or reach the age of 100. At age 100, the insurance is paid up.

I know it sounds strange but that’s the way they are designed.

Let’s assume David lives a long, healthy life and dies, surrounded by his family, at the age of 90. 

“It’s clear either way, he will save between 25% to 30% by choosing CPP over Purple Shield Canada. Alternatively, for the same amount of money, he will get 30-50% more insurance with CPP, depending on whether he chooses a 20-pay or 100-pay plan.”

Remember, final expense plans are NOT savings plans. These are permanent life insurance policies. You’re covered for the entire $10,000 benefit from day one, no matter how many payments you’ve made at the time of your death.

Both of the plans have similar guarantees behind them:

• Death benefit is guaranteed to NEVER decrease
• Benefit is paid out 100% tax-free to your loved ones
• No physical or medical exams required to apply.
• Policy cannot expire at any age. As long as you’re making the payments, coverage can never be cancelled due to any change in age or health

If, however, you’re a healthy senior, on a fixed income, looking for the best bang for your buck, Assurant may not be your top option. It’s always a good idea to visit a funeral home to get your detailed wishes on file. But you don’t have to sign a contract and start a pre-need insurance plan to begin the process.