Q. After a tragedy affected friends of theirs, a married couple with two children began thinking more seriously about their own life insurance* coverage. They started to wonder if they had the right coverage, or even enough coverage, to protect their family in the event that something unexpectedly occurred.
A. Synergy is dedicated to providing our members with access to all the financial and related services they require. In this case, Credential Financial Strategies Inc. (CFS) would help you come up with the right insurance plan for you and your family. CFS provides life insurance* to members of credit unions across Canada, including Synergy, and shares our member-first values and ethics.
Call us, and we’ll be pleased to arrange an appointment to discuss your insurance needs. But what are those needs? Before your first visit, you need to spend some time thinking about what you want for insurance protection.
A good starting point is to realize that the topics of death and disability are not “taboo”. You and your spouse need to have open, frank discussions where you “think of the unthinkable.” What would you want to happen if one or both of you were to die or become seriously disabled? Put yourself into that scenario, and think of all that might be involved. For example, would your children still be able to attend college some day?
Most people focus on life insurance*, but your chances of becoming permanently disabled rather than deceased, especially when you’re younger, are actually greater, and can have a much greater financial impact in the long term. Here again, what constitutes disablement for one person can be different for another. For example, a best-selling author can still write best-selling books if they lose the use of their legs; not so if they are a professional athlete.
You also need to take stock of any insurance or coverage that you already have. In some cases, you might actually be over-insured in one area (such as straight life insurance*) but poorly underinsured in another (disability). Your CFS representative can help you determine that, as long as they’re aware of all your current coverage, which could include coverage from your employer, certain credit cards, insurance tied to your mortgage, etc.
As with a lot of things, the sooner you start a solid insurance plan, the better. Your CFS representative can help you choose the best option to keep your insurance coverage complete and affordable throughout your lifetime.
*Credential Financial Strategies Inc. is a member company under Credential Financial Inc., offering financial planning, life insurance and investments to members of credit unions and their communities. ® Credential is a registered marked owned by Credential Financial Inc. and is used under licence.
