Life Insurance can replace you income and protect your dependents in case of your death, and can even provide for your family due to critical illness or disability. The question always arises as to how much is enough? Well there are lots of things to consider, but perhaps enough to pay off your mortgage, cover your income and the hidden income, like benefits or bonuses, maybe enough to leave your dependents debt free.

There are two types of life insurance policies:

Term - term policies can run from yearly renewable to 5, 10, 20, 25 years or to a specific age (commonly 65). It is available in two forms,

level - most commonly purchased, basically the benefit payable stays the same over the course of the term.
decreasing - similar to mortgage insurance, the benefit payable decreases yearly over the life of the policy.

Permanent - There are four kinds of permanent policies:

whole life - the most common type, you pay a specific premium to ensure a specific benefit is paid, it is also a saving account.
universal life - this is a much more flexible policy, the benefits is increasable and there is a cash value account which gains money based on market interest, and eventually this account can be used to alter or make the premium providing there is enough money in the account.
variable life - This policy combines the benefit with a savings account that can be invested into stocks, bonds and money market mutual funds. This can make the policy grow quickly but adds the risk of market fluctuation.

Home insurance protects the structure of your home, your personal belongings, and the cost of living expenses you would incur if you have to live somewhere else while your home is being repaired. It also covers liability claims and health costs that result from the property loss and injury cause to other people.

In case of a total or partial loss of your home, your insurance should cover the total value (being the rebuild cost not the purchase price) of your home, if your coverage is not enough, you will only be paid a portion of the value, which may not be enough to cover repairs. For example, if you own a home valued at $300,000 but only insure it to $200,000, you are only insured to 66%, would would mean if you were to sustain $100,000 in damages, the insurance company would only pay 66% of the damage, or $66,000. You would be responsible for the remainder

Property insurance isn't only for homeowners, there is coverage for tenant and condominium owners:

Tenant or Renter's policy - insures your household contents and personal possessions (except for the building) against damage from insured perils like fire or accidental discharge of water. As well as provides for liability protection.

Condominium Coverage - Similar to the tenant policy, in that it protects the contents and possessions and provides liability coverage, but it picks up where the associations policy leaves off, essentially from the walls in. It covers things like, flooring, counters, toilets, sinks cupboards etc.

Property Insurance Facts

Life Insurance Facts

Any operating business; whether a small home-based business, a large industrial manufacturing plant, or a professional services office, needs some form of commercial insurance. Commercial insurance is a great tool to protect any business.

Commercial Insurance packages need to be developed and designed to protect your business specifically, there are not cookie cutter, one size fits most type of policies. A commercial policy will be specifically designed to protect against the risks your business, your capital and your assets face. Some specific areas of risk:

Liability - known as commercial general liability. Covers areas of loss or damage where your business is held responsible, this can include a customer slipping and falling in your establishment or damage due to malfunction of one of your products.

Property - this coverage provides protection against damage or theft of the physical assets of your business, including the building, tools and equipment, vehicles and stock

Income - known as business interruption, protects against the loss of income if your business must be shut down due to an insured peril. This coverage can cover you until your income reached the levels it was before the shut down.

Directors and Officers - this coverage protects the company's directors and senior management from personal liability arising from their actions while directing the company. While this will not remove their fiduciary duty, it does protect them from legal liability for a claim made against them for an alleged or wrongful act.

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Commercial Insurance Facts

In Ontario it is mandatory to have auto insurance to drive. The main objective of this, of course, is to provide protection against losses and liability arising from traffic accidents.

Third Party Liability insurance covers damages and liability in case you injure or kill someone or damage someone's property in a car accident. The law requires you must carry a minimum of $200,000 in third party liability, however, in this day and age that is quite low. A good broker will ensure you do not carry less then a $1,000,000 in liability because you want to be protected with enough money to cover the damage done, and any court awards due to injuries and to cover court cost and legal fees.

Other coverage can include:

Collision - covers damage to your vehicle as a result of impact with another vehicle or object.

Comprehensive - protects your vehicle against damage caused by vandalism, theft, storms and falling objects.

All-Perils - provides all the coverage of collision and comprehensive but adds a broader more inclusive definition of damages covered.

OPCF 20 - Loss of use coverage, allots an amount of money that can go towards a rental car or another means of transportation (bus, taxi, carpool) during the time your vehicle is being repaired from an insured peril.

There is a lot of coverage available, your AAIMSAFE broker will be happy to help you find the coverage that best suits your needs.

Auto Insurance Facts