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The first rule of saving money is to shop around for the best price. Make sure you’re not overpaying for life insurance by comparing insurance providers before you settle on one. LowestRates.ca makes comparing multiple life insurance companies a snap. We don’t sell insurance — we’re completely independent — but we can show you which insurer is offering the lowest price. Just select your province and in 3 minutes we’ll show you rates from Canada’s big banks and independent lenders. Best of all? It’s free.
Sun Life Financial is Canada’s oldest insurance company. It was founded in 1865, pre-dating Confederation, in Montreal by financier and later Conservative politician Matthew Hamilton Gault. It was then known as the Sun Mutual Life Insurance Company of Montreal before the name changed in 1882 to Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada.
Sun Life began its international expansion in the 1880s and by 1920 was doing business in 55 countries, including the U.K., the U.S., and Hong Kong. It was also the first company in Canada to offer group life insurance (1919).
Sun Life also has a long history of corporate philanthropy. In 1925, Sun Life gave $25,000 to the Banting Research Foundation to support medical research into diabetes and insulin only three years after the hormone was discovered. The company still supports research into diabetes, with over $11-million committed to research, prevention, education and care initiatives.
In 2001, Sun Life combined operations with Clarica Life Insurance Company. Today, it occupies the title of Canada’s number two insurer — its competitor, Manulife, takes the top spot.
Sun Life Financial offers both permanent and term life insurance.
Sun Life Financial is one of the oldest insurance companies in the country and because of that, they have a long track record of offering a variety of life insurance products to Canadians. This includes standard and no medical insurance, as well as investment life insurance.
Sun Life’s coverage
Sun Life has a number of standard life insurance products, but it also offers no-medical life insurance. Some of its no-medical options only require you to answer three questions to qualify for a policy. Other available options, such as the child term insurance benefit, provides coverage to your children up to age 25.
Sizeable policies
If you’re in the market to buy a lot of life insurance, you’ll want to look to take a close look at Sun Life: it offers individual life insurance policies with values up to a staggering $15-million.
Investing opportunities with Sun Life
Beyond standard term and perm policy options, Sun Life stands out for the array of participating life insurance policies it offers. You can ‘participate’ in an insurance company’s profits by purchasing a policy that makes dividend payments. Sun Life offers four types of participating life insurance policies. On a side note, Sun Life management has been steadily raising dividends in recent years, which is a sign the company is confident about its revenue outlook.
Sun Life’s medical cannabis benefits
In February 2018, Sun Life began offering coverage for medically-prescribed cannabis to its group extended health-care plans. Plan sponsors can provide members with an annual cannabis benefit that begins at $1,500 and is capped at $6,000
Sun Life and technology
Sun Life has four digital labs in (India, Waterloo, and two in Toronto) where teams collaborate to work on customer-facing projects. The company’s special focus on tech in recent years has resulted in the release of several apps that aim to make it easier for policyholders to get the healthcare services they need.
In 2011, it released the Sun Life mobile app, which allows policyholders to submit a claim, track their benefits, and track their savings or make payments.
Four years later, it launched its Digital Benefits Assistant, a web app that’s designed to help employees understand their group insurance plan, with features such as notifications that are sent when the app detects they’re not taking advantage of their employer top-up options. It also boasts a recommendations engine that’s supposed to provide a Netflix-like experience for the user.
In 2018, Sun Life unveiled Lumino, a search engine for healthcare providers. The app lets you search for the best-rated healthcare providers in your area, including chiropractors, massage therapists, acupuncturists, naturopaths, psychologists and more. While you don’t have to be a Sun Life customer to use the search engine, only plan members can rate providers, making the quality scores harder to game.
Sun Life Financial offers four different types of life insurance and all policies have a 30-day guarantee, which means if you change your mind, you can return the policy within that timeframe and get a refund.
Term Life Insurance
| Policy name | Who’s it for? | Max. policy value |
|---|---|---|
| Sun Life Go Simplified Term Life Insurance | People who need insurance quickly and don’t want to do a medical exam. The application form asks applicants to answer three health questions. | $100,000 |
| Sun Life Go Term Life Insurance | You want to apply online quickly, will answer health questions. This plan allows you to renew your policy without facing new questions about your health. | $1,000,000 |
| SunSpectrum Term Insurance | You want to an income replacement program in place, or are seeking mortgage and debt protection (generally, these needs apply to business owners). | $15,000,000 |
| SunTerm Insurance | You want guaranteed premiums. | $15,000,000 |
Permanent life insurance
| Policy name | Who’s it for? | Max. policy value |
|---|---|---|
| SunSpectrum Permanent Life II | You are near retirement and want guaranteed protection and affordable premiums. | $10,000,000 |
| Sun Life Go Guaranteed Life Insurance | You are in poor health and don’t qualify for traditional life insurance. | $25,000 |
Participating life insurance
| Policy name | Who’s it for? | Max. policy value |
|---|---|---|
| Sun Par Protector II | You want estate protection and to leave assets for your children and grandchildren. | $25,000 for ages 0 – 17 $50,000 for ages 18 – 85 |
| Sun Par Accumulator II | You want to access the cash value of your estate throughout your lifetime. | $15,000,000 |
| Sun Par AcceleratorI | You want to access cash from your estate and have permanent protection guaranteed to be fully paid up in 8 years. | $15,000,000 |
Universal life insurance
| Policy name | Who’s it for? |
|---|---|
| SunSpectrum Universal Life II | You are healthy, want a straightforward plan and can manage your own investments. |
| SunUniversalLife II | You are healthy and want a flexible plan that allows for investment. |
Depending on the type of life insurance policy you purchase, you may also have the following benefits:
It may be time to consider life insurance if:
But let’s answer the main question: should you buy life insurance from Sun Life Financial?
You should talk to an agent or broker as they can offer expert advice, but ultimately, you make the final call.
LowestRates.ca companies insurance plans from more than 20 different insurers including Sun Life Financial.
After you provide some basic information about yourself, we’ll show you which insurance company is offering the lowest rate for the type and amount of coverage you want.
Beyond life insurance, Sun Life Financial also offers:
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