The team behind PolicyMe, based in downtown Toronto, is working on a big mission, to not only help Canadians gain access to term life insurance but to make it more affordable and convenient. PolicyMe has served thousands of Canadians all across Canada.
We spoke with the PolicyMe team about the importance of finding the right life insurance policy and how they are setting themselves apart from the more traditional life insurance industry.
When were you established? Why did you start your business in this industry?
Started in 2018, PolicyMe is an online life insurance company that allows Canadians to buy term life insurance in minutes, 100% online, at the most affordable price.
Through advising large insurance companies, our founders learned that the traditional life insurance process wasn’t updated for the modern consumer: it’s filled with insurance jargon, long waiting periods, unnecessary medical exams, dishonest advice, and multiple middlemen. All these inefficiencies lead to a painful customer experience, as well as expensive prices. Our team at PolicyMe has managed to eliminate all the unnecessary bells and whistles in the traditional life insurance process, resulting in the best fully-underwritten term life insurance in Canada.
The application for PolicyMe’s term life insurance product takes about 15 minutes to complete. After you apply, most applicants receive a decision instantly (instead of weeks). Most healthy applicants won’t require a medical exam and could get approved on-the-spot. With most traditional life insurance products, this same process could take up to 10 weeks!
Why is it important for Canadians to have life insurance?
If you have anyone financially dependent on you and you don’t have enough money set aside to provide for them financially, if you were to die tomorrow, then life insurance is worth it. It should be your top insurance priority (We’re not just saying that).
Why? Because most people would agree that without a financial cushion from life insurance, their family might face a dire money situation if they were to pass away. That’s why term life insurance is so valuable. For a lot of people, it’s the difference between their family living out their lives without any financial stress and their family potentially really needing to scale back their lifestyle (moving out of their house, cutting back significantly on expenses, etc.). As a result, it’s an affordable way to protect the people you love most financially.
If you’re not sure whether you need life insurance, take our life insurance recommendation quiz. We’ll tell you how much coverage you need, or whether you even need coverage at all!
What types of services or products do you provide your clients?
PolicyMe offers term life insurance to our clients.
We have comprehensive coverage options too. The coverage amount ranges from $100,000 to $5,000,000. Our terms range from 10 – 30 years in different increments. Policies are offered for clients between 18 years old to 75 years old.
Can you explain the application process? How long does it take for a client to find the right policy for their needs?
You can get a life insurance policy in 3 quick and easy steps.
Step 1: Get an instant life insurance quote (5 minutes). Enter your age, income and smoking status to receive life insurance quotes based on your selected coverage amount and term length. If you're wondering how much coverage you need, answer a few additional questions about your personal and financial situation to receive a personalized coverage recommendation from PolicyMe's advice tool.
Step 2: Complete your life insurance application (15 minutes). Submit a free no-obligation life insurance application through our website. This involves questions on your personal situation and medical history. The application is 100% online, with no commitment to purchase (no payment details are required at this stage).
Step 3: Receive your decision instantly. After assessing your information, we'll let you know instantly whether or not you've been approved on-the-spot. If you're approved on the spot, all you need to do is sign off on your application and begin your coverage. For some of our applicants, additional information or requirements may be requested. After those requirements are completed, you'll find out whether or not you're approved. Most healthy individuals will qualify for instant approval, without an in-person medical exam.
Why should Canadian consumers choose PolicyMe for their life insurance needs? What sets you apart from other companies in your industry?
Great question!
We’re proud to boast the lowest rates in Canada. On average, PolicyMe rates can be 10% - 20% lower than other insurers in Canada. We fixed the many inefficiencies in the life insurance process and passed those savings back to our customers through a more affordable policy.
All our applicants also receive an instant decision on their policy. That means after filling out their application (which only takes 15 minutes), customers can find out if they’re approved for a policy instantly.
Plus, most people don’t require a medical exam! With most other insurers, you’d have to wait weeks for a decision, so we’ve shortened that timeline from weeks to minutes.
PolicyMe has simplified its underwriting process to better serve Canadians. How exactly have you achieved this and how does it help Canadians?
Yes, we’ve cut costs in a few areas and increased efficiencies along the whole process, allowing us to pass those savings back to our customers through a cheaper policy.
Our underwriting is data-driven (not human-driven). This allows our customers to receive an instant decision on their eligibility. This also saves PolicyMe money on expenses like third-party medical exams, interviews, and attending physician statements. That money saved translates to an overall cheaper policy, but with the same high-quality coverage!
We’ve also eliminated the middleman, so we’ve drastically decreased distribution costs. 97% of life insurance is still sold by in-person life insurance advisors. This means 15-20% of your premium goes toward paying their commissions. PolicyMe eliminates the middleman by selling directly to our customers, allowing us to pass those savings back to our customers.
Who is Canada Premier Life Insurance and how do they help PolicyMe?
As a third-party administrator, PolicyMe offers policies issued by Canadian Premier Life Insurance Company (est. 1955), which has an A (Excellent) rating from A.M. Best and serves 2+ million customers. Basically, Canadian Premier is there to make sure that in the unlikely scenario that PolicyMe isn’t around in 20 years, your claim will still get paid!
