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Frequently Asked Questions
If you have a funeral insurance policy, the death benefit will be paid directly to your designated funeral home. If you have final expense insurance, the death benefit will be paid directly to your beneficiary. Death benefit proceeds are usually paid immediately.
TruStage Life of Canada is a member of the CUNA Mutual Group family of brands.
To file a claim against your funeral insurance policy, your family simply needs to contact the funeral home. They will handle all of the paperwork and correspondence with our company. The claim will be processed and a check will either be mailed or electronically transferred to the funeral provider within 24 hours of receiving all of the required documentation. To file a claim against your final expense policy, your family should contact us directly.
On August 1, 2021, Assurant finalized the sale of the Preneed business to CUNA Mutual Group, a broad financial services provider. With more than 85 years of experience building distribution relationships, CUNA Mutual Group and its family of brands protect more than 30 million consumers today. As the business transitions, partners and policyholders can continue to reach us through the communication channels they've historically used.
As a general rule, funeral insurance benefits are paid in a lump sum and have no tax consequences to you or your family. However, please consult your tax advisor.
No. As long as you continue to pay your premiums, your coverage will not decrease or be terminated.
No. Your premium amount will remain the same and cannot be increased.
None of our products require you to have a medical exam. Anyone can qualify for our plans, regardless of age or health.
If your plan is registered as a Tax-Free Savings Account or sponsored by a funeral home, your money will earn tax-free interest.
Visit our website and go to the Contact Us page where you can reach out to us and contact a TruStage Agent nearest to you.
TruStage offers great flexibility when it comes to payment. If you like, you can pay for policy in a single lump sum. Alternately, you can pay it off over anywhere from three to 20 years, making payments monthly, quarterly, or annually. You can arrange to have these payments withdrawn from your checking or savings account automatically.
We'll help you determine the right value for your policy based on the prearrangements you discuss with us or your funeral home of choice. If you opt for supplemental add-ons, the value of your policy will increase.
The cost of your funeral insurance will depend on the value of your policy. The exact value of your policy will depend on the choices you make during the preplanning process.
TruStage has an excellent financial rating and is supervised at the federal level. It is also a member of
Assuris
a national compensation fund that protects certificate holders.
TruStage provides the following graph to Quebec residents that have purchased the
Death Saving
Plan and
Death Insurance
Plan products.
Click Here
to learn more.
Depending on the particular policy and product, the policy may move into a Reduced Paid Up (RPU) status. It is best to contact our offices if affording your premiums becomes difficult.
We offer a 30-day free-look period at the beginning of the prearranged funeral contract. If, for any reason, you choose not to continue the contract, you may cancel in the first 30 days and we will refund all the premiums paid.
Whether you're out of town or abroad when you die, Journey Home (an optional add-on) provides coverage to ensure the return of your body to your designated funeral home.
Whether you've paid all of your premiums or just a few, your claim will be honoured in full.
While both allow you to preplan and pre-finance your end of life plan, they do so to different degrees. With funeral insurance, you meet with your funeral home of choice and create a detailed plan that is then incorporated into your contract. We determine the value of your policy based on this contract. When you die, the payout goes directly to the funeral home so that they can execute the plan you put in place. With final expense insurance, you give us an idea of what you have in mind and we determine the value of your policy accordingly. Upon your death, the payout goes to your beneficiaries for them to use as they see fit.
All premiums are paid directly to TruStage. We use these premiums to cover expenses and establish reserves, which are then used to pay future claims benefits. The death benefit is designed to grow over time to help cover the rising cost of funerals. At the time of death, the death benefit is paid to the funeral home (in case of funeral insurance) or the beneficiary (in case of final expense insurance).
You get to specify your funeral home of choice when you set up your policy.
Preplanning a funeral involves meeting with a preplanning professional and documenting how you want your end of life marked. You'll specify whether you want a funeral or cremation. Depending on the type of insurance you purchase, you may get into specific details, such as what type of casket, vault or urn you'd like. You may also discuss the music, flowers and food you'd like at your memorial. Once these prearrangements are made, you prepay for them, securing most of the prices at today's costs.
Even if you don't want a funeral when you die, certain expenses are inevitable. You will either need to be cremated or buried, both of which carry costs. Say you opt for a memorial instead of a funeral. Someone will need to pay for the venue and the catering. Funeral insurance covers the costs, alleviating financial burden that might otherwise be imposed on your loved ones. It also gives you an opportunity to articulate exactly what you do and do not want.
While your beneficiary can certainly put some of the proceeds of your life insurance towards the cost of your funeral or cremation, there are two important things you should keep in mind. Firstly, these funds are intended to cover your survivors' broader needs, e.g. living expenses, tuition costs, etc. Secondly, it usually takes several weeks for life insurance policy benefits to be distributed following a claim. Funeral and final expense insurance, however, are specifically intended to cover the cost of your funeral or cremation. What's more, benefits are typically paid out immediately upon your death. In other words, your loved ones will not be burdened with having to cover any costs immediately following your death.
With final expense Insurance, you leave a set sum of money to your beneficiaries. While you can designate the money to expenses related to your death, they ultimately get to spend the funds as they see fit.
No matter who you designate to act as your executor it's important to acknowledge how demanding this role can be - particularly if the designated individual is among the grieving. We have Final Arrangements Preplanning Solutions that can help ensure your executor has access to resources and services designated to make their tasks less daunting.
Death is a given for all of us, as is the stress that our loved ones are subjected to when we die. If you want to have a say in your end of life plan, and/or if you want to spare your family from having to make important emotional and financial decisions during their time of grief, pre-planning makes sense. While it's a smart thing to do at any age, there may be financial benefits to prefunding your funeral sooner versus later.
In the event you move within Canada, you may want to switch funeral homes. At such time, you should contact the new funeral home to see if they will honour the prices and selections outlined in your original insurance contract. If they do, simply notify TruStage about the change.
Depending on the type of funeral being planned and where it will take place (expenses vary by province), the cost of a funeral can range anywhere from $5,000 to $15,000 - sometimes even more. It really depends on how simple or elaborate a send-off the deceased will be receiving.
Downloadable Forms
Credit Card Payment Authorization Form
- This form is used to provide credit card information to authorize the payment withdrawal. It is also used to change/update credit card information or change payment methods.
- This form can be submitted via mail or fax. (Please do not submit this form via email.)
- This form is used to provide banking information from a chequing or savings account to authorize the payment withdrawal. It is also used to change/update banking information or change payment methods.
- This form can be submitted via mail, email, or fax.
Authorization to Obtain Medical Information Form
- This form is used when authorization is needed to request medical information when the policy was issued with health questions answered ''no'' less than two years ago; and is not a guaranteed issue plan.
- This form can be submitted via mail, email, or fax.
For assistance with forms, please call: 1 (888) 977-3752
FAX: 1.877.217.3435
Email: PreplanningSolutionsCare@trustage.com
Mailing Address for forms: TruStage Life of Canada PO Box 79010 Concord PO, Concord, Ontario L4K 4S8
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