Critical Illness Insurance

You receive a tax-free, lump-sum benefit after being diagnosed with a covered condition and meeting any applicable waiting period requirements.

A critical illness can happen to anyone.
And it does happen to many.

Canadians are more likely to experience a critical illness than they are to die before the age of 75.

For most people, the diagnosis is just the beginning.

Watch the video about Dr. Marius Barnard, the creator of Critical Illness Insurance.

If you become ill, your focus should be on recovery and regaining your health.

Critical illness insurance pays a lump sum benefit (certain terms apply) following the diagnosis of one of the covered illnesses. It offers you choices and allows you to recover on your own terms.

Your benefit could allow you to:

avoid withdrawing money from an RRSP or other savings or investments
pay down debts such as your mortgage or loans
choose medicine and treatments not covered by group, personal or government plans
replace lost income so you have choices – for instance, your partner can take time off work to help you
maintain your business by hiring a person to run it until you return to work

Not all critical illness policies are the same.

Before choosing any critical illness insurance policy, it is important to seek professional advice and guidance to ensure that you choose the best available policy for your situation.

Covered conditions include:

Optional add-ons:

Get up to 100% of your premiums back when you turn 75 if you didn’t make a claim during the life of the policy.

Dr. Marius Barnard

Creator of Critical Illness Insurance

Dr Marius Barnard was a member of the pioneering medical team that performed the world’s first human heart transplant at Groote Schuur Hospital in 1967 with his brother Christiaan.

He spent a large part of his career working to improve cardiac surgery behind the iron curtain and globally, specializing in heart surgery for newborn babies.

Due to medical advances Dr. Marius’s patients were surviving illnesses they would previously have died from.

Dr. Marius witnessed first hand the financial impact this survival had on his patients and their families.

He sought a solution to help future patients and worked towards an insurance product that paid out not on death, but on the diagnosis of a particular illness.

With the help of Crusader Life Insurance in South Africa, the first policy was launched in 1983.