Corporate policies, personal policies, group benefits, and what your spouse and kids have, all in one place. So when the beneficiary needs it, or the tax bill arrives, or the rate goes up, nothing is a surprise.
A term policy when the first kid was born. Critical illness that was prompted when a friend got sick. A key-person policy the accountant suggested. Group benefits through work. A mortgage insurance box ticked at the bank. Each one made sense at the time. Nobody has ever asked whether they still do, together. Here are the patterns I usually see.
The policy from twelve years ago still lists the ex-spouse. Or names an estate when it should name a person. Or names a minor child with no trust in place. Every year we find at least one of these. It is the cheapest fix in the industry and the most expensive miss.
The business is worth three times what it was when the buy-sell was funded. Or the key person it was built around has left. Or the ownership structure changed and the policy is now owned by the wrong entity for tax purposes. Any of these turns a good plan into a bad one.
A universal life policy where the cost of insurance has stepped up without notice. A term policy entering its renewal window. A mortgage policy that was supposed to end with the mortgage but did not. Without a review, the first notice is usually the one from the carrier, and it usually lands at the wrong time.
Most business owners and mature families have coverage spread across at least three places. A proper review looks at all of them together, because the decisions in one bucket change the answer in the others.
Coverage that the company owns. Funding for a buy-sell, protection on a key person, permanent policies holding cash value inside the corp, loan coverage, group benefits for staff.
Coverage that you personally own. The policies you bought over the years, plus anything coming through employment, professional associations, or bank products attached to loans and mortgages.
What your spouse, adult children or dependent parents have in place. Often the bucket that matters most in a claim and has been looked at least. Coordinated so the whole household is covered, not just the policyholder.
Most of the work happens in the first engagement. We go deep once, document everything properly, and set the rhythm that keeps it current. After that, it is an annual review and a short list of things that trigger a call in between.
Contracts, annual statements, group benefits booklets, beneficiary forms, anything attached to a loan or mortgage. If you cannot find it, I work directly with your carriers to pull it. Most people are surprised at how much is actually in place.
Who owns each policy (you, the corporation, a holding company, a trust), who pays the premium, and who receives the benefit. This is where most of the old mistakes show up. It is also the cheapest part to fix.
Income, debt, business value, family structure, retirement timing. We compare what exists to what the situation actually calls for. Gaps get flagged. So does overlap and coverage you are paying for and no longer need.
For permanent policies, we assess how the cash value is tracking against what was illustrated when the policy was issued. For term, we look at where you are in the term and what the renewal or conversion options are. For corporate-owned, we evaluate how the policy is sitting for tax efficiency.
We work with your accountant on tax efficiency for corporate-owned policies. We talk to your lawyer about anything that touches wills or shareholder agreements. If you don't have the right people in place, I can recommend who to call. I attend these meetings with you.
Everything in a bound coverage binder. Every policy, every beneficiary, every premium, every renewal date. A copy stays with you. A copy stays with me. A copy lives wherever you want the person who will one day need it to find it.
The final piece of the initial engagement. Portal access is set up and walked through. The annual review is on the calendar. A short written statement goes in the binder explaining what happens next and when. You leave knowing exactly how the ongoing relationship works.
Knowing who to call in times of change or crisis, and remembering what it was all for in the first place, is the real test of the plan. And keeping it current is a rhythm. We have four touchpoints, agreed up front, so nothing goes quiet and nothing gets missed.
I am available when you need me. Marriage, divorce, new child, new home, new debt, new business, a diagnosis, an inheritance, retirement on the horizon, or a letter from a carrier you do not understand. Any of those is reason to pick up the phone.
Behind the scenes, my team and I review all our policies on a regular basis to flag notifications, upcoming renewals, key dates, and anything that needs follow-up. Resolved in the background before it becomes your problem.
A brief check-in. Has anything changed? New role, new mortgage, new family member, a parent needing care. If something has moved, we book proper time. If not, the note is a reminder that the next review is on the calendar.
Sixty to ninety minutes, in person or online. Did you get your annual statement? Do you understand it? Do you have any questions? Three questions open the door. We work through what has changed and confirm the plan still fits.
Plus convenient on-demand tools and educational material through the client portal, so you can find what you need between touchpoints without waiting for a call.
One place to see what we are working on, share documents, and message back and forth. Encrypted end-to-end. Nothing sensitive gets emailed, nothing important lives in a drawer somewhere.
The point is not the documents. The point is that your loved ones know where everything is and that you have made sense of it.
Every policy you own or are the subject of. Carrier, policy number, ownership, beneficiary, amount, premium, renewal or anniversary date. One page, one source of truth.
Every life policy, every registered account, every pension. Beneficiaries checked, compared against your wills and intentions, and corrected where they are wrong. Signed forms on file.
Where you are under-covered, where you are double-covered, and where the math does not add up to what the life actually needs. Written in English, not carrier-speak.
For business owners. What each corporate policy funds, how it aligns with the shareholder agreement, and how it sits for tax. Discussed with your accountant before it becomes a recommendation.
Dates that matter. Term renewals, conversion windows, premium step-ups on universal life, group benefit open enrolments. You get warning before the carrier notice shows up.
For the person who will one day have to make the phone call. Policy numbers, carrier contacts, required documents, what to say, what not to sign. The thing nobody thinks to prepare until it is too late.
We talk about what you have, what you think you have, and what might be hiding in the gaps. If a full review is a fit, we agree on scope and next steps. If it is not, you leave with a clearer read on where you stand.