See what triggers a long-term care benefit, and how daily-max coverage, COLA and return-of-premium riders stack up against real Canadian care costs.
Activities the insured cannot do without help 0 of 6
Benefits typically start when the insured cannot independently do 2 or more ADLs, or is severely cognitively impaired.
Care setting
Room type (facility)
Home-care daily maximums are sold in increments from $10 to $350/day.
Care costs are assumed to rise ~3%/yr. COLA lifts your benefit to keep pace.
Return-of-premium rider
Benefit not yet triggeredSelect the activities the insured can no longer do independently.
Monthly care cost
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Covered by policy / mo
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Your monthly gap
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Self-funded over period
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Benefit paid over period
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Return-of-premium at death
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How this works. A long-term care policy pays once the insured cannot independently perform two or more of the six activities of daily living (dressing, bathing, toileting, transferring, eating, maintaining continence), or is severely cognitively impaired. It then pays a daily maximum: up to the lesser of your daily limit and the actual cost of care. Facility costs here are the manual's Table 3.1 provincial samples; home, respite and assisted-living figures are illustrative. Because care costs drift up ~3%/yr, a level benefit falls behind; the COLA rider lifts your benefit 2–3%/yr to keep pace, while the return-of-premium rider refunds premiums at death if the policy stayed claims-free.
Educational illustration of standard Canadian insurance concepts. Figures are illustrative, not an insurer’s rates.
Illustration only, not a quote or advice. Figures are simplified for education and do not
reflect any specific insurer's rates. Consult a licensed advisor.