PolicyMe Editorial Guidelines

Verified by
Helene Fleischer
,
Editorial Team at PolicyMe

PolicyMe content follows strict guidelines for editorial accuracy and integrity. Learn more about our editorial guidelines.

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Myself
Me & My Partner
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Your Gender
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Different genders have different rates of developing illnesses, which is why insurers take it into account with pricing policies.We understand that you might not define your identity as simply "Male" or "Female" so we're working to add more options.We appreciate your flexibility.
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Female
Partner's Gender
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Female
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Do you smoke?
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You should select “Yes” if you’ve used any nicotine products in the last 12 months. Nicotine products include:

Cigarette
E-Cigarettes
Pipes
Chewing tobacco
Vaporizers
Nicotine gum
Nicotine patches, or
13 or more cigars.

Otherwise, select “No”. Note: Cannabis products are NOT considered to be nicotine or tobacco products.
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Does your partner smoke?
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Coverage for
Myself
Me & My Partner
Your Date of Birth
(DD/MM/YYYY)
Partner's Date of Birth
(DD/MM/YYYY)
Required field
Your Gender
Click to learn more about the author.
Different genders have different rates of developing illnesses, which is why insurers take it into account with pricing policies.We understand that you might not define your identity as simply "Male" or "Female" so we're working to add more options.We appreciate your flexibility.
Male
Female
Partner's Gender
Male
Female
Required field
Do you smoke?
Click to learn more about the author.
You should select “Yes” if you’ve used any nicotine products in the last 12 months. Nicotine products include:

Cigarette
E-Cigarettes
Pipes
Chewing tobacco
Vaporizers
Nicotine gum
Nicotine patches, or
13 or more cigars.

Otherwise, select “No”. Note: Cannabis products are NOT considered to be nicotine or tobacco products.
Yes
No
Does your partner smoke?
Yes
No
Required field
Required field
Get My Quote
No credit card or email required
Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

Get a free instant permanent quote

Coverage for
Myself
Me & My Partner
Your Date of Birth
(DD/MM/YYYY)
Partner's Date of Birth
(DD/MM/YYYY)
Required field
Your Gender
Click to learn more about the author.
Different genders have different rates of developing illnesses, which is why insurers take it into account with pricing policies.We understand that you might not define your identity as simply "Male" or "Female" so we're working to add more options.We appreciate your flexibility.
Male
Female
Partner's Gender
Male
Female
Required field
Do you smoke?
Click to learn more about the author.
You should select “Yes” if you’ve used any nicotine products in the last 12 months. Nicotine products include:

Cigarette
E-Cigarettes
Pipes
Chewing tobacco
Vaporizers
Nicotine gum
Nicotine patches, or
13 or more cigars.

Otherwise, select “No”. Note: Cannabis products are NOT considered to be nicotine or tobacco products.
Yes
No
Does your partner smoke?
Yes
No
Required field
Required field
Get My Quote
No credit card or email required
Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.
In This Article

Our mission? Empower Canadians to make informed financial decisions.

To achieve this, we have an expert editorial team that includes licensed insurance advisors and financial planners. We prioritize the best interests of Canadian families and won't endorse any product, company or financial strategy that we believe isn't suitable.

Editorial principles

1. Honest advice

Our core principles are built on autonomy, ensuring that our writers and editors work independently from our business teams, eliminating conflicts of interest in our financial advice.

We invest in internal and external experts to create best-in-class content, including original reporting with quotes from academics, professionals and industry leaders.

2. Expertise

Our educational content is based on empirical evidence and carefully sourced research, with citations provided for transparency. Prior to publishing, our research and advice undergo thorough review with our advisors. Fact-checking and revisions occur periodically to keep things fresh.

PolicyMe relies on multiple reputable sources, including our extensive internal data and expertise from working with top insurance companies in Canada. We also consult trusted independent individuals and reference industry studies, government data sets and relevant associations to supplement our writing.

3. Accuracy

To maintain accuracy, our team will periodically update and review the sources we use. When applicable, our content is further reviewed by our Financial Review Council, consisting of certified financial planners, certified public accountants, licensed financial advisors, and licensed insurance agents.

In the event of errors, corrections will be promptly made and noted in the article. Our commitment to providing you with the most current and reliable information drives our continuous efforts to keep our content up-to-date and accurate.

We value your feedback and if you spot any errors or have any suggestions, we encourage you to let us know. Our goal is to provide you with the most relevant and trustworthy guidance to help you make sound decisions for your future.

Editorial process

Our educational guides are crafted by in-house experts, like licensed life insurance advisors. Before publication, we subject our research and advice to scrutiny and comprehensive revisions for accuracy and completeness. Following the Society of Professional Journalists' code of ethics, we strive to maintain a good standard of integrity in our content.

We may also use our proprietary information and data to enrich discussions about specific companies or products.

Sources and citations

We ensure the comprehensiveness and informativeness of our articles by citing reputable data sources, which include but are not limited to:

  1. Internal expertise and priorietary data: PolicyMe's extensive experience, helping thousands of Canadians with $6B in coverage, grants us industry-wide insight. These insights help us to provide relevant examples and information that cater to shoppers like you. Our editorial team also collaborates with qualified, in-house advisors to ensure data accuracy and reliable advice.
  2. Third-party expertise: Our experts seek insights and clarifications from trusted and qualified independent individuals in various fields (primarily from the insurance, mortgage and financial services industry). This approach further enhances the credibility and reliability of the information we present to our readers.
  3. Insurance industry studies: We reference studies and data from outside groups like the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada, Canadian Life & Health Insurance Association (CLHIA) and Life Insurance Marketing and Research Association (LIMRA).

Fact checking and reviews

Where noted, articles are fact-checked and reviewed by our in-house licensed advisors and/or independent advisors. This additional layer of review makes sure that:

  • Articles include the most up-to-date data and facts;
  • Third-party sources are vetted;
  • Recommendations align with PolicyMe's mission to provide honest advice.

Corrections, removals and updates to our content

Our writers and editors regularly conduct reviews of our content to ensure its accuracy and relevance, keeping it up-to-date with the latest news, reports, regulatory guidance, and industry studies. The most recent publication date is always displayed at the top of each article.

In the event of any errors, we promptly make corrections to the article, which are clearly noted in a designated corrections section at the bottom of the page. To see an example of a live correction, you can scroll to the bottom of the home insurance rate report.

Occasionally, certain content may be removed. In such cases, we ensure that any links leading to removed content are updated, directing readers to other relevant pages or sections of our site.

PolicyMe's editorial team

Helene Fleischer

Helene Fleischer is the Content Marketing Manager at PolicyMe, where she works to help readers make sense of their financial life. She’s keen on taking complex (or, let’s face it – sometimes a bit dry!) ideas and making them refreshingly simple and easily digestible for folks that want to learn about life insurance. She works hand-in-hand with certified life insurance advisors to provide expert-verified advice.

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PolicyMe's peer reviewers

Erik Heidebrecht

Erik Heidebrecht is the customer service manager and licensed advisor at PolicyMe. Erik has a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Wilfrid Laurier University with a minor in Financial Mathematics. Erik has broad exposure to the personal finance world after working at Fidelity Investments Canada as well being an advisor with Sunlife Financial, one of Canada's largest individual insurance providers. Erik is now focused on taking that experience to improve the customer journey and provide the best advice to Canadians looking for life insurance.

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Ivana Govedarica

Ivana Govedarica is an accomplished insurance expert with 15 years of experience in the financial space. Ivana currently helps PolicyMe customers get the best possible coverage to financially protect their families as Certified Life Insurance Advisor. Ivana also holds the prestigious RRC designation, from the Canadian Institute of Financial Planning (Registered Retirement Consultant). When she’s off duty, you can find her traveling the world and spending time in nature!

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About PolicyMe life insurance

PolicyMe is a Canadian digital insurance solution that makes financial protection for families simple and affordable. It was founded by two insurance consultants, Andrew Ostro and Laura McKay, and an experienced Chief Technology Officer, Jeff McKay. PolicyMe has partnered with Canadian Premier, a Fortune 500 company Securian Financial subsidiary.

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How PolicyMe makes money

PolicyMe operates like any other insurer: we sell insurance products, namely term life insurance and critical illness insurance, which are underwritten by Canadian Premier. The great news is that because we've automated operations, cut out the middleman and reduced underwriting requirements (such as medical exams), we're able to pass along the savings to you, while still delivering the same quality of coverage.

Contact PolicyMe

General Inquiries: info@policyme.com

Existing Customers: advisor@policyme.com

Claims: servicing@policyme.com

Helene Fleischer

About the Author

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