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Frequently Asked Questions — Insurance
Below is a list of frequently asked questions (FAQs)
pertaining to the Canadian Dentists’ Insurance Program. Click here
to review FAQs about CDSPI and
click here to read FAQs about the Canadian
Dentists’ Investment Program.
• Is CDSPI an insurance company?
• Why should I consider purchasing the Equipment
Breakdown Option with my office insurance coverage? • If I can’t practise, what type of
insurance will help cover my office expenses? • I have disability insurance. Why do I
also need to consider obtaining Office Overhead Expense Insurance?
• Does my Malpractice Insurance also provide
coverage for my staff?
• Does my Malpractice Insurance coverage
protect me outside of Canada?
• What is an elimination period?
• Are disability insurance benefits tax-free?
• Can I name my estate as the beneficiary
on my life insurance coverage?
• What is the difference between a revocable
and an irrevocable beneficiary?
• How do I change the beneficiary on my
life insurance coverage?
• Is Building Insurance available through the Canadian Dentists' Insurance Program?
Is CDSPI an insurance company?
No. CDSPI provides information to
dental professionals about the insurance plans within the Canadian
Dentists’ Insurance Program, collects
premiums and provides participants with claims
assistance.
The 13 insurance plans offered through the Program
are underwritten by leading Canadian insurance companies. When
a Program participant files a claim, it is one of these insurance companies
— not CDSPI — who adjudicates the claim and makes the final
decision about claim approval.
To learn more about CDSPI, click
here.
Why should I consider purchasing the Equipment Breakdown Option with
my office insurance coverage?
Available for an additional premium with the
Canadian Dentists’ Insurance Program’s TripleGuard™
Insurance plan, the Equipment Breakdown Option provides you with
two kinds of financial protection should certain types of equipment
in your office accidentally break down due to an insured peril (such
as a power surge).
It pays for the repair or replacement of broken
equipment (subject to a $1,000 deductible) and reimburses you if the breakdown
results in a loss of income. It’s wise to consider purchasing the
Equipment Breakdown Option even if your equipment is under warranty.
Although the warranty may cover the cost of repair or replacement, it’s
unlikely your warranty will offer income protection if you must close
your practice while repairs are in progress.
If I can’t practise, what type of insurance will help cover
my office expenses?
The Canadian Dentists’ Insurance Program
offers two types of insurance to protect your office expenses when you
can’t practise. Most dentists will require both types of insurance
as they offer protection for two very different circumstances:
1. Office Overhead
Expense Insurance covers certain office expenses (such as rent and
salaries of non-dentist employees) when you can’t practise due
to a disability.
2. The Practice Interruption portion of TripleGuard™
Insurance covers certain office expenses and helps replace your
lost income when the use of your office is interrupted due to: (a) a
fire, flood, or other insured peril; (b) repairs in progress after a
loss caused by an insured peril; or (c) government authorities prohibit
you from entering your practice premises when the order is given as a direct result of damage to neighbouring premises due to an insured peril.
I have disability insurance. Why do I also need to consider obtaining
Office Overhead Expense Insurance?
Long Term Disability
Insurance provides you with income replacement benefits if you become
totally disabled. These benefits are designed to help replace your personal
income so you can maintain your standard of living.
Most dentists who become disabled are disabled
temporarily, and need to maintain their practice while they recover.
That’s where Office Overhead Expense
Insurance comes in. Office Overhead Expense Insurance helps pay
for certain office expenses (such as rent and utilities) for up to 24 months while you’re disabled.
In the event that a disability ends a dentist’s
career, Office Overhead Expense Insurance can also serve to preserve
the value of the practice until it is sold.
Does my Malpractice Insurance also provide coverage for my staff?
Staff members of a dentist with Malpractice
Insurance from the Canadian Dentists’ Insurance Program are
covered under the dentist’s plan for acts performed (including
any failure or omission to act) on behalf of the dentist.
However, it’s wise for professional staff
members to consider obtaining their own, separate malpractice insurance
coverage. If a judgment is awarded against a dentist and his/her staff
members, the award could go beyond the limits of the dentist’s
coverage. As well, if you have your own coverage, your defence of the
claim will be handled independently of the dentist’s, which may
be advantageous to you in some situations.
Does my malpractice insurance coverage protect me outside of
Canada?
Yes and no. Your Canadian Dentists’ Insurance
Program Malpractice Insurance coverage
covers you for acts or omissions committed in Canada and any other jurisdictions in the world where there are no applicable statutes or acts that regulate the practise of dentistry if the lawsuit is launched within Canada. If a malpractice lawsuit is initiated
against you in any foreign country, you will not be covered
by the Program’s plan. If you’re planning to practise dentistry
outside of Canada (at a training course, for example), it is prudent
to obtain malpractice insurance from a provider in that area.
Additionally, if you treat a foreign patient
in Canada who later sues you for malpractice from his or her own country,
your Program malpractice coverage will not cover you. For protection
in this circumstance, it’s advisable to insist that any foreign
patient who sees you for treatment must sign a consent to treatment
form that contains a clause stating that the courts of your province
have exclusive jurisdiction over any claims or proceedings relating
to the treatment and that any potential malpractice lawsuit against
you must be initiated in Canada. It’s wise to consult your lawyer
for advice in drafting or altering your consent to treatment forms.
What is an elimination period?
When you apply for Long
Term Disability Insurance or Office
Overhead Expense Insurance from the Canadian Dentists’ Insurance
Program, you’ll need to choose an elimination period (or periods).
An elimination period is a specified amount of time that begins with
the onset of a disability, during which you will not receive benefits.
The Program’s disability plans give you a choice of four elimination
periods: 30-day, 60-day, 90-day and 120-day. You can select one, or
a combination of these elimination periods, depending on your income
and spending patterns.
For example, if you had chosen a 30-day elimination
period and you became totally disabled on June 1st, you would not qualify
to receive any Long Term Disability Insurance benefits until July 1st.
The benefits you’re qualified to receive will be paid each month
thereafter – until you recover or reach age 65. (In the case of
Office Overhead Expense Insurance, benefits are payable for up to 24 months.) The shorter the elimination period you choose, the higher the
premium you’ll pay for your coverage.
Are disability insurance benefits tax-free?
Under current Canada Revenue Agency
regulations, the disability benefits you receive will be considered
non-taxable income if you pay your premiums with after-tax dollars.
Essentially, this means that if you deduct your disability insurance
premiums on your tax return, you’ll have to pay tax on your benefits
if you become disabled.
Normally, premiums for Office Overhead
Expense Insurance may be deducted as a business expense. Check with
your tax advisor to be sure that whatever deductions you claim are allowable
and do not have negative tax consequences.
Can I name my estate as the beneficiary on my life insurance
coverage?
Yes. However, it’s wise to consider naming
a person as the beneficiary of your life insurance proceeds. By naming
your estate as the beneficiary, the proceeds would then be subject to
provincial probate fees — which will reduce the value of your estate.
However, by designating a person as the beneficiary, probate costs can
be avoided in most cases.
What is the difference between a revocable and an irrevocable
beneficiary?
If you’re about to obtain Basic
Life, Family Life,
Accidental Death and Dismemberment,
Term 100, and/or Dental
Office Staff Insurance coverage through the Canadian Dentists’
Insurance Program, you will likely want to designate a beneficiary (or
beneficiaries). “Designating a beneficiary” means that you
name a party (or parties) who will receive the proceeds of your life
insurance coverage.
The majority of beneficiaries of life insurance
in Canada are specified as “revocable.” In the absence of
legal provisions to the contrary, the revocable beneficiary cannot prohibit
the owner of the coverage from exercising any policy ownership rights
— such as the right to change the beneficiary.
By designating a beneficiary as “irrevocable”,
the owner of the insurance surrenders their right to unilaterally change
the named beneficiary during the irrevocable beneficiary’s lifetime.
When Quebec law applies, a designation of a spouse as a beneficiary
is considered irrevocable unless the person making the designation has
specified that it is revocable.
To change an irrevocable beneficiary designation,
the written consent of the irrevocable beneficiary is needed. However,
if the irrevocable beneficiary dies before the insured, a new beneficiary
may be named by the owner.
In a nutshell, here’s the difference between
the two types of beneficiaries: If you wish to be able to change the
beneficiary designation in the future, it will much easier to do so
by designating the beneficiary as “revocable”.
How do I change the beneficiary on my life insurance coverage?
To request a change of the beneficiary designated
on your Canadian Dentists’ Insurance Program life insurance coverage,
you will need to complete a change of beneficiary form. You can obtain
this form by mail or fax by contacting CDSPI’s
Insurance Services Department. You can also download
the change of beneficiary form from our website.
Is Building Insurance available through the Canadian Dentists' Insurance Program?
Yes. Building Insurance was introduced to the Insurance Program in the spring of 2004, as an option available for an additional premium under the TripleGuard™ Insurance plan. To learn about the Program’s Building Insurance plan, click here.
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