Is the life insurance from my job enough?
By Reynolds Edokpayi, Zenith Advisory Inc., Saskatoon · Updated October 2026 · 4 min read
Short answer: Usually not. Group coverage is typically one or two times salary, which a family with a mortgage can spend in under three years. It ends when you leave the job, can't be increased, and you don't control it. Treat it as a bonus on top of your own policy, not a replacement for one.
What's usually in your benefits booklet
- Basic life: 1× or 2× annual salary, sometimes capped at a flat amount
- Optional life: extra units you can buy, often with medical questions and rising cost by age band
- Long-term disability: commonly 60 to 70% of salary, sometimes taxable, sometimes with a cap that bites for higher earners
- Critical illness: sometimes a small flat amount, often none
Four reasons it's not enough on its own
- The amount. Two times $90,000 is $180,000. Against a $350,000 mortgage and two children, that runs out fast.
- It isn't yours. Leave the job, lose the coverage. Change careers at 45 with a health condition and you may not be able to replace it.
- You can't increase it beyond what the plan allows, and optional units get expensive as you age.
- The disability piece has gaps. If the employer pays the premium, the benefit is taxable. If there's a monthly cap, higher earners get a smaller percentage than they think.
What to do
Keep the group coverage; it's cheap or free. Then buy your own term policy for the gap between what you have and what your family needs, so the core protection follows you between jobs. Work out the gap →
Check your disability coverage too
Pull your booklet and find: the percentage of salary, whether it's taxable, the monthly maximum, and how "disability" is defined after two years ("own occupation" versus "any occupation"). Those four details decide whether you're really protected.
Want this worked out for your numbers? We'll build a plan for your family that covers the risks, the savings and the goals, and show you what to do first.