BUSINESS-OWNER FAMILIES

Business owners are rarely shown everything insurance can help protect. 

Here are five real questions Alberta business owners brought to Fusion over the past year—and the strategies we helped put in place.

A multi-owner Alberta business had grown significantly since putting its shareholder protection in place.

Fusion helped the owners secure $39 million of life insurance to help fund their shareholder obligations.

When the company’s value increased substantially the following year, we reviewed the updated valuation and confirmed that the existing coverage remained sufficient at that time—without requiring the owners to immediately apply for additional insurance.

An automotive business was acquiring a second location and needed life insurance to support its new bank financing.

Fusion had already arranged a business term life insurance policy for the owner. Instead of purchasing the lender’s creditor insurance, the company assigned its existing policy to the bank as collateral.

Unlike typical creditor insurance, the policy’s coverage amount would not automatically decline as the loan was repaid.

If the owner died, the lender could be repaid first, with any remaining insurance proceeds payable to the corporation, subject to the terms of the collateral assignment.

Depending on the policy structure and applicable tax rules, the death benefit may also create a Capital Dividend Account credit that could support the payment of a capital dividend to eligible shareholders.

An Alberta employer contacted Fusion after receiving limited service and little explanation of its group-benefits rates or annual renewals.

We reviewed the plan, reduced the advisor compensation to a more appropriate level and identified eligible employees who had not been enrolled. 

We also found that some employees could qualify for higher long-term disability coverage.

At the first renewal, Fusion negotiated the proposed 12% increase down to 0.5% for this particular client—while also improving plan administration and employee protection. 

Our Partnership Still Operates on a Handshake. What Happens If One of Us Dies? 

Two long-time business partners had built multiple successful companies together, but the ownership arrangement for one company still relied largely on a handshake.

Fusion identified the gap and helped the owners work with their legal advisors to formalize what should happen if either partner died. We also helped coordinate the life insurance intended to fund the arrangement.

Sadly, one of the partners recently passed away unexpectedly. The planning was no longer theoretical: the surviving owner and the deceased owner’s estate had a documented process and insurance funding in place to help carry out their agreement during an already difficult time.

A successful business-owner family faced a substantial future tax liability at death that could place pressure on the business and other family assets. 

Fusion helped put $5 million of life insurance in place to provide liquidity when the tax eventually becomes payable. The strategy was designed to help fund the liability without forcing the family to rely entirely on selling business or investment assets at the wrong time.

The family now has a clearer strategy for creating liquidity when future tax obligations arise, while preserving greater flexibility for the next generation. 

These anonymized examples are provided for educational purposes, and certain details have been generalized to protect client confidentiality. Every business, recommendation, insurance outcome and tax result is different. Coverage is subject to eligibility, underwriting and policy terms. Clients should obtain independent legal and tax advice for their circumstances.