Switching Jobs in BC? What Happens to Your Coverage

Does the life insurance you had at your old job follow you to the new one? For most people in BC, the answer is no. Group coverage belongs to the employer, not to you, and it usually ends within days of your last shift.

That catches a lot of people off guard. You saw it on every pay stub, so it feels like yours. It isn't. Here's what actually happens, and what you can do before a gap opens up.

Group coverage ends faster than you'd think

When you leave a job, your group benefits typically end on your last day of work or at the end of that month. Some plans run a little past that. Some cut off immediately. The plan booklet from HR is the only place that tells you for sure, so dig it out before you hand in your laptop.

That end date covers more than life insurance. It usually also ends:

• Your group life insurance, plus any coverage on your spouse or kids
• Extended health and dental, including prescriptions, physio, and vision
• Short and long term disability coverage
• Critical illness coverage, if your employer offered it
• Access to the employee assistance program

MSP is separate and stays in place as long as you're a BC resident, so your basic doctor and hospital coverage doesn't disappear. Everything layered on top of it does.

The new job probably has a waiting period

Most Metro Vancouver employers put new hires through a waiting period before benefits start. Three months is common. Some plans begin on the first of the month after you hit that mark, which stretches it closer to four.

So the real question isn't whether you'll be covered eventually. It's how many weeks you're uncovered in between, and what happens to your family if something goes wrong during them.

Your conversion option has a short deadline

Most group life insurance plans in Canada include a conversion privilege. It lets you turn some or all of your group coverage into an individual policy with no medical exam and no health questions. The catch is timing. The window is often 31 days from the date your group coverage ends, and once it closes, it's gone.

Conversion matters most if your health has changed since you were hired. A new diagnosis, a recent surgery, a new medication, any of those can make individually underwritten coverage cost more or become harder to get. Conversion skips that review entirely.

If you're in good health, conversion isn't automatically the right call. Converted policies often cost more than a comparable term policy you shop for on the open market. It's worth comparing both while the clock is still running.

Don't forget the savings side

If you had a group RRSP, a pension, or a deferred profit sharing plan, that money doesn't vanish, but you usually have to decide what to do with it. The common options are leaving it in the plan if that's allowed, transferring it to your own RRSP, or moving pension money into a locked in retirement account.

Taking it in cash is almost always the expensive choice, because the full amount gets added to your income for the year. Also check the fees. Some group plans carry low fees you'd struggle to match on your own, and some are the reverse. Read the statement before you move anything.

A checklist for the weeks around your last day

• Ask HR for your exact benefits end date in writing
• Request the conversion forms and deadlines for life and critical illness
• Find out your new employer's waiting period, ideally before you resign
• Get quotes on individual coverage while you're still healthy and insurable
• Decide what happens to your group RRSP or pension money
• Confirm your beneficiaries once new coverage is in place

Why owning your own policy changes the math

Coverage you own follows you. Job to job, layoff to contract work to running your own thing. It doesn't shrink when your salary changes and it doesn't end because a company restructured. For plenty of families in Burnaby and Coquitlam, that stability is the entire point.

Group coverage is a good top up. It's rarely enough on its own. Two times salary sounds generous until you hold it up against a mortgage, childcare, and the years of income a family would need to replace.

Let's look at it together

Every plan is written a little differently, and the right move depends on your health, your mortgage, and who's counting on your income. If you're between jobs or about to be, book a free, no pressure call. I'll go through your group booklet with you and compare what Canada's major insurers offer, in English or Tagalog, whichever is easier for you.