Scotiabank Life Insurance Review: What You Need to Know
Scotiabank life insurance review (2025 update)
Scotiabank, also known as The Bank of Nova Scotia, is a Toronto-based multinational financial institution and Canada's third-largest bank. Founded in 1832, the bank has expanded its operations globally, operating in more than 40 countries worldwide with approximately $1.41 trillion in assets.
Scotiabank offers life insurance products underwritten by the Empire Life Insurance Company. ScotiaLife also underwrites policies for auto insurance, home insurance, health insurance, and travel insurance.
Scotiabank Life Insurance ★★★☆☆ (3.5)
After assessing 30 life insurance companies across multiple categories, we found that Scotiabank ranks above most providers in terms of industry reputation. Its high industry reputation score is strongly supported by its influential position in the Canadian banking arena, backed by high financial stability ratings—but due to its high life insurance rates, limited product offerings, and poor customer service reviews, the bank scores below average overall.
When it comes to pricing, Scotiabank scores just above average, with the most affordable rates for its term life policies. Still, many competitors offer much cheaper premiums—especially for non-smoking policyholders.
Additionally, ScotiaLife only offers one type of permanent life insurance, whereas major competitors like Sun Life, Canada Life, and Manulife offer up to three types of permanent policies. Their term life plans are also limited to a maximum period of 30 years, while other insurers provide term lengths of up to 50 years.
Overall, Scotiabank gets mixed reviews for customer service, with more negative comments than positive ones. Customers often recount communication issues with insurance representatives, delays in the claims process, and concerns about denied death benefit payouts. When it comes to pricing, Scotiabank’s simplified issue term life insurance scores just above average, with the most affordable rates for its term life policies. Still, many competitors offer much cheaper premiums—especially for non-smoking policyholders.
Additionally, ScotiaLife only offers two types of permanent life insurance, neither of which include a cash value component, whereas major competitors like Sun Life, Canada Life, and Manulife offer multiple permanent life insurance options that include whole and universal life with investment features.
Current Scotiabank customers in search of convenient simplified life insurance options with no cash value.
Methodology
PolicyMe’s rankings are based on an independent, data-driven review of Canada’s best life insurance products and providers.
Our analysis combines 450,000+ quotes for 50+ life insurance products with in-depth research on 20+ providers. We assigned each product a star rating out of five based on a mix of average pricing, Google Review scores, and shopping convenience, then ranked the results in 12 categories.
Rankings are determined first by star rating and then by price, with preference given to expert recommendations by PolicyMe’s team of life insurance advisors. Our findings are entirely data-driven and do not include paid placements, but should not be considered a substitute for personalized financial advice.
Scotiabank life insurance pros and cons
Every insurance provider has benefits and drawbacks. To help you decide if Scotiabank is the right insurer for your needs, we’ve compiled the pros and cons of its life insurance branch.
Scotiabank life insurance cost and value
The cost of life insurance from Scotiabank depends on your age, coverage amount, and term limit. While limited data indicates that Scotia Life term insurance costs less than the industry average for most adults, there was insufficient pricing data available to include Scotiabank in our detailed analysis of industry premiums.
The best way to evaluate the cost and value of Scotia’s life insurance products is to get a quote and compare the price you’re issued to the overall cost of the same coverage for Canadians of your age, assigned sex at birth, and health status. For example, term life insurance premiums for $500,000 range from about $20/month to $35/month for healthy, non-smoking men and women at age 35. Men usually pay more than women, and smokers may pay 2–3x as much for the same coverage.
Scotiabank life insurance reviews and customer service
ScotiaLife’s customer rating on Google Reviews is a troubling 2.6 stars, suggesting that a significant percentage of customers are unsatisfied with their interactions. On the other hand, the company holds a Better Business Bureau rating of A+, which indicates that it may fare better when it comes to addressing customers’ woes.
We reviewed customer feedback from Google Reviews and InsurEye to give you a brief overview of Scotiabank’s client experience. Take a look at what customers had to say:
"Always pleasant to deal with on the phone, they explain everything in detail and don't leave you in the dark about any of the processes." —Google review
"Talking about ways you might die isn't the most pleasant but all three reps over the phone were very friendly and professional, and honored agreement to cancel a plan with full refund in 30 days without a hard time. Will definitely go back to them next time I'm looking for a plan." —Google review
"My father and his partner had life insurance policies naming each other as beneficiary - paperwork was filed when his partner died 18 months ago and he never received the money that was due to him. He passed away without receiving any satisfaction from Scotia Life Insurance and now they are giving me the same runaround and excuses they gave my dad" —InsurEye review
"Constantly hounding me to increase my coverage. Almost enough to cancel the small policy I have!!" —InsurEye review
Scotiabank life insurance products at a glance
Scotiabank offers two main types of life insurance: term life insurance and permanent life insurance.
Here’s a breakdown of Scotia’s term life products:
Scotiabank offers critical illness insurance as a standalone product under its ScotiaLife health insurance branch. While disability insurance can be added as a rider for Scotia Mortgage Protection insurance or Scotia Line of Credit insurance, it isn’t sold individually.
How Scotiabank compares to other insurers
Scotiabank life insurance vs. PolicyMe life insurance
In our analysis, Scotiabank’s pricing offered savings over PolicyMe, but they fell short in the areas of customer satisfaction and convenience.
Cost
Scotiabank life insurance rates are generally lower than PolicyMe’s average for adult applicants between aged 30 and 44. For younger adults, however, PolicyMe may offer competitive rates.
Customer satisfaction
Customer satisfaction is a high point for PolicyMe, with a 4.9-star Google Reviews rating compared to ScotiaLife’s shaky 2.3 stars.
Convenience
PolicyMe offers online quoting and purchase for all life insurance policies, including both term and permanent life insurance. ScotiaLife’s Simplified Term Life is available for purchase online, but most other policies may involve a phone call with an advisor before coverage can be issued, making it a less convenient option for Canadian families.
The bottom line: Who should consider Scotiabank?
Scotia term life insurance may be worth considering if you want high coverage with a term length of up to 30 years, or if you’re seeking life insurance in your senior years. Its term life product offers up to $2 million in coverage, which is higher than some competitors, and policies are available to individuals up to age 75.
Current Scotiabank customers may also benefit from purchasing life insurance through ScotiaLife as it offers an Affinity Rate premium discount of 10%.
With that said, Scotiabank isn’t the best fit for all life insurance needs. Its policy rates are typically higher than those of other insurance providers, and permanent coverage options are limited.
FAQs: Scotiabank life insurance
*** The life insurance premium rates in this article are based on publicly available figures as of November 2025.
Jaya is a researcher and writer with 3 years of experience in insurance and finance. She writes in-depth content that bridges technical expertise with accessible insights. Her work spans topics such as life insurance, health and dental coverage, car insurance, and financial literacy, helping Canadians make informed decisions about their financial protection. With a background in market research and editorial strategy, she collaborates closely with subject matter experts to ensure accuracy, clarity, and value in every piece.
Jaya is a researcher and writer with 3 years of experience in insurance and finance. She writes in-depth content that bridges technical expertise with accessible insights. Her work spans topics such as life insurance, health and dental coverage, car insurance, and financial literacy, helping Canadians make informed decisions about their financial protection. With a background in market research and editorial strategy, she collaborates closely with subject matter experts to ensure accuracy, clarity, and value in every piece.