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Manulife Vitality Term Life Insurance Review – Updated 2024
Life insurance companies base your premiums off your health status and behaviours. Manulife Insurance’s Vitality program gives you discounts when you track your fitness and health goals. They’ll even give you an Apple Watch or other wearable tech for participating in the program.
Manulife Vitality Term Life Insurance Review
Manulife Vitality life insurance is a participatory wellness program that gives you rewards for making healthier lifestyle choices. If you are already a fan of tracking your steps, this policy might be a great option for you. By engaging in daily physical health and wellness activities, you earn Vitality points that can be used toward gift cards and discounts on your life insurance premiums. The more you participate, the better Vitality status you will achieve, which gets you a better discount. The Vitality program is available for term life insurance, universal life insurance, some Manulife CoverMe policies, as well as for health and dental insurance products from Manulife.
Pros and cons
Pros
- 10% discount on the cost of insurance
- Annual premium discounts when you participate
- Free Apple Watch or another fitness tracker (older models) when you achieve 500 points each month
- Chances to win gift cards and rewards every week
- Competitive pricing for term life insurance
Cons
- Minimum $500,000 in coverage
- No couples or multipolicy options (no couples discount)
- Premium discounts between Bronze and Platinum status are a few dollars, not a few hundred dollars
- Have to wait a whole year before you will see additional premium discounts
- Opportunity for your premiums to go up if you don’t participate
- Newer models of fitness trackers will have an initial fee
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Who is Manulife Insurance?
Manulife is one of Canada’s largest and oldest insurance companies and most trusted brands. Known originally as Manufacturers Life Insurance Company, Manulife Financial corporation holds over a trillion dollars in assets and offers a wide array of insurance and other financial products in Canada and the United States (through their John Hancock brand). Besides life insurance plans, Manulife offers travel insurance, health and dental plans, and other insurance products for individuals and groups.
Read our full Manulife Life Insurance Review.
Key facts about Manulife
- When was Manulife founded? Manufacturers Life Insurance Company was founded in 1867
- Where is Manufacturers Life Insurance Company headquarters? Toronto, Ontario
- AM Best Rating: A+
- Better Business Bureau Accreditation and Rating: N/A
- Assets: $200-billion
- Annual Premiums: $39.2-billion
What is the Manulife Vitality Program?
The Manulife Vitality program is a new way to engage with your life insurance policy. When you sign up for one of Manulife’s eligible insurance policies (term, universal, health, or dental) and participate in health and wellness activities, you earn Vitality points that can be used toward gift cards and discounts on your monthly premium.
It’s a way for the insurance company to encourage healthy choices and track health data for their clients to better determine premiums. This is a win-win for those that already track their steps and make daily and weekly efforts toward a healthy lifestyle. The more points you collect, the better the rewards.
The vitality program is split up into two levels: Vitality Go, which is the basic vitality program for all eligible plans; and Vitality Plus, which is exclusively available for select policies only.
Vitality Go
This feature is automatically available FOR FREE for all eligible plans — namely, term life insurance plans that have at least $250,000 in coverage and universal life insurance plans that have at least $100,000 in coverage. But policyholders are not obligated to make use of its features if they’d prefer not to.
If they do participate, policyholders can earn sweet rewards including gift cards and other exclusive deals, plus the obvious benefit of a healthier lifestyle. There’s no skin off your back if you don’t take advantage of it, though.
Vitality Go also applies to Manulife CoverMe, Manulife FlexCare health & dental coverage, and Manulife FollowMe health & dental coverage.
Vitality Plus
This feature also rewards policyholders who participate in health activities, but to a greater extent than Vitality Go. Vitality Plus participants can look forward to exclusive perks like discounted insurance premiums, Fitbit and Apple Watch discounts, Amazon Prime membership, exclusive Expedia.ca deals, and more. But at the same time, Vitality Plus also introduces penalties when policyholders fall short of their healthy lifestyle goals.
Only select Manulife insurance products are eligible for Vitality Plus. And, it costs policyholders an additional $6 per month, on top of their usual premiums and policy fees, just for the privilege of having the potential to benefit based on their achieved tier. (We’ll get to that in the next paragraph below)
Coverage and policy details: Manulife Family Term with Vitality Plus
- Available Term Lengths: 10 years, 20 years, to age 65, to age 100
- Available Term Types: Guaranteed minimum & maximum level premiums
- Maximum Amount of Coverage: $25,000,000
- Renewability: Yes, up to age 80
- Convertibility: Yes
Vitality Points System
The program works on a tiered status system, depending on how many points you collect annually.
| Vitality Status | Points Required Per Year |
|---|---|
| Bronze Status | 0 points |
| Silver Status | 3,500 points |
| Gold Status | 7,000 points |
| Platinum Status | 10,000 points |
Your status will renew at the end of the program year, so you have to keep participating if you want to reap the rewards. Additionally, 10% of your points will roll over from the previous year into the next year to encourage you to keep participating.
The program further incentivizes users by offering an Apple Watch or another wearable device. With the program, you pay an initial fee for the watch for newer models (free for older models) plus any taxes. Then the more you participate in the Vitality program, the more of the bill they will cover each month.
| Apple Watch Type | Initial Payment | Monthly Payment | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 points | 240 points | 360 points | 500 points | ||
| Apple Watch Series 3 (GPS) 38 mm | $0 | $10.35 | $8 | $5 | $0 |
| Apple Watch Series 7 (GPS) 40 mm | $97 | $18 | $14.50 | $9 | $0 |
How to earn Vitality points
Manulife Vitality Go is now automatically added to all eligible insurance products. Once you set up your policy with your life insurance advisor, you will receive an email link to the program. If you would prefer Manulife Vitality Plus, then it’s just a matter of registering for that plan instead. Anyone who has Vitality Go can upgrade to Vitality Plus if they so choose.
- Step One: Find out your Vitality Age
The program begins by determining your Vitality Age. This is the baseline used to determine your progress. Just for signing up you and doing your health review, you will receive 2,000 points.
- Step Two: Get your fitness tracker
With this program, you can use the Apple Watch on offer, a Garmin, Fitbit, or wearable devices that tracks your fitness progress and physical activity. You must download the Vitality Mobile App on the device in order to participate. While it’s not necessary to have and use a fitness tracker to participate, it will certainly help you track your progress and earn points doing simple activities like walking and workouts.
- Step Three: Track your activity
Participate in the goal-oriented program that includes everyday activities like walking the dog, going to the gym, or completing online nutrition courses. When you start the program, you are at Bronze status and the app will suggest your weekly goal. The more you participate, the more points you earn.
NOTE: Vitality Go users are not required to use the app if they don’t want to. But it does provide a great resource for comparing the kinds of rewards you would have gotten if you were on the Vitality Plus program. For instance, it may show you the difference in pricing between your current premiums and the discount you would have had if you were a Vitality Plus member at your tier. But Vitality Plus members should make sure to download the app and log their health achievements to avoid penalties.
You can earn Vitality points, by participating in the following activities:
| Goal Type | Activity |
|---|---|
| Movement Goals |
|
| Nutrition Goals |
|
| Mindfulness & Mental Health Goals |
|
| Health Goals |
|
This is not an exhaustive list of how to earn points. Visit Manulife Vitality’s website to learn more about how to earn Vitality points.
The perks of Manulife Vitality
As mentioned, when you participate in the program, you are eligible for weekly rewards, such as gift cards for Vitality Go and annual premium discounts for Vitality Plus. Some of the other alluring rewards for Vitality Plus include:
- A one-year Amazon Prime® membership when you reach Platinum Status and complete your Vitality Health Review three years in a row
- Exclusive member prices and up to 50% off two hotel bookings on travel when booked through Expedia.ca
- Special rates on GoodLife Fitness memberships
- A free annual health assessment from ExamOne® to get an understanding of how healthy you are today, and what areas you can improve
- Get Apple Watch from just $0 and fund the balance by tracking daily activity and earning Vitality Points
- Receive a free Garmin vívofit® 4 when you sign up for Manulife Vitality or take advantage of exclusive member upgrade prices on the latest wearable technology
You can read the full list of rewards and benefits on Manulife Vitality’s website.
How much does Manulife Vitality life insurance cost?
Vitality Go is a free program that’s automatically available for any of Manulife’s eligible insurance products. It also does not provide a discount on insurance premiums, so your monthly or annual bill would remain the same.
Vitality Plus, on the other hand, costs $6/month. In terms of premiums, depending on the tier you achieve, you can get a discount of up to 15% off every year.
But keep in mind that the actual discount you see on your statement may end up less than you expected after adjusting for policy fees and the $6 Vitality Plus fee. The final discount may be in the range of 5-8%.
You should also consider that a Bronze tier Vitality Plus policy with a discounted premium may not be much cheaper than a standard Vitality Go policy. Of course, the calculations will vary. But because Vitality Plus charges $6 and Vitality Go doesn’t, in some cases, the premiums for these two may work out to be around the same. For this reason, Vitality Plus really works best for those who have higher premiums so can benefit more from a percentage discount.
Here’s how the Vitality program stacks up to Manulife’s regular family term policy.
| Coverage: $500,000 Term: 20-year term Gender: male Health Status: Healthy; non-smoker |
| Age | Regular Manulife Policy | Manulife Vitality Policy |
|---|---|---|
| 35 | $32.79 | $32.02 |
| 40 | $47.60 | $45.35 |
| 45 | $75.41 | $70.38 |
| 50 | $127.43 | $117.20 |
| 55 | $234.44 | $213.51 |
As you can see, participating in the program not only benefits your health but your wallet as well—especially over time. With opportunities for further discounts as you participate, the Vitality program can offer more affordable life insurance rates as you age.
However, one thing to note is that the Vitality program does not offer couples or multi-policy discounts. Couples or multipolicy life insurance policies allow you to save on life insurance fees and have other benefits when you’re applying with your significant other. If you are looking for life insurance for couples, there may be better options for you.
What other insurance coverage does Manulife Vitality offer?
You can participate in the Vitality program when you sign up for Manulife term life insurance, universal life insurance, health, or dental.
Manulife UL with Vitality Plus combines the benefits of flexible investment potential with the Vitality program’s rewards for a healthy lifestyle.
Coverage and policy details: Manulife UL with Vitality Plus
- Minimum Amount of Coverage: $100,000
- Optional Riders: Term life rider and children’s insurance rider
- Guaranteed Minimum Interest: 1%
- Investment Flexibility: Wide range of options
Outside of the Vitality program, Manulife Canada also offers a huge range of insurance products including:
- Permanent or Whole Life Insurance
- Critical Illness Insurance
- Long Term Care
- Disability Insurance
- Personal Accident Insurance
- Travel Insurance
- Health and Dental Insurance
- Group Plans
- Investment Plans (including RRSPs and TFSAs)
Vitality FAQ
When does my life insurance premium change?
You will see your premium discounts on the policy’s anniversary date; the premiums do not fluctuate month-to-month. After your first year of participating in the program, your policy will be reviewed and you will receive a discount according to your Vitality status, which you will keep for that year.
Will the Vitality program pay for an Apple Watch with a Data plan?
The Vitality program points are used towards paying down the Apple Watch itself, not the cellular or data plan associated with it. To receive the Apple Watch, you may be subject to an initial fee depending on which model you choose and whether you are subscribed to Vitality Plus. You will be responsible for covering any applicable taxes or extra fees associated with Data plans or upgrades.
Will my premium ever go higher than when I started?
This program is subject to minimum and maximum policy premiums. If you do not participate in the program and lose your Vitality status, your premiums may be changed to the maximum policy premiums and you will lose your previous discount.
What if I want to stop participating?
If you stop participating in the daily and weekly healthy choices that the program encourages, you will not gain any further Vitality points and you may lose your policy’s discount.
What happens if I don’t maintain my status?
If you lose your status in a certain year, you will have a two-year grace period to earn it back.
How do I apply for the Manulife Vitality program?
Ready to start making healthy choices and save on your life insurance premiums? The first step to sign up for this program is applying for term life insurance with Manulife Insurance. If you are interested in a customized life insurance program that encourages a healthier lifestyle, the expert advisors at PolicyAdvisor can help! We can walk you through the application process and answer any questions you have about how your premium will be impacted by this program. We work with Manulife as well as 20+ other insurance providers and set you up with a policy that works for best for your financial needs! Speak to an advisor today!
