Your Rights and Responsibilities: Credit cards

Credit card balance insurance

Financial institutions must give you information about credit card-related insurance services. Institutions offering credit card balance insurance are obliged to disclose the cost of this service and how customers may opt out of — or cancel — the service. Financial institution staff must also be knowledgeable about this product.

You should be aware that services such as credit card balance insurance are usually provided by a third party such as an insurance company, and not the financial institution that issues the credit card.

Canada's banks have agreed to abide by a code of conduct regarding insurance services. Each bank is responsible for ensuring that its representatives implement, understand and follow this code. Banks have made a commitment to provide clear, understandable disclosure in documents related to authorized insurance products.

The banks have agreed to provide each eligible customer who has been accepted for insurance coverage with disclosure documents that set out the following:

• that the product being applied for is an insurance product;
  
  
• the key terms and definitions related to the insurance;
  
  
• all of the customer fees and charges associated with the insurance product, and how they would be payable;
  
  
• that insurance coverage from a specific company is optional, if a separate charge is levied for the coverage;
  
  
• the name of the primary insurance company underwriting the insurance product;
  
  
• how and when the customer will be notified of acceptance or rejection of the insurance coverage;
  
  
• when the insurance coverage would come into effect and when it would terminate;
  
  
• the duration of any "free look" period, during which all premiums charged would be refunded if the customer decides to cancel the insurance coverage;
  
  
• the customer's responsibilities and the right to cancel the insurance coverage at any time;
  
  
• the terms and conditions that might limit or exclude coverage;
  
  
• the claims procedures; and
  
  
• how to obtain additional information about the insurance coverage.