I’ve been doing the rounds talking about the book and one thing that has come up is the definition of single. Yes, there is the single person who has never married for reasons known to themselves. But what has always come up in my recent conversations is that most of us will be single at some point in our lives.

You’ll be single before you couple up, when you’re separated or divorced and when you’re widowed. I want to talk about something very specific to people who are separated or divorced: insurance. Look, I know it’s not sexy but it’s one of those things you want when you need it.

I asked Farzana Damji, Senior Director, Product Development for RBC Insurance some insurance questions, focused especially on separated or divorced couples, those people who are newly single.

Damji points out that divorce does not automatically remove beneficiary designations for life insurance. It also doesn’t automatically remove them as beneficiaries from your registered retirement plans. After you die, your heirs might get an unpleasant surprise when they find out your ex gets the money from your policy instead of them.

So if you’re splitting from your partner, here’s what you should keep in mind.

“Insurance becomes especially important after a separation because an individual’s entire financial picture often changes overnight,” Damji said, via email. “Many people will be transitioning from shared financial responsibility to full independence—sometimes while also supporting children. What used to be a shared safety net may no longer exist.”

She says that people should make sure insurance is addressed directly in the separation or divorce agreement. Insurance shouldn’t be an afterthought; it should be part of the conversation with a lawyer from the beginning.

“For example, many agreements require one parent to maintain life insurance to support dependents or ongoing child support obligations,” she says. “If that’s not clearly documented, it can create confusion or conflict later. Having insurance explicitly referenced helps ensure everyone understands what coverage must stay in place, for how long, and for whose benefit.”

Plus, it’s important to think about ongoing obligations, especially when children are involved. Insurance may need to cover child support, education costs, or housing stability.

Then there’s disability and critical illness insurance. I’ve written multiple articles on these two topics, chatted about them several times on this newsletter and even had a phone call with my insurance advisor last week on whether to increase my disability insurance coverage. (Short answer, yes.)

A RBC Insurance survey found that 31 per cent of Canadians say disability insurance is important but only 10 per cent are covered. With critical illness coverage, 29 per cent say it’s important but only nine per cent is covered.

“When a single person is unable to work due to illness or injury, they may not have a partner to rely on to cover things like healthcare costs, mortgage payments and everyday expenses,” says Damji. “Singles may also have additional responsibilities, such as caring for aging parents. For this reason, disability or critical illness insurance can enhance financial security in case the unexpected happens.”

I’ll talk more about insurance for single people next week but if there’s one thing you should as part of the whole ‘new year, new you’ thing is to make sure you change your beneficiaries so your ex doesn’t get your money.

WINNER! The Singles Tax: No-Nonsense Financial Advice for Solo Earners

First, I want to say thank you all who entered. I took all the names and used a randomizer to select the winner. I’m happy to announce that the winner of a copy of the book is…

MAKEDA!!

Makeda, please either reply to this email or email me at renee.sylvestrewilliams@gmail.com to coordinate mailing of the book.

This week’s readings:

I appeared on Bruce Sellery’s Moolala show on SiriusXM.

Honestly, Doug Ford is the worst. The province wants to pause affordable housing requirements near transit hubs (Toronto Life)

Why Japan Hates the New Bachelor Tax Aimed at Reversing Population Decline (Unseen Japan)

Are you overpaying for a lab-grown diamond? (CBC)

Seriously, the council is so unserious and by that I mean stupid. Ottawa slashes Toronto’s housing funding by $10 million for failing to permit city-wide sixplexes (CP24)