What are the Best Life Insurance Companies for Seniors?
The purpose of life insurance is to minimize any financial hardships that may be caused by a person’s death. Many seniors will need enough life insurance to replace their income when they die, especially if they leave a spouse or minor children behind who are dependent on the senior’s income. Other reasons a senior might want to purchase life insurance include a desire to leave assets to family members or to a favorite charity.
Having said that, here are the best life insurance companies and policies for seniors.
New York Life Insurance Company
Life insurance for seniors is available directly from the New York Life Insurance Company or through AARP, which offers level benefit term insurance underwritten by New York Life. Life insurance for seniors will almost always cost more than life insurance for younger people. Because of this, many seniors choose term insurance.
New York Life Insurance Company offers term insurance for seniors that builds up a cash value and can be converted to permanent life insurance. Riders can be added that cover such things as accidental death, chronic care, children’s insurance, living benefits, and a disability waiver of premiums. New York Life also offers whole life insurance, universal life insurance, and variable universal life insurance.
New York Life is an old and trusted company that began its life in New York City in 1845. It is among Fortune Magazine’s most admired companies and has been given an AA+ rating by Standard & Poor’s. The AARP term insurance is available to seniors ages 50 to 74 and to their spouse ages 45 to 74. Coverage is available from $10,000 to $100,000.
In most cases, no medical exam is required. This is an important distinction for seniors with pre-existing medical conditions. Rates begin at $11.00 per month for a 50-year-old female with a coverage amount of $10,000.
One con is that New York Life ranks 13th in J.D. Power’s customer satisfaction index. In other words, there are 12 other companies that may provide better customer service.
Mutual of Omaha
Mutual of Omaha offers a flexible universal life insurance policy that builds up cash value. Premium payments and death benefits are adjustable. A senior with a chronic or terminal illness can withdraw a portion of the policy’s death benefit. Coverage is available for seniors ages 45 to 85 in amounts that range from $2,000 to $25,000.
Spouses are also eligible for coverage. An online application can be completed in a manner of minutes and no health questions are asked. Acceptance is guaranteed. However, if a senior dies of natural causes during the first two years of coverage, death benefits are reduced. Premiums start at $8.80 per month.
Mutual of Omaha is a Fortune 500 company that has been in business for over 100 years. It is headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska. The Better Business Bureau has awarded it with an A+ rating. Mutual of Omaha ranks very high in customer service satisfaction, securing four out of five stars in J.D. Power’s customer satisfaction survey.
However, its website doesn’t offer a lot of information and isn’t easy to navigate. Anyone searching for information about a new policy will be left with a lot of questions.
American National Life
American National Life is headquartered in Galveston, Texas. It offers several types of life insurance, including whole life, term life, universal life, indexed universal life, and credit life. Most seniors will be interested in term life because of its lower premiums.
One pro for American National is that it offers policies with lower death benefits, which translates into lower premiums. This makes it more affordable for seniors with limited funds. American National also offers accelerated death benefits in the case of chronic or terminal illnesses at no additional cost.
Standard & Poor’s has awarded American National with an A rating. Additionally, it was listed by Forbes in 2017 as one of America’s most trustworthy companies.
One of American National’s cons is that it only offers coverage through age 80, which is less than many of its competitors. Additionally, coverage is limited for smokers. So, smokers through age 75 who test positive for nicotine may get better rates from a competing life insurance company.
Conclusion
There are many life insurance policies available to seniors. Although the choices include whole life, universal life, credit life, and indexed universal life, most seniors will find it to their advantage to choose a term policy because of its lower cost. In addition to cost, other factors that should be investigated include coverage amounts available, age limits, and living benefits.
Seniors interested in purchasing life insurance owe it to themselves to do their own investigation in order to find the company and policy that best fits their particular circumstances.