Why you should consider a policy from the Banner Life Insurance Company? Affordable Life USA has represented Banner Life Insurance for over 25 years. We would like to help you understand more about the great rates and products from Banner Life Insurance Company.
When shopping for life insurance, it is essential to choose an insurance company that can provide you with a policy that best fits your specific protection needs.
This means determining the proper amount of death benefit coverage, as well as the correct type of coverage. Then, it becomes important to find the best insurance company to satisfy your needs with the appropriate products and pricing.
During our Banner Life Insurance review, we will cover:
- Details about the Banner Life Insurance Company
- Banner Life Insurance Financial Ratings
- Banner Term Life Insurance
- Banner No Exam Term Life program called Appcelerate
- Banner Term Conversion Options
- Banner Universal Life
- Competitive underwriting advantages in the marketplace
- How Affordable Life USA can help you obtain a Banner Life policy
About Banner Life Insurance Company
Banner Life Insurance Company was formed in 1949 and was acquired by Legal and General Group, an international insurance conglomerate in 1981.
Legal and General headquartered in London, is still the parent company of Banner Life Insurance Co. and it’s subsidiary William Penn Life Insurance Co. of New York. Legal & General currently operates in North America, Europe, and Asia and manages over $746 billion in assets.
Banner Life is licensed to do business in every U.S. state and the District of Columbia, except New York.
Banner utilizes a network of independent insurance agents to promote their life insurance plans. They have over 70,000 independent agents licensed to do business in the United States.
William Penn has been the company’s New York branch for 26 years. Products that are offered by William Penn, however, are provided only in the state of New York. Because of that, New York is the one U.S. state where Banner Life Insurance Company does not offer its products.
The products that are offered by Banner Life Insurance Company, as well as by William Penn, are underwritten by Banner Life.
This means Banner life insurance reviews applications submitted from around the country at their Urbana, Maryland location.
While Banner Life reviews New York generated business in Garden City, New York for William Penn.
Banner Life Insurance Rating
Banner life has nearly $624 billion of in-force life insurance policies. Banner also had a reported whopping $82.5 million of net income last year.
Banner is one of the few life insurance companies, who strictly focus on just growing their business through the sale life insurance products.
The Banner life insurance rating is” excellent” according to A.M. Best. The ratings agency A.M. Best has conducted it’s annual Banner Life insurance review and has given them an A+ (SUPERIOR) rating.
Furthermore, the Banner life insurance company rating from Standard and Poor’s is AA- which is also considered very strong financially.
Financial ratings for life insurance companies are very important to us when selecting a life insurance company four our clients. For an insurance company, there is nothing more important than it’s financial strength and ability to pay claims to policyholders.
We monitor the financial strength and claims paying ability of life insurance companies by using a number of different rating agencies.
We also evaluated Banner’s parent company, Legal & General Group, which also has excellent ratings. Legal & General America Financial Ratings:
- A+ (Superior) from A.M. Best
- AA- (Very Strong) from S&P
- AA- (Very Strong) from Fitch
Their parent company, Legal & General America, is the corporate center of operations and has its headquarters not in the United States, but in the United Kingdom. Legal & General is currently listed as the 7th largest insurance company in the world, based on assets under management.
What Types of Insurance does Banner Offer?
Here are few questions that you should ask before selecting the type of life insurance coverage you need:
- How much life insurance do you need now and in the future?
- Are you covering for a specific need such as mortgage coverage, income replacement, or only for final expenses?
- Do you need coverage for a certain number of years, or do you alternatively need coverage for the rest of your life?
- Do you need pure death benefit protection, or do your need a cash value too?
Once, you you have answered a few of these question you can better decide on which type of insurance policy is best suited for your family
Banner Life offers two types of insurances that you may be interested in:
- Term-Life
- Universal Life
While both of these offer you options for life insurance, they vary slightly from each other. You will want to make sure that you understand the basics of both before choosing the one that is right for you.
We can discuss these options with you and help you decide on the best one for your needs and current situation when you contact us today.
Banner Term Life Insurance
This option is inexpensive and the most basic choice for life insurance. It strictly offers you the coverage that you need. You won’t pay extra for any coverage that does not apply to your specific situation. Term Life Insurance offers guaranteed death benefits and level premiums for specific periods of time.
You will want to pick the time frame that you think will cover your family and keep them protected. If your policy is still active when you pass away, your beneficiary will get the payout. However, if you die after the policy expires, there will be no payout.
Banner Life Insurance Co. is known for offering some of the industry’s lowest prices on term life insurance. The OPTerm® series, is the actual product name for Banner term life products.
Banner’s OPTerm® series of term life insurance products are contractually guaranteed to remain level through the initial term period. Here are the periods of time you can select:
- 10 years
- 15 years
- 20 years
- 25 years
- 30 years
Term life insurance is an excellent choice for applicants looking to obtain the largest amount of insurance at the cheapest cost. Term coverage can be tailored in duration to address needs such as protecting a mortgage, or protecting your income to your spouse.
Banner No Exam Term Life Insurance
Legal & General also offers between $100,000 to $500,000 of term life insurance to applicants between the ages of 20 to 50 without any medical examination.
Banner Life offers an automated underwriting program is called Appcelerate. This is a form of “no exam life insurance” which offers simplified underwriting for people who are in relatively good health.
If you qualify, a policy can be issued as soon as the next business day. This unique no exam life insurance program allows people to be approved for a policy without the need for a medical exam, lab tests, or medical records from your doctor.
Are you are in good health and under the age of 50? Banner life reviews only few health questions, conduct a telephone interview and your approved in a few days.
They are also one of the only companies that offer a “Preferred Plus” rate class and offer their full product portfolio without requiring you to do an medical exam. This is great option for healthy busy applicants wanting to get affordable life insurance in a hurry.
Highlights of Legal and General’s APPcelerate:
- Phone interview only for qualifying applicants
- No Medical Exam required if eligible
- Preferred Plus rates available
- Available for Ages 20-50
- 10, 15, 20, 30 year terms available
- Available for $100,000 – $500,000 Face Amounts
Banner Term Life Conversion Options
Convertible term life insurance allows active policyholders to extend or convert to permanent coverage with no questions asked.
Banner offers renewable and convertible term life insurance to age 95. A life insurance conversion gives a current policyholder the privilege to convert a portion or the entire amount of term coverage to permanent coverage.
The conversion option gives you the option to convert your term policy to a universal Life policy. The new universal life policy will be issued at the same underwriting class as your existing term without requiring any new underwriting or exam.
Banner Life conversions may be requested at any time during the guaranteed level premium period, up to age 70, whichever comes first. Policies issued at age 66 or over are convertible during the first five years of the policy.
A life insurance conversion also gives a current policyholder the privilege to convert a portion or the entire amount of term coverage.
Since, term life insurance is cheaper compared to permanent insurance many people elect to convert coverage in smaller face amounts then their original Banner term life policy. The newly converted policy can be designed to extend the duration of your policy to different ages.
Typically, conversion options are usually more expensive then term insurance at younger ages, but as people get into their 50’s and 60’s the pricing spread lessens.
Banner Universal Life Insurance
So, how does Universal Life Insurance policies work?
Universal Life Insurance is a type of permanent policy where the excess of premium payments above the current cost of insurance are credited to the cash value of the policy.
Your life insurance premium will be split into two accounts. One portion will be invested in your cash accumulation component which acts similar to a savings account with tax deferred growth. The other portion of your premium will be put into your insurance policy to pay for your actual death benefit.
The idea behind this type of life insurance policy is that your investment will continue to grow over the months and years until eventually you can use that money to help pay for the life insurance portion of your policy.
Banner life Insurance Company also offers universal life insurance. In fact, Banner was one of first insurance companies to offer Universal Life.
Banner Universal Life Insurance can also be designed in two different ways:
Higher Premiums with Cash Value Accumulation
Banner’s guaranteed universal life insurance policies can be designed to accumulate excess cash values inside the policy. For people with extra money, over-funding the cash account gives people flexibility and freedom in the future.
Banner Life’s Step Up UL® also permits a flexible premium schedule. So, you can contribute additional premiums to the policy to help grow the cash value account or pay off the policy in a shorter period of time.
Lower Premiums with No Cash Values
Policyholders who are not interested in accumulating money have a another option. This is a “hybrid design” of guaranteed universal life insurance which combines elements of both term life coverage and universal life.
Banner Life’s Step UL® offers a guaranteed minimum death benefit for as long as payments are made. The minimum required premium will never change and you can never lose your policy.
These lifetime plans do not accumulate much cash value, but the premiums have a no lapse guarantee which can be selected to last until specific age (i.e. 90, 95, or 100).
Banner also sells a smaller $50,000 Guaranteed Universal Life (GUL) policy. Most life insurance companies start at $100,000 for universal life insurance.
This policy is a perfect fit for people needing a permanent coverage without cash values at smaller face amount.
It should also be mentioned, that these Banner Universal Life policies are also less expensive than traditional permanent policies like whole life!
Banner Life Insurance Policy Riders
Waiver of Premium
Is a optional rider, and if you become disabled and unable to pay your premiums, the Waiver of Premium rider ensures your policy remains in force until you can resume making payments.
This rider gives you peace of mind knowing that if you were to suffer an illness or injury, and become totally disabled, your family will remain protected by your life insurance policy. Banner Life will waive all premiums during the total disability period.
Accelerated Death Benefit
Is a free rider and if you are diagnosed as terminally ill or have less than one year to live, you can access a portion of your death benefit to help pay medical bills.
If you are diagnosed with a terminal illness, this rider will allow the death benefit can be paid prior to your death if you are facing a qualifying terminal illness. The maximum amount of the accelerated death benefit amount is the lesser of $500,000 or 75% of the policy’s primary death benefit.
The accelerated death benefit is treated as a lien, which accrues interest. Upon the death of the insured, the death benefits payable will be reduced by the total accelerated death benefit lien. This will allow you to use the death benefit for such needs as lost income due to sickness.
Children’s Rider
Is an optional rider which provides a death benefit for one or more children in the family. A single rider covers all of the eligible children up to the youngest child’s 25th birthday or the insured’s 65th birthday or upon termination of the policy. The rider cost is level in all years. This rider can only be added on at the time of the initial policy application.
Banner Life Insurance Underwriting
When looking into a life insurance policy, it is often difficult to know exactly the premiums you will pay until your policy goes through the underwriting process.
Many agents give quotations based on the best rate class in order to win your business. However, the risk classification or rate class the life insurance company gives you at the end of the application process is what really matters.
The Banner Life Insurance rating classifications include the following:
- Preferred Plus Non-Tobacco
- Preferred Non-Tobacco
- Standard Plus Non-Tobacco
- Standard Non-Tobacco
- Preferred Tobacco
- Standard Tobacco
Banner Life also offers extremely favorable underwriting. This means that even though an applicant may have certain types of health conditions, they will still qualify for coverage through Banner.
Here are a few competitive areas where Banner Life Insurance really shines:
- Blood pressure: Nonsmokers with average readings in the past two years of no more than 136/86 qualify for the best rates, called “Preferred Plus”. Do you need life insurance and have high blood pressure and it is controlled with medication? With Banner Life Insurance Company you can still qualify for a preferred plus rate class. Most competitors will only offer preferred.
- Smoking: If you would otherwise qualify for a preferred plus rate class based on your health, then after three years of no tobacco or nicotine use you can qualify for a preferred plus rate class. Many competitors make you wait a full five years for this benefit.
- Cholesterol: If you need life insurance with high cholesterol and are being treated with medications and your cholesterol is under control, you can still qualify for a preferred plus rate class. Most competitors will only offer preferred.
- Diabetes: Diabetic life insurance clients can qualify for a standard plus rate class compared with the typical standard rate class offered by most competitors
- Anxiety and Depression: Clients seeking life insurance with anxiety and depression can qualify for a preferred rate class if the disorder is well controlled.
- Asthma: People who suffer from asthma taking less then two medications can qualify for a preferred rate class.
As you can see, Banner Life has some underwriting niches which may help you obtain better pricing compared to other insurance companies in the market. Banner life has a more liberal stance with regards to high-risk clients, such as diabetics, people seeking life insurance who are overweight, or those with high cholesterol. Their philosophy when it comes to underwriting is “we underwrite the entire person, not just the impairment”.
Banner Life insurance reviews each application thoroughly which does take a bit longer when underwriting these conditions. But, normally Banner Life comes up with better prices for applicants with a few minor health issues. Many companies may take less time in underwriting but, offer higher rates in return for faster policy issue.
The primary focus of the Banner Life Insurance Company is offering very competitively priced term life insurance policies.
How to apply for Banner Life Insurance?
Our Banner Life Insurance review, only provides you with a detailed evaluation of one of the many companies in our network of life insurance carriers.
As you can see, many applicants can certainly benefit from the Banner Life Insurance Company rating, pricing, products, and fair underwriting.
We are a nationally licensed and completely independent life insurance agency. We focus on the needs of executives, small business owners, and retirees looking for honest advice and Banner Life insurance quotes.
Our agency would love the opportunity to work with you on your life insurance planning!
Affordable Life USA can help you apply for the great rates from the Banner Life Insurance Company.
If you like what you have learned during our Banner Life review, we are very confident recommending Banner Life for your families coverage needs.
Remember, as with most insurance companies, Banner Life insurance policies are medically underwritten. So, it is important check into whether you can actually qualify for coverage.
First, your general medical history is initially evaluated to determine if Banner is best suited for your particular medical history
In some cases, Banner Life will also require a brief insurance examination.Your medical profile and exam are then submitted to underwriting to determine you final price. The underwriting process can take between 3-4 weeks depending on the details of your medical history.
We hope you benefited from the information provided here in our Banner Life review. If you would like to learn more about the Banner Life Insurance Company, or have any additional questions, please call us at 1-877-249-1358. We are more then happy to help you!
Once, you are a Banner life policyholder you will also get great customer service. If you ever need to make changes to your policy or have a question you can always call us or Banner Life directly. You will always be greeted with a live person who is happy to assist you on the phone.
Do you need your Banner life insurance rates right now? Great! Our helpful insurance premium calculator, Instant Life Insurance Quotes allows you to privately review Banner Life rates and many more companies in just a few minutes.
