The Legal and General Life Insurance Companies Of America
Are you are doing your due diligence on a life insurance company that was suggested to you? Reading Banner Life Insurance reviews is a good way to get some feedback on this company.
Most people aren’t familiar with them. Banner Life Insurance Company does not run expensive advertisements like a lot of the household insurance names. Companies like Colonial Penn, State Farm, Geico, Farmers and Allstate have huge advertising budgets.
Guess who pays for those fancy commercials we all see in the end?
That’s right!!
Why do consumers often come to trust a company…name familiarity.
I’m not sure that is a good thing though. A commercial is just that. It does not tell us the reality of a product or service. It just “creates” a mental picture we develop in our own individual minds…either good or bad!!
But, what actually determines which life insurance company is really the best for you?
Truth be told, there are a number of “best” life insurance companies out there. The four former household names would not make our top ten regardless of how well known they are. None of them are “serious” life insurance companies and their underwriting practices do not lend themselves to competitive premiums. Keep in mind, those particular insurance carriers focus on Property and Casualty insurance, not the lives of people. Banner Life Insurance Company is focused on life insurance.
Be aware, there is a lot of hogwash spread by financial bloggers that don’t have a life insurance license, extensive experience and/or training to be even discussing who the “best” is and why. The research they generate is not based on real world experience. I suggest you ignore their commentary. It does not come from a place of wisdom in the life insurance industry.
Banner Life is one of the primary life insurance companies we work with among dozens of others. Take that statement into consideration as we move into our professional evaluation of this company.
Banner Life In Review, The Company Itself
Banner Life has been in the life insurance business for over 60 years. It however, has not always had the same name.
History
The company is owned by Legal and General America, a holding company whose founders go back more than 180 years. Legal and General Group, PLC founded Legal and General America in 1981 and purchased Government Employees Life Insurance Company, changing its name to Banner Life in 1983.
Legal and General Group also purchased William Penn Life Insurance to be a subsidiary of Banner Life in 1989.
Both of these insurance companies underwrite and issue all of the life insurance policies issued by Legal and General America with the same common name, Legal & General America.
Legal & General Group is the 7th largest insurer in the world according to the 2017 A.M Best findings.
Financial Rating Of Banner Life Insurance Company
Depending how many Banner Life Insurance reviews you have already read, you may have learned that A.M. Best also continues to rate Legal & General America as an A+. This is a financial rating given to only a very, very limited number of life insurance companies and signifies top tier financials. Rest assured, Banner has the coffers to make sure all claims are satisfied.
Banner Life Insurance Phone Number
Customer Service at Banner Life can be reached at (800) 638-8428 Monday-Friday from 8:00am-5:00pm EST. You may also email them at customerservice@bannerlife.com
Life Insurance Products Offered
Banner OpTerm Life Insurance
OPTerm Life Insurance is the most frequently purchased life insurance product from this life insurer.
Yes, like is sounds, this is Banner’s term life insurance policy. It is available in several different “term” lengths. It is designed for those needing financial protection for a defined amount of time such as those raising a family. Banner Opterm life insurance is typically sold for periods of 10, 20 and even 30 years.
- Banner has both renewable and convertible term life available
- Renewable policies to age 95. Competitors max is 90
Universal Life Insurance from Banner Life
Life Step UL is their product for those needing more guarantees into the future.
- Designed to be Permanent Insurance.
- Includes a level premium option that guarantees your policy will remain in force till age 121.
- You can also take a short pay option in which allows you to pay the policy up before retirement that will guarantee coverage for life as well.
- $50,000 minimum amount of coverage is less than the majority of insurers. This is a great feature for those that need a smaller policy. The majority of carriers start at $100,000.
Underwriting Health Conditions At Banner Life Insurance Company
Banner Life is very relaxed in the evaluations of several different health ailments. That is why we at Special Risk Life will often send in anonymous requests to Banner underwriting for people with AFib in their medical history. This is part of our shopping process to see which insurer is likely to get our client the best rate when they have a special risk insurance need. In this case, we are referring to such a medical condition.
Banner usually comes in with a better rating than other carriers we prompt for Atrial Fibrillation coverage.
What does that mean?
Their premium offers are usually much more affordable when working with this particular condition among a few other insurance companies.
Getting a “standard/regular rating” versus being “table rated” makes a huge difference in the cost of policy ownership.
This is one value of working with Banner Life certainly, but remember, your agent must have the access to these carriers, and experience negotiating cases in less than good health to obtain the best rating. Only the better agents are going to deliver like this. Don’t expect a big call center to go to bat for you. They are high volume and have sales quotas. This business model which does not lend itself to good service in tougher cases for sure.
Other Conditions Where Banner Life Excels
- Banner Life Insurance is very reasonable with tobacco or nicotine users. After 3 years of no use, if all else is in order, you can qualify for preferred plus rating. This is something that most insurers require a minimum of 5 years of no use to consider.
- High Cholesterol treated with medication that is completely controlled can potentially still qualify for a preferred plus rating. Very few companies will allow anything but a preferred rating
- Controlled High Blood Pressure – If you are under medication, banner will consider preferred plus rating. Again, most companies will not consider anything but preferred.
- Anxiety or Depression History – Applicants can qualify for preferred rate if the condition is well controlled.
- Sleep Apnea is favorably underwritten with Banner. More so than other carriers.
- Asthma – If you are on two or less medications and all else ok, Banner will consider you for a preferred rate class. Typically, this is a standard rate class with most other carriers.
- Diabetes or Diabetic Life Insurance applicants can actually obtain a standard plus rating with Banner. Most competing companies offer a best case of standard rates.
- Family History – Banner is one of the best insurance companies at underwriting cases with family history of medical conditions. Family history will play into any medically underwritten policy out there. Banner Life seems to be less focused on the family versus the applicants own history. They are liberal if you have a family history of health problems.
This Banner Life Insurance Review vs. 3 Other “Big Name” Insurers
Below are a few of the other carriers comparable to Banner. However, they may not be best suited for your needs either.
Regardless of how many Banner Life insurance reviews you have read, it is always in your best interest to speak to a professional regarding he suitability of particular product and company. There may be small differences in your history where one or even none of these companies is appropriate:
- MetLife – We often push Type 1, insulin dependent diabetic cases towards both Banner Life or MetLife. Other details of your history will however influence recommendations
- Protective – Protective is consistently a top competitor for low cost life insurance. Their underwriting, like Banner makes them a great option for a good number of applicants.
- Prudential – When we need to save your age, we may suggest Prudential versus Banner. Banner Life will use your nearest birthday, not your actual age. With a large policy and many years of payments, this can mean a lot of savings.
While we always recommend giving us a phone call to get the most accurate quote, you may also use our tools to price coverage out. If you have particular condition and would like to get a online quote from Banner and many other carriers, this is the page and simple guide to instant quotes with elevated risk factors you need to follow.
Banner Life Insurance Company Quote
A custom quote with the competitive rates of Banner is simply obtained by using our free quoting tool on this page. If you are on a mobile device, the tool should be found at the bottom. Simply enter the term length of insurance you desire and adjust your health rating compared to peers your age. Enter this into the quoting tool…you will have your Banner Life insurance quote in less than a minute. Give us a call if you need help evaluating your overall health class.
Please understand that this quote is not a offer of coverage from any insurance company. For any offer from a life insurer, you would have to formally apply for coverage and be medically approved for the quoted rate classification.
The Pro’s of Banner Life
If you are in less than perfect health, odds are, Banner will be an option at the top of the list for you. That is, if you are after low cost life insurance anyway.
Banner Life has a history of being very competitive or at the very top for people who fall into the standard and table rate classes (risk). Even in 2023, the company continues to have flexible underwriting and excellent pricing for those in less than perfect health.
If you are living with sleep apnea or diabetes for example, we usually see favorable outcomes for our clients with Banner.
Their application process is simple as pie. Updated for 2023 we saw a company that wanted to work not only my closely with their agents, but make it faster and easier than ever to apply for their life insurance products.
The Cons Of Banner Life
Ladies and gentleman, there really are not any cons to speak of. Whether you have recently became familiar with them or not, Banner Life is a top tier, hard core life insurance company with excellent products.
Yes, there are plenty of junk policies out there marketed by what I consider opportunistic insurance companies. Banner doesn’t waste the time of reputable agents or consumers with low quality and/or overpriced offerings found elsewhere.
Is Banner Life Insurance A Good Company, A Diamond In The Rough?
We think so. However, an important point to remember is that Banner is one company of literally hundreds of life insurance carriers.
You should not limit yourself to one company. Banner Life and William Penn Life Insurance Company have created life insurance policies that applicants can certainly count on, but it does mean they will give you the ideal offer for your unique personal situation.
Sometimes insurance companies see their applicants in a different light than we see ourselves. “For better or worse.” It is great to have options. Life insurance can be “cold and dry.”
If Banner does not make an offer an acceptable to you, we can continue shopping for offers from other insurance carriers. We just arrange to have any required paramedical report forwarded to another insurance company that may be more inclined accept you most favorably.
With that all said, Banner Life Insurance Company is definitely still a “Diamond In the Rough” in my book.
Is Banner One of the Best Life Insurance Companies?
As we approach the end of our Banner Life insurance review, it is hard not to say Banner Life is not one of the very best life insurance carriers in the industry. Based on the low rates for healthy people, aggressive underwriting practices (high approval ratio), claims paying ability (financial rating) and reputation, I don’t believe that anyone should doubt that Banner Life isn’t one of the top 5 life insurance companies for those who need term life insurance or no-lapse, guaranteed universal life.
Whether it is the #1 option for you is going to be a personal matter based off your specific needs. You may have a “risk profile” which presents itself better to other insurance carriers thereby resulting in lower premiums elsewhere.
A good number of people will not be able to do much better than this first rate company.
Be sure that we have first evaluated that this is your best option. Banner is not likely a solution for if you are in very rocky health.
The Conclusion to Our Banner Life Insurance Review
You may have read other Banner Life insurance reviews before you found our site. We hope you have learned a lot about applying for life insurance here.
I probably telegraphed this in the review earlier but Banner Life Insurance Company is a personal favorite of mine. Does that make my review biased? I will let you be the judge.
Our Banner Life Insurance Rating is an “A”
Remember, there are some very good life insurance carriers out there ready to fight for your business.
Is Banner Life Insurance a good company? Absolutely!
If you have sifted thru different reviews of Banner Life Insurance, I think you will find one thing in common. As a company, they are well liked, period.
They have an excellent reputation for affordability, medical underwriting, financials and their claims paying. Complaints against them are very low.
As a life insurance agent, if I had to be captive (stuck) with one company for Term and Universal Life Insurance, Banner Life would probably be my single choice. I would have a competitive company with great Term and Guaranteed Universal life insurance rates which is 50% of our business.
Fortunately, we have access to dozens of the finest carriers. No limitations on who we can help with their life insurance needs.
Today, people are very financially stressed. Money is extra tight for most people. Having access to affordable, quality life insurance companies is very important to the average person. People want to buy financial coverage that is dependable and affordable yet offers great benefits not found in other policies.
What a good, independent agent or broker does for you is give you those options instead of leading you into something that is not in your best interest.
That is the power of having an advocate who’s interest is you, the client and not in the big insurance company or a sales quota of the high volume call centers.
Whether you need term life insurance or permanent, guaranteed universal life insurance, you can be confident you are dealing with a first rate life insurance company offering very strong financials and a good claims paying history.
If you have not already, get an instant Banner Life insurance quote right here on this page with the provided tool. In less than a minute you will see how competitive Banner is versus the other top life insurance companies in the industry.
We are here to help you gain the comfort you need to move forward with your decision on life insurance. Not everyone needs term nor guaranteed universal life insurance. Make sure you have a good reason to have it and that the policy you are applying for meets those needs specifically.
Never put a round peg in a square hole with life insurance because you “heard good things” about a particular insurer.
Not sure if term or UL is right for you? Ask us. Here is a breakdown of Universal Life Insurance and the different options available. Lots of info on the different options.
We can and will be here to help you out with any questions you have.
If you know you need coverage, take action now. There will not be a better time. Life insurance only goes up in cost as you age if you have not secured an appropriate policy. Lock your rate in now. Let Special Risk Life be your guide and advocate. (269) 230-3464
As always, feel free to comment below.
Special Risk Life is a veteran independent life insurance agency that specializes in guiding people with even the toughest health conditions thru the life insurance process. We are very passionate about helping people get the financial protection they want while delivering affordable coverage people can absolutely count on.
