Last Updated: February 2020
In this Banner Life Insurance review, we are going to help you decide if Banner Life is the right life insurance company for you! We’ve helped hundreds of people find affordable life insurance through Banner Life.
Below you’ll learn Banner Life’s financial ratings, the pros & cons of working with them, sample rates, and their best policies. After that, you’ll be able to compare Banner Life to other top life insurance carriers.
- Brief History of Banner Life Insurance Company
- Banner Life Insurance Company Financial Ratings
- Life Insurance Policies Offered by Banner
- Banner Life Insurance Term Life Insurance Rates
- Benefits of Choosing Banner Life Insurance
- Compare Banner Life Insurance to Other Companies
Life Insurance is Boring. Let’s Get To The Root Of It! Here are the key takeaways…
Banner Life has an A+ rating from A.M. Best, meaning they are rated “superior” for their financial strength. They also have an AA- rating (very strong) from Standard & Poors. Banner Life excels with high-risk, term, & guaranteed universal life insurance policies.
Brief History of 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 is still the parent company of Banner Life Insurance.
Banner Life is an industry innovator. Back in the early 80’s, they were one of the first companies to offer universal life insurance. Today, every life insurance company offers universal life.
L&G is the 8th largest insurance company in the world. L&G has over 1.3 million customers in the US and over $700 billion of coverage in force.
Banner Life Insurance Company Financial Ratings
Despite economic pressures, Banner Life is still one of the strongest life insurance companies in the US.
Here are the financial ratings for Banner Life, along with several other metrics that we use to review carriers.
- A.M. Best: “A+” (superior) rating
- Affordability Index: 9.8
- Ease of Applying: 9.5
- Customer Service: 9.2
- COMDEX Ranking: 94
A.M. Best is the industry benchmark for financial strength in the life insurance industry. The other metrics are based on a number of factors including our industry knowledge of Banner Life compared with other companies. The COMDEX ranking is a composite score that considers A.M. Best and other top ratings agencies.
Learn more about our process for reviewing life insurance companies here.
On top of their strong financial performance, Banner Life has continually been one of the lowest cost level term life insurance policies on the market.
Life Insurance Policies Offered by Banner
Banner has excellent term insurance and guaranteed universal life insurance rates.
Banner OPTerm Series
Their “OPTerm” term life insurance portfolio is simple. Here are several features of their OPTerm Series:
- They offer 10, 15, 20 or 30-year term policies.
- They have guaranteed level death benefits and premiums.
- It comes with a free accelerated death benefit rider which pays a portion of the death benefit if you get a terminal illness.
- They also have an optional, inexpensive, waiver of premium rider which will pay your premiums in the event of a disability.
One of the biggest advantages of Banner’s OPTerm series and any of their products is their table rated cases are based off of Standard Plus.
This means if you have any health complications and you’re rated below standard (Table 1 – Table 8), the rates will be better than most of the competition. In other words, Banner Life is very competitive with impaired risks when it comes to pricing.
Banner’s OPTerm series also allows you can convert your term life insurance policy to permanent insurance with no evidence of insurability. This is a very important benefit most never think of, and many companies are weak in this area.
If you are considering a term life insurance policy, compare Banner Life with Prudential Life Insurance, which is another top term life insurance company as well. You can also find reviews for the 10 best life insurance companies here.
Banner Universal Life Insurance
Banner Life was one of the first to market a universal life with a secondary guarantee, also called No-Lapse Universal Life Insurance. In other words, it’s a level premium guaranteed.
Banner’s Choice UL Product had some of the most competitive rates on the market.
Update: As of 4/10/2015, Banner has pulled its Choice UL Product. Currently, they do not have a guaranteed universal life insurance product. We will update here when and if they replace this product.
As of today, the only Universal Life product that Banner offers is their LifeStep UL. It’s a flexible premium universal life insurance policy. Your life insurance agent will have to tailor it to your needs. ie. guaranteed level premiums, paid up in 15, 20, 30 years, etc.
If you’re looking for a no-lapse universal life insurance policy, also known as guaranteed universal life insurance, you should look at a different company.
Banner’s biggest weakness is their strength of universal life insurance policies after taking the Choice UL product off the market.
Banner is very liberal with various health issues and has a unique “table rating” program which makes them very inexpensive in comparison to other companies for those with less than average health.
Banner Life Insurance Term Life Insurance Rates
Let’s take a look at some sample monthly Banner Life Insurance OpTerm rates.
For instant quotes for your specific age, use the quote tool.
Monthly Rates for Men
35 Year Old Male, non-tobacco in the best health class:
| Term | $250,000 | $500,000 | $1,000,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 year |
$11 | $18 | $31 |
| 15 year |
$13 | $21 | $37 |
| 20 year |
$15 | $26 | $46 |
| 30 year |
$25 | $44 | $83 |
45 Year Old Male, non-tobacco in the best health class:
| Term | $250,000 | $500,000 | $1,000,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 year |
$21 | $36 | $65 |
| 15 year |
$26 | $47 | $88 |
| 20 year |
$32 | $60 | $113 |
| 30 year |
$54 | $103 | $192 |
55 Year Old Male, non-tobacco in the best health class:
| Term | $250,000 | $500,000 | $1,000,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 year |
$43 | $81 | $151 |
| 15 year |
$55 | $105 | $201 |
| 20 year |
$74 | $142 | $277 |
| 30 year |
N/A | N/A | N/A |
*N/A: See Mutual of Omaha, Prudential, or Transamerica*
Monthly Rates for Women
35 Year Old Female, non-tobacco in the best health class:
| Term | $250,000 | $500,000 | $1,000,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 year |
$10 | $14 | $22 |
| 15 year |
$11 | $18 | $29 |
| 20 year |
$13 | $21 | $36 |
| 30 year |
$21 | $36 | $65 |
45 Year Old Female, non-tobacco in the best health class:
| Term | $250,000 | $500,000 | $1,000,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 year |
$16 | $28 | $49 |
| 15 year |
$20 | $35 | $62 |
| 20 year |
$25 | $45 | $82 |
| 30 year |
$41 | $77 | $147 |
55 Year Old Female, non-tobacco in the best health class:
| Term | $250,000 | $500,000 | $1,000,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 year |
$32 | $59 | $109 |
| 15 year |
$39 | $72 | $134 |
| 20 year |
$55 | $104 | $195 |
| 30 year |
N/A | N/A | N/A |
*N/A: See Mutual of Omaha, Prudential, or Transamerica*
Note: It’s important to understand these are for “Preferred Best” rates. Meaning someone who is in great health. Rates are based on your health and lifestyle. If you’re taking any medications or being treated for anything, do not choose “Preferred Best”. Choose Preferred, Standard Plus or Standard.
Banner Life Insurance is usually in the top 10% when it comes to term life insurance rates. They may be a few dollars per month more expensive in some age bands, but it’s rarely a big difference in premium.
Where Banner really shines is in their Table Ratings. If you’re a substandard risk, their table rating pricing is in the top 2 of the industry. When comparing table rating pricing, Banner and AIG are almost always the top 2.
Benefits of Choosing Banner Life Insurance
Here are several scenarios where we have found that Banner Life is the best choice.
- Preferred plus consideration (best class available) for cigarette smokers who quit 3 years ago.
- High Blood Pressure or Hypertension treated with medications can qualify for Preferred Plus.
- High Blood Pressure and elevated cholesterol combo treated with medications can qualify for Preferred Plus.
- Well-controlled asthma and taking 2 medications or less can qualify for Preferred rates.
- Controlled Type II diabetics can qualify for Standard Plus rates (over age 50).
- Well-controlled anxiety or depression on one medication can qualify for Preferred.
- Treated Hypercholesterolemia can qualify for Preferred Plus.
- A family history of cancer does not exclude you from the preferred rate class.
These are just a few of the underwriting niches we’ve found where Banner shines over other life insurance companies.
Banner Life has Favorable Underwriting for High-Risk Applicants
Banner Life also reports that 78% of their applications are approved in one of the three best health classes – Preferred Plus, Preferred and Standard Plus. In their underwriting credits program, they do anything they can to improve an underwriting decision.
Banner Life can also underwrite coronary artery disease, sleep apnea, hepatitis B and C, diabetics and prostate cancer without flat extras in which the majority of the market would add a flat extra. A flat extra is an extra charge on top of the premiums.
Banner Life Insurance has an Easy Application Process
Banner simply makes it easy to do business with them.
You don’t need to mail in an application. Instead, they allow an e-signature to complete your application. On top of that, after your policy is approved, they give you the option to “e-deliver” your policy.
Banner reports that around 1 out of 5 policies are e-signed. You can even make your first payment with PayPal.
Compare Banner Life Insurance to Other Companies
Anytime someone is looking for life insurance, it’s always best to compare multiple carriers. This ensures you will get the lowest rates for the type of policy you need.
While Banner Life is a great company, we recommend comparing their rates alongside competitors.
One easy way to do this is to work with an independent agent. You can start by giving us a call or using our quote tool on this page. You can find reviews of over 50 companies and agencies here to help compare rates with Banner Life.
We’ll leave you with an overview video of Banner Life. Then, be sure to compare the other companies below with Banner Life.
Other Top 10 Life Insurance Company Reviews
- Protective Life Insurance Company
- Haven Life
- Prudential Life Insurance
- MassMutual Life Insurance
- Northwestern Mutual
- Mutual of Omaha
- Principal Life Insurance
- Lincoln Financial
- AIG Direct
