North American Life Insurance Company has been insuring people for more than 125 years. Their customer service and financial stability is why we gave them an honorable mention as one of our best rated life insurance companies.
In searching for life insurance coverage, there are several criteria that are important to look for. These include knowing that you will have enough of the right type and amount of protection as you do not want those whom you care about to be without the funds that are needed to go on.
You will also want to know that you have the right type of life insurance coverage for your specific needs. Today, there are numerous forms of coverage – so ensuring that you have “custom fit” the vehicle to the need is essential.
But one thing that is often overlooked – and should be considered important is the actual insurer through which you buy your policy. This is because the financial strength and stability of the insurance company can be an indicator of how they pay out their policyholder claims. In turn, this can help you with the peace of mind in knowing that your beneficiary (or beneficiaries) will receive their promised payout if or when the time should come to file a policy claim. One insurance carrier that has been known for many years for paying out claims to its life insurance beneficiaries is North American Life Insurance Company.
The History of North American Life Insurance Company
North American Life Insurance Company – also known as North American Company for Life and Health Insurance – has been offering insurance coverage products to its customers for approximately 130 years.
Back in 1886, the company was initially founded as North American Accident Association. Just four years later, A.E. Forest purchased the insurer for just $2,000 and at the same time appointed the company's very first general agent.
The company has had numerous milestones throughout the years – including in 1918 when it was the first insurance carrier to offer a disability insurance policy for women. Over time, North American grew and expanded, continuing to add products and offerings.
In 1981, it entered into the brokerage marketplace, and the following year, the insurer added its first universal life insurance product. North American Life Insurance Company is now a part of the Sammons Financial Group, Inc. This company's member financial companies provide a wide range of offerings, which include life insurance, annuities, and other financial vehicles.
Today, North American Life Insurance Company is considered to be one of the leading carriers of both life insurance policies and annuities. One of the reasons for this is due to the substantial commitment the company has made to its customers – both individuals and businesses – to prepare them for the future. This has been done through good, strong products, as well as via outstanding customer service.
North American Life Insurance Company Review
North American Life Insurance Company is considered to be somewhat different in the insurance industry today. This is because it is one of the few insurers that is privately owned. Because of this, the company is not subject to the short-term earnings pressures that are typically faced by the large stock companies that are publicly traded on the market exchanges. While these publicly owned insurers need to satisfy their shareholders, North American Life Insurance Company can focus more of its attention on offering efficient and personal customer service to its policyholders.
As of 2015, North American Life Insurance Company was ranked as number 77 on Forbes List of America's Largest Private Companies – a list that included over 200 privately held companies with revenues of over $2 billion.
The company currently (2015) held in excess of 525,000 life insurance and annuity policies, and it holds more than $16 billion in total assets. It has more than $105 billion of life insurance in force.
Because of the way in which the company invests its capital, North American is considered to be safe and secure – with 93.5% of its bond investments being investment grade and rated as “Excellent” according to the NAIC Quality Rating.
Financial Strength, Ratings, and Better Business Bureau Grade
North American Life Insurance Company is considered to be financially strong and stable – and it pays out it claims to the policyholders in a timely fashion. With that in mind, the insurer has a focus on maintaining the high ratings that it has been given. These include the following:
- A+ (Strong) from Standard & Poor's. This is the fifth highest rating out of 21 total.
- A+ (Superior) from A.M. Best. This is the second highest rating out of 15 total.
Also, while North American Life Insurance Company is not an accredited company through the Better Business Bureau (BBB), it has been given the grade of A+ through the BBB. This is on an overall grading scale of A+ through F.
Throughout the past three years, the company has closed five complaints through the Better Business Bureau, one of which has been closed within the past 12 months. Of the five complaints, two had to do with problems with the company's product and / or service, one dealt with advertising and / or sales issues, one dealt with billing and / or collection issues, and one had to do with delivery issues.
Life Insurance Products Offered Through North American
North American Life Insurance Company offers a variety of life insurance coverages. This can help its customers to choose the best type of protection for suiting their specific protection needs.
Term Life Insurance Coverage Offered
With term life insurance coverage, death benefit only protection is provided, without any cash value build up. Because of this, a nice amount of low-cost coverage can be offered – especially if the applicant is young and in good health at the time he or she is obtaining the insurance policy.
Term life insurance protection is offered for a certain amount of time or term. These time frames are typically for 10, 15, 20, or even 30 years. There is also usually a one-year renewable term life insurance option.
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Generally, the premium price will remain level during the term of coverage. In some cases, the insured will be able to convert the policy over to a permanent form of life insurance protection – even without having to take a medical examination or to prove evidence of insurability.
A term life insurance policy may be a good option for someone if they are covering a “temporary” need such as a home mortgage balance, or if they are wanting to ensure that the cost of a child or grandchild's college tuition will be paid.
North American Life Insurance Company offers the ADDvantage Term Life Insurance product. This plan offers the choice of a level premium period of either 10, 15, 20 or 30 years. It also offers the ability to convert the term policy to a currently available permanent life insurance policy if the insured's needs change in the future – although certain restrictions and limitations do apply. They also offer the option of term life insurance up to one million dollars.
There are also several different policy riders and endorsements that are available that can be added on to this term life insurance policy that can help in customizing the coverage to better fit an individual's specific needs.
Permanent Life Insurance Offered
North American Life Insurance Company also provides permanent life insurance coverage. With a permanent life insurance policy, there is a death benefit and a cash value component of the policy. The death benefit will continue as long as the premium is paid. Unlike term life insurance, a permanent policy will not expire after a certain amount of time has elapsed.
The cash value component will grow on a tax-deferred basis. This means that the policyholder will not owe taxes every year on the gain in the cash account. Rather, tax will only be due on the growth of the funds at the time of withdrawal.
North American Life Insurance Company offers universal life and indexed universal life insurance products. Universal life insurance can provide a great deal of flexibility in that the premium may be changed in order to adapt to the changing needs of the policy holder. In addition, the amount of premium dollars that go into the death benefit, as well as that go into the cash component, can be altered (within certain limits) by the policyholder.
The Custom Guarantee universal life product that is offered through North American Life Insurance Company provides a guaranteed death benefit up to the insured's age 120, with no premiums payable after age 100. In addition, the insured can access a portion of the death benefit in order to help in covering the expense of an unexpected illness.
North America also offers indexed universal life insurance coverage. With an indexed universal life insurance product, the cash value component will grow based on an underlying index, such as the S&P 500. However, if there is a downturn in the market, the policy holder's principal will be protected. Therefore, this can essentially offer the policyholder a “best of both worlds” scenario.
Just like with other types of permanent life insurance policies, the cash that is in the cash value component is allowed to grow on a tax-deferred basis. Therefore, no tax will be due until the time of withdrawal. Many people who are retired or who are getting close to retirement time have been realizing the tax-free loan benefits of indexed universal life insurance and using funds from their policies to supplement their retirement income.
There are several indexed universal life insurance policies available through North American Life Insurance Company. These include:
- Builder IUL – The Builder Indexed Universal Life insurance provides the ability to earn based on the movement of an underlying index. The interest rate that is credited will never be less than 0%, guaranteed. Also, the policyholder can access a portion of the policy's death benefit in the event of an unexpected illness.
- Guarantee Builder IUL – The Guarantee Builder IUL offers a guaranteed death benefit up to age 120, along with access to a portion of the death benefit in the case of illness. It, too, helps to build long-term cash value for future financial need.
- Rapid Builder IUL – The Rapid Builder provides the ability to earn interest based on the movement of an underlying index, with a rate that is never less than 0%. This policy provides features that help in building cash value to grow as fast as possible. It also offers access to cash value via policy loans and withdrawals – which include net-zero cost loans in policy years six and later.
- Survivorship GIUL – The Survivorship GIUL policy provides low-cost death benefit protection, and the ability to insure two lives with just one single premium payment.
Other North American Life Insurance Company Products
In addition to offering life insurance protection, North American Life Insurance Company also provides annuities to its customers. These financial vehicles can help people to save for retirement. They also offer a way to receive a guaranteed income for life – regardless of how long you live.
How to Find the Best Premium Quotes on Life Insurance Coverage
When seeking the best premium quotes on life insurance coverage, it is always good to work with an agency or a brokerage that has access to multiple insurers. This way, you can directly compare benefits, policies, and quotes, and from there determine which coverage will work for you, whether that plan comes from North American, Banner Life or Genworth Financial, it will be the best to suit your needs. Seeking many quotes from several companies is not only true for those seeking life insurance coverage, but also for those seeking other forms of covers such as the best auto insurance companies and policies.
If you are in the process of searching for life insurance – either for a personal or a business need – we can help. We work with many of the top life insurers in the marketplace, and we can assist you. For more details, use the quote form on the side of this page and receive your first set of life insurance quotes.
We know that the purchase of life insurance can require a lot of variables. But our experts can walk you through it all so that you know exactly what you are getting. So, contact us today – we're here to help.
