Protective Life Insurance Company Review
Clients often want to know which life insurance company we think is the best. That is a difficult question to answer because there are so many variables that should be considered such as product offerings and features, financial ratings, cost of coverage and underwriting strengths. One company that is competitive in almost all of these areas is Protective Life Insurance Company. In this post we will provide a review of Protective Life and tell you why we think it is one of the best all-around life insurance companies out there.
About Protective Life
Protective Life has been around since 1907. The company’s business philosophy is built on four core values: Do the Right Thing, Serve People, Build Trust and Simplify Everything. Protective Life is focused on providing products and solutions which focus on creating customer value. The company has over $770 billion of life insurance in force (as of 2013) and over $70 billion in assets. Protective Life offers some of the lowest priced life insurance options available in the market.
Protective Life’s Financial Ratings
Protective Life is considered a stable company based on its financial ratings. Here’s how the company ranks with the major independent ratings organizations.
| Rating Agency | Rating | Rating Rank |
|---|---|---|
| A.M Best | A+ | Superior-2nd Highest of 15 Ratings |
| Standard & Poor’s | AA- | Very Strong-4th Highest Rating of 21 |
| Fitch | A | Strong–6th Highest of 22 Ratings |
Anyone purchasing a policy from Protective Life should feel confident that it will be able to meet its financial obligations.
Protective Life’s Life Insurance Product Offerings
Protective offers several different types of life insurance products for clients with different coverage goals. Here is a description of some of Protective Life’s most competitive products.
Protective Custom Choice UL – In our opinion, this is one of the most innovative insurance products on the market today. Although it is technically a universal life policy, Custom Choice UL offers affordable coverage that can be structured like a term policy or a guaranteed universal life policy.
- Term Coverage – The Custom Choice UL can be designed to offer guaranteed level premium and death benefit coverage for 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 years similar to a term policy. If you choose to structure the policy this way, it offers the option to keep your coverage after the chosen duration has ended without immediately increasing your premiums. Your death benefit will decrease slightly each year until it hits $10,000 at which point your premiums will slowly start to increase. It can offer flexibility to those who might need a small amount of life insurance when they are older and want to avoid applying for new coverage. Learn more about Custom Choice UL.
- Guaranteed Universal Life – The Custom Choice UL can also be designed to offer guaranteed level premium and death benefit coverage to age 90, 95, 100, 105, 110 and 121. The goal of this policy is to provide guaranteed level premium and death benefit protection until a chosen age. It is not designed to be a cash accumulation vehicle. If you’re focus is guaranteed death benefit protection and not cash accumulation, Custom Choice UL is one of the most affordable guaranteed universal life policies on the market.
Here are some sample monthly rates for the Custom Choice UL product. The rates are for male and female nonsmoker applicants who qualify for ‘Preferred’ health rating for $500,000 of coverage. Rates as of 6/3/2015.
| Male | 20 Years | 25 Years | 30 Years | To Age 121 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age 35 | $29.53 | $40.49 | $46.93 | $224.26 |
| Age 40 | $38.80 | $56.50 | $66.41 | $288.57 |
| Age 45 | $62.39 | $91.47 | $107.51 | $342.11 |
| Age 50 | $94.41 | $138.23 | $167.33 | $428.29 |
| Female | 20 Years | 25 Years | 30 Years | To Age 121 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age 35 | $25.47 | $33.75 | $39.30 | $200.36 |
| Age 40 | $33.74 | $45.88 | $53.39 | $237.56 |
| Age 45 | $48.07 | $67.79 | $78.00 | $281.72 |
| Age 50 | $71.24 | $102.76 | $118.03 | $363.65 |
Protective Advantage Choice UL – This product offers flexible premiums with potential for cash value accumulation. Cash value earns interest at a rate that is set annually by the company. The interest rate can never fall below a guaranteed rate set by the company. The Advantage Choice UL might be a good fit if you are looking for flexibility in premiums with conservative growth potential.
Protective Indexed Choice UL – This product offers cash value growth that is linked to movements in the S&P 500 index without directly investing in stocks or mutual funds. There is a cap to the percentage that you can be credited each year but there is also a floor that offers downside protection to shield cash value from investment losses if the S&P 500 is down during a policy year. This product offers lower expenses than most other products on the market which could allow for greater cash value accumulation in the future.
Protective Survivor UL – This product is a second to die policy. It offers very competitive rates that can provide guaranteed coverage for a specific period of time. Survivor polices are a good fit in cases such as estate planning or to provide for a special needs child after the second parent has passed.
Protective Life’s Underwriting Strengths
When it comes to underwriting, Protective Life is competitive in several different areas.
- Blood Pressure – Best health class rating is available for treated blood pressure that has been controlled for one year with favorable readings throughout the year.
- Unisex Build Chart – Same build chart for both men and women. This offers more lenient requirements for women who are slightly overweight.
- Cholesterol – Treated cholesterol can qualify for best health class rating.
- Separate Underwriting Guidelines for Applicants Over Age 70 – The company offers more lenient underwriting standards in certain areas for applicants over the age of 70.
Procredit Underwriting Program – Protective life offers the Procredit Underwriting Program that allows you to move up to a ‘Preferred’ non-tobacco rate if you are disqualified due to only one of the following cardiovascular risk factors.
- Blood pressure
- Build
- Total cholesterol
- Cholesterol/HDL ratio
- Family history (heart disease)
If you fall out of the ‘Preferred’ health class for one of the risk factors above but are in compliance with all of the others, you could still get a ‘Preferred’ health class rating.
Protective Life’s Underwriting Weaknesses
One area where Protective Life is not competitive compared to other companies is underwriting tobacco users. The company simply chooses not to aggressively rate tobacco users which is why its smoker rates are some of the highest in the industry.
Our Review of Protective Life
Protective Life is simply one of the best life insurance companies on the market today. If you are looking for low cost coverage from a financially stable company, you should definitely consider Protective Life. The Custom Choice UL product is one of the most innovative term options on the market today. If you are interested in knowing more about any of Protective Life’s Products or would like a quote based on your particular situation, feel free to call us at 888-687-9444 or email us at info@archstoneagency.com.
About Us
Archstone Insurance Services, LLC is an independent agency that shops over 40 of the top life insurance carriers to provide huge savings on life insurance coverage for our clients. We are happy to answer any questions you might have about any of the insurance products we offer, your planning needs or your existing coverage. Feel free to call us directly at (888) 687-9444 or email us at info@archstoneagency.com.
