We offer life insurance products from over 40 companies in the US. We like to provide company reviews for consumers on many of the companies that we work with. In this blog we will be discussing Foresters Financial. The company has been around for many years and has an excellent reputation for taking care of its clients. We will give a brief background of the company and discuss two of its popular life insurance products; Your Term Life Insurance and Plan Right Whole Life product that is designed to help with final expenses. Here is our Foresters Life Insurance Company Review.
About Foresters Financial
Foresters Financial is a fraternal benefit society (member based) that has been around for 140 years. The company has $34 billion in assets under management and has carried an A rating from A.M. Best for the last 16 years. The company offers a wide range of financial solutions such as life insurance, annuities, mutual funds, retirement accounts and other advisory services. The company prides itself on giving back to the community and its members.
Foresters Your Term Life Insurance
Foresters Your Term Life Insurance offers competitive rates and a non-med underwriting option for smaller face values. Here are some key features of the Your Term Life Insurance product:
- Term durations of 10,15,20,25 or 30 years.
- Coverage starting as low as $50,000 and up to $400,000 for non-medical underwriting.
- Coverage ranging from $100,000 to $10,000,000 for fully underwritten coverage.
- Rates are competitively priced compared to other companies in the industry.
- Term coverage can be converted to permanent coverage without any additional underwriting.
- Several valuable riders that are automatically included in base coverage.
- Living benefits that are included in the base coverage.
- As a Foresters member, you will also receive other benefits beyond those related to life insurance.
Foresters Non-Medical Your Term Coverage
If you prefer to avoid a medical exam, Foresters offers a non-medical term option up to $400,000 of coverage for applicants ages 18-55 and $150,000 for applicants 56-80. A decision on your application is usually made with 10 minutes. You will either be accepted or declined. Please note that the best rates available for the non-medical option are based off ‘Standard’ health ratings because of the limited underwriting. The non-medical option is a bit more expensive than fully underwritten coverage. The non-medical option might be worth it for those who do not want to take the medical exam.
Features that Set Foresters Apart from the Competition
What sets Foresters apart from the competition are the many benefits that come with base coverage. Here are some features that are included with base term coverage:
Charity Benefit Provision: When a death benefit claim is paid to the beneficiaries, Foresters will pay an additional 1% of the face value to an accredited nonprofit organization as designated by the policy owner.
Family Health Benefit Rider: This rider provides benefits for qualified health situations for the insured and their immediate family who need medical assistance within the Continental US, Alaska and Hawaii due to a catastrophic event. Qualified events include ambulance transportation, hospital emergency room exam and hospital stay ($100 per day up to 5 days).
Common Carrier Accidental Death Rider: This rider provides a death benefit up to 2x the face amount to a maximum of $300,000 if the insured dies within 180 days of an accidental bodily injury that occurred while riding on a common carrier as a fare-paying passenger.
Accelerated Death Benefit Rider: This rider is the most valuable in that it allows the insured to accelerate a portion of the death benefit if the insured is diagnosed with a qualifying:
- Critical illness such as invasive cancer, heart attack, stroke, advanced Alzheimer ’s disease (before insured’s 75th birthday), ALS and more.
- Chronic Illness which result in the insured being unable at least two of the activities of daily living for a period of at least 90 days.
- Terminal Illness which means the insured has a non-correctable illness or physical condition which is reasonably expected to result in death within 12 months of diagnosis.
All of these riders are included in base term coverage without any additional cost. We have only briefly described each rider. For more detailed information, please send us an email and we will be happy to send you a brochure that describes these riders in greater detail.
How Much Does Foresters Your Term Life Insurance Cost?
As we mentioned earlier, Foresters Your Term coverage is very affordable when compared to other top companies in the industry. Here are some sample monthly rates for Forresters Your Term fully underwritten coverage for 20 years of coverage:
Male Rates
| Age | $500,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,500,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 35 Years Old | $22.32 | $35.01 | $49.44 |
| 40 Years Old | $30.28 | $56.01 | $80.94 |
| 45 Years Old | $53.38 | $98.88 | $145.25 |
Female Rates
| Age | $500,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,500,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 35 Years Old | $19.25 | $31.51 | $44.19 |
| 40 Years Old | $27.13 | $47.26 | $67.82 |
| 45 Years Old | $39.38 | $71.75 | $104.57 |
If you want to see how rates from Foresters Financial stack up to the competition, get a quote here and look for Foresters on our list.
Foresters Plan Right Final Expense
Another product from Foresters that deserves mentioning is its Plan Right Whole Life. This product is designed to help with final expenses. It is a level premium product that lasts to age 121.There is no medical exam required. Your application will be reviewed along with your MIB file, a prescription database check, build review and a Personal Health Interview conducted by Foresters. You must be able to answer ‘No’ to all the medical questions in ‘Part A’ of the application to qualify for any of the plans.
Pan Right Level – The healthiest applicants will qualify. Beneficiaries will be eligible to receive 100% of the face amount death benefit without a waiting period.
Plan Right Graded – You may qualify with some moderate health issues. Beneficiaries will receive a graded benefit in years 1 and 2 (unless death is accidental). They will receive the full death benefit in year 3.
Plan Right Modified – For applicants with multiple health issues. Beneficiaries will have access to the full benefit in the 3rd year. If death occurs in year 1 or 2, beneficiaries will receive return of premiums plus interest.
We can walk you through the application to help you determine if you qualify for Plan Right Level, Plan Right Graded or Plan Right Modified.
Additional Benefits to Being a Foresters Member
Because Foresters is a fraternal organization, once you become a policyholder you will also become a member. Once a member, you will have access to additional benefits including:
- Grants and Scholarships: Members can apply for educational grants and scholarships.
- Community Grants: Members can apply for financial grants to organize volunteer activities within the community.
- Orphan Benefit: Foresters may pay $900 per month per child to the legal guardian for children under the age of 18 who have lost both parents.
- Orphan Scholarships: Foresters will provide a renewable scholarship for higher learning for up to 4 years for children who have lost both parents.
Where Does Foresters Financial Fall Short?
There really isn’t much to say about Foresters life insurance that is negative. The one thing that we can really point to is its underwriting guidelines for high risk applicants. For instance, Foresters will not offer ‘Standard’ or better rates for applicants who are controlling cholesterol with medication. Many life insurance companies out there will offer their best rates for applicants using cholesterol medication. Foresters also requires that you refrain from tobacco products for 5 years before you can qualify for its best non-tobacco rate while other insurance companies require a shorter period such as 3 years. If you have certain moderate to serious medical issues, it might make sense to look at another life insurance company before considering Foresters.
Is Foresters the Right Company for You?
Based on our review of Foresters Life Insurance Company, we feel that Foresters is a quality company that is financially strong and has an excellent reputation for taking care of its policyholders. Whether you are interested in a term or whole life policy, you should feel confident purchasing coverage from Foresters. If you would like to learn more about Foresters and its products, feel free to call us at 888-687-9444 or email us at info@archstoneinsurance.com.
