“Are you in good hands?” We’ve all heard that catch phrase and we all think of the same company when we hear it due to their strong branding efforts. Allstate Life Insurance Company is a company established in 1931 and is predominantly known for their auto insurance amongst other products. This is a huge company with an A.M. best rating of A+, which means they are very strong financially. So overall a great company, but how is their life insurance? Well, unlike some auto insurance carriers and banks who outsource their life insurance to third parties, Allstate does actually offer their own life insurance products, so let’s review how they stack up against the rest of the industry. In this article, we will be giving you some solid information of the company, an honest review of the company, and the pros and cons of Allstate Life Insurance Company. The following are some key points from this article;
- Allstate Life Insurance Company was founded in 1931 and since then they have become a pioneer of the insurance industry.
- According to A.M Best Company, they have rated Allstate an “A+”, Standard & Poor’s have rated them an “AA-“, and Moody’s have rated them an “Aa3”.
- A company’s rating will give you an idea of how financially stable the company is.
Allstate Life Insurance Company’s History
Allstate Life Insurance Company was founded in 1931 and since then they have become a pioneer of the insurance industry. When founded they were founded with the name Allstate Insurance Company and this name was borrowed from an automobile tire sold in the Sears catalog on April 17, 1931. The first Allstate sales location opened in a Chicago Sears store, changing the sales method from direct mail to agent representation in 1934. By the end of 1939, Allstate had 113,472 policyholders, 529 employees, and received 25,461 claims for the year. When World War II came along Allstate they decided to develop a series of training courses to help women replace male agents on military leave in 1942. Two years later Allstate’s post-war planning committee predicted Allstate would write $13 million in premium volume by 1949. Written premium in 1949 actually reached more than $45 million. In 1947 the company decided to create the “Illustrator Policy” which used simpler language and illustrations so customers could more easily understand policy language and coverage. By the end of 1949, the company had more than $45.3 million of written premiums, with 708,763 policyholders, and more than 2,800 employees.
In 1954 the company added Residential fire insurance to their product line. In 1959 Allstate established a catastrophe plan that brought large numbers of claim specialists into a catastrophe area immediately following a disaster and by the end of the year, the company’s property-liability written premium was $438.6 million with 5.3 million policyholders and 14,633 employees. In 1968 Allstate began working with the government and automakers on auto passenger safety which included seat belts and airbags. Allstate later that year started offering a Business Umbrella package which included total insurance protection for commercial businesses. By the end of 1969 Allstate’s property liability written premium was $1.48 billion with 11.4 million active policies and more than 30,000 employees. In 1978 Northbrook Property and Casualty Insurance Company began operations as a new commercial subsidiary of Allstate Insurance Company and offered a broad range of products to medium to large size commercial risks, contractors, manufacturers, and retailers. By the end of 1979, the company’s property-liability written premium was $4.99 billion with 18.3 million policies in force and almost 40,000 employees.
Allstate Life Insurance Company 2017 Review
Allstate has been around for over 80 years and has proven again and again to be the people’s choice for insurance company. You probably have seen a billion of Allstate’s commercials you really can’t miss a commercial! According to A.M Best Company, they have rated Allstate an “A+“, Standard & Poor’s have rated them an “AA-“, and Moody’s have rated them an “Aa3”. As you can see Allstate is a financially capable company and provides typical term and permanent products that other carriers do, for the most part. The upside to working with Allstate for your life insurance is that you get all your coverage in one place if you have other products with them. However, the large downside is that you can end up overpaying by as much as 60% for coverage due to the lack of comparison shopping ability. It’s also advisable for you to shop around with an independent agency if you are a high health risk due to the fact that some companies have different underwriting guidelines for certain risks. If you want to compare rates you can do so on the quote engine to your right to see how Allstate stacks up against other carriers. Otherwise, let’s get into some more detail about getting your life insurance policy through Allstate.
Allstate Life Insurance Products
As we mentioned in our review, Allstate offers both term and whole life insurance as well as a universal life insurance product. The following are the products and a simple explanation of each!
Allstate Basic Term Life Insurance
Term life is a form of temporary life insurance that provides you with life insurance coverage but only for a short and specified period of time. “Term” refers to the period of time you would like to receive coverage for and in this case, your policy can last for 10, 20, or 30-years. Allstate’s basic term life insurance policies does have a no exam option up to $150k of coverage.
Allstate TrueFit Term Life Insurance
This term life insurance product offers coverage for a short and specified period of time such as 10, 20, or 30-years.
Allstate Whole Life Insurance
Whole life is a form of permanent life insurance that provides you with coverage for you guessed it, your WHOLE life! With whole life insurance, you don’t have to worry about the expiration date of your policy because you will be able to have coverage for the remainder of your life. Like most permanent products this plan has a savings element known as a cash value that you can access. Premiums and your face amount stay the same so you don’t need to worry about your premiums rising because of your age.
Allstate Universal Life Insurance
Universal life insurance is another form of permanent life insurance that provides you with coverage for your whole life but offers coverage that is flexible. Since it’s a permanent life insurance policy you are still able to do all the fun stuff like build and accumulate cash value and borrow from it if you need to. This policy is flexible which means that you are allowed to change your premiums and face amounts whenever you would like to fit your ever-so-changing life.
Allstate Life Insurance Advantages
There are a few big positives to doing business with Allstate for your life insurance. The first is the fact that they are, in fact, a huge, trusted company with a very strong financial rating. So you probably won’t have to worry about them not paying out if something was to happen to you as this company is known to be held to a good standard. The second upside is the convenience of having all your products in one place. That is given that your auto insurance and home insurance is purchased through them.
Now, let’s look at what that convenience may be costing you.
Allstate Life Insurance Disadvantages
The first and biggest con is the lack of competitive cost. It’s always best to compare rates with all the carriers to avoid paying much more than you have to for life insurance. Often companies will offer very different rates for the exact same products. If we compare quotes with Allstate and the rest of the companies here is what we would get.
Let’s run a quote for a 40-year-old male, non-smoker, and a Preferred health rating class. The product is a $500,000 20 year term life insurance policy, here are the results:
- Protective: $39
- American General: $40
- Genworth: $40
- SBLI: $41
- MetLife: $42
- Allstate: $89.69
As you can see, that’s a big difference in cost for a similar term life insurance product. It’s important to note that rates will vary for you personally but it is always recommended to compare rates before applying with a company. Another downside besides cost is they don’t offer as many products as most life insurance carriers so it’s best to shop around for the one that fits your needs best. A good solution to this is working with an independent agency.
If you have any serious health conditions than the lowest quote on the quote engine is not the lowest rate for you. In this case, you want to do your shopping with an independent agent or agency that isn’t tied to one particular company and can shop on your behalf. This is because each company weighs certain risks differently, so while one company may decline you all together, another will approve you at a different rate. So let a knowledgeable agent do the legwork for you.
What the Internet is Saying about Allstate
That was my list of pro’s and con’s for Allstate Life Insurance, now let’s look at what the interweb has to offer in terms of reviews.
According to ConsumerAffairs.com, there are few issues that they ran into.
Overall, there are a couple reviews left by agents that have worked there and say that there is a “miscommunication” between the agents and senior staff which leads to an eventual “miscommunication” between agent and client. While it’s important to note that these are individual cases, it does warrant some thought. Other reviews come from clients who feel as though their agent wasn’t knowledgeable. As a life insurance agent I’d have to say this isn’t exclusive to Allstate, unfortunately, there are cases of inexperienced agents all throughout the industry so the best bet will always be to find someone trustworthy, knowledgeable and independent, meaning they aren’t tied to one particular company.
Work with us!
Overall, Allstate is a great company with a great financial rating but your best bet is ALWAYS to shop around with an independent agency and let the best rate win. Luckily for you, you’ve found one! If you have any questions, would like to compare rates or are a high health risk, give us a call at 888-492-1967 and we will be glad to assist you. Otherwise drop us a comment below or send us a chat. Welcome to InsureChance!
