Through a structure of employer-sponsored benefit plans and a group of independent financial advisors, Lincoln Financial Group sells life insurance in every one of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. A J.D. Power score that is below average may suggest that customers aren’t always happy with the company’s service.
Lincoln Financial Life Insurance
Maximum issue age for 10-year term life: 60
AM Best Financial Strength Rating: A+ (Superior)
Life insurance riders available: Premium waiver, Children’s level term insurance
Accepts Credit Cards: No
Company's Overview
Lincoln Financial Group has provided life insurance to the public since its founding in Fort Wayne, Indiana, in 1905. The Lincoln National Life Insurance Company and Lincoln Life & Annuity Company of New York, both of which are subsidiaries of the parent company, offer life insurance in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Through employee benefit programs and a community of financial advisors, Lincoln Financial provides individual life insurance policies to its customers.
Lincoln Financial has a smaller selection of policies than many potential competitors. Lincoln Financial does not offer whole life insurance policies but does sell two types of term policies and several types of permanent policies.
When contacting and getting in touch with the company, Lincoln Financial isn’t too difficult to do so. The company’s two subsidiaries, Lincoln National Life Insurance Company and Lincoln Life & Annuity Company of New York offer coverage to residents of every state and the District of Columbia. If you place a high value on access to learning tools and expert guidance, Lincoln Financial may be a good fit for you. On its website, the company provides a wealth of informational resources, such as a quick explanation and comparison chart of the various types of life insurance. The website also details annuities, long-term care, and investing. The website also has a function that will connect you with a local financial planner.
Policies Available
Lincoln Financial provides not only term insurance but also three distinct kinds of permanent life insurance.
Term Life
In the event of the insured’s death, the death benefit from term life insurance would be paid out only if the insured died within the policy’s specified term of 20 or 30 years. Term life insurance policies are typically much more cost-effective than their permanent counterparts.
Guaranteed level premiums are available on Lincoln Financial’s 10, 15, 20, and 30-year term life policies. Before the level premium payment period expires or before reaching age 70, policyholders can switch to permanent life insurance. Death benefits can range from $100,000 to $2.5 million. Approval times for term life insurance policies can sometimes be as low as two days.
Universal Life
Permanent life insurance in the form of universal life (UL) policies is one of the products offered by Lincoln Financial. So long as the policy is active, the beneficiary will receive a death benefit upon the insured’s passing. The monthly premiums and the death benefit of a universal life insurance policy can be modified during the policy’s duration. In addition, they have a cash value component that increases with market interest rates.
Please be aware that as of July 2022, the company is no longer selling any new universal life insurance policies.
Variable Life
You can also get permanent life insurance through a variable life policy. You can change your premium and death benefit with a variable life policy, just like universal life. However, you can use the cash value to purchase stocks, bonds, or other investments. The policy’s value may decline or even expire if your assets do poorly.
Indexed Universal Life
Another form of permanent life insurance that doubles as a pseudo-investment are called an indexed universal life (IUL) policy. Depending on the growth of a market index like the S&P 500, the cash value increases or decreases (or indexes). Floors in IUL policies protect you from market losses, but they also limit your potential upside. Both the premium and the death benefit are flexible, as is the case with most universal life insurance policies.
Available Riders
Extending the benefits and scope of coverage provided by a basic policy, riders can be added to your insurance plan. These are some of Lincoln Financial’s standard riders:
Accelerated Death Benefit: Terminal Illness
Having access to a portion of the death benefit in the event of a terminal illness is made possible by a terminal illness rider, which is a form of the accelerated death benefit (ADB). If you choose to use this add-on, you’ll have to pay a one-time fee.
Accelerated Death Benefit: Critical Illness
A critical illness rider is an additional form of ADB that allows you to access the death benefit early in the event of a critical illness, such as a heart attack or aggressive cancer. If you choose this option, you’ll have to pay a one-time fee.
Accelerated Death Benefit: Chronic Illness
You can access your death benefit early with an ADB and a chronic illness rider if you cannot perform two ADLs or have severe cognitive impairment. To use the money for long-term care costs is a requirement of some versions of this rider but not others.
Children’s Level Term Rider
All of the insured person’s children can purchase cheap term life insurance if they’re willing to pay a little extra. Adding this rider to your policy will raise your monthly premium, but it won’t cost any extra per child. When your child turns 18, you may be able to change their policy to a permanent one.
Waiver of Premium Rider
Term policies are the only type of policy that can add a premium waiver rider for an additional fee. If you become totally disabled, this rider will cancel your premium payments.
Pros & Cons
Pros Clarified
- Unusually few complaints: According to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, Lincoln Financial receives a significantly lower number of customer complaints than would be expected for a company of its size (NAIC).
- Some applications do not necessitate a medical screening: Individuals between the ages of 18 and 60 who are in good health and applying for a policy with a face value of $1 million or less may be approved for coverage without a medical exam or laboratory tests.
- Superior economic might: The A+ (Superior) rating given by AM Best to Lincoln Financial indicates that the company is in an excellent position to fulfill its financial commitments. Due to its solid financial footing, Lincoln Financial is regarded as one of the industry’s top life insurance providers.
- The most cost-effective term insurance: We compared prices from 32 different companies offering term insurance. For applicants in good health in their forties and fifties, the premiums for policies offered by Lincoln Financial were among the lowest available.
Cons Clarified
- No options for whole life insurance exist: Lincoln Financial provides several variations on permanent life insurance but not whole life insurance.
- Getting a verdict the same day is not an option: Lincoln Financial does not make decisions the same day, though some applications for term life insurance can be approved in as little as two days.
- There aren’t any online quotations or applications: You will need to contact an agent directly for a quote, as this service is not offered through the company’s website.
Complaint Index
According to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, Lincoln Financial has a low complaint volume considering its massive size (NAIC). We used the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) complaint index, which ranks businesses by the number of complaints about their size. To get an overall picture of how a company stacks up over the long term, we averaged its index scores from the past three years.
Generally speaking, a complaint volume of 1.0 indicates that a company of that size is receiving about the average number of complaints. The company received more customer complaints than anticipated if the index exceeded 1.0. Reduced levels of customer dissatisfaction relative to businesses of a similar size are indicated by an index below 1.0. For 2019, 2020, and 2021, Lincoln Financial averaged 0.09 on the complaint index, meaning it received a much lower number of complaints than expected.
Third-Party Ratings
The stability of Lincoln Financial’s finances has been praised. AM Best, a credit rating agency, gave the company an A+ (Superior) rating because of its solid financial footing and reliability in meeting its current and future insurance commitments. AM Best grades businesses on a scale from A++ (superior) to D (very poor).
According to J.D. Power’s 2021 U.S. Individual Life Insurance Study, which rated companies on a scale of 1,000 points based on customer satisfaction, the company received a score just below the average. When compared to the average score of 776 for all insurers, Lincoln Financial Group came in at number 12.
Customer Service
Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., email and phone support for Lincoln Financial Group’s individual life insurance products is available. Live chat, a service that needs a calculator, and the option to file a claim online are just a few helpful tools available to customers on the company website. Filling out a simple online form is all required to make changes to your beneficiaries. However, neither a quote nor an application can be submitted electronically through the site.
Is Lincoln Financial Life Insurance A Worth Insurance to Get?
Lincoln Financial Group provides policyholders with a wide selection of permanent and term life insurance, as well as a variety of optional riders (some of which are free of charge), some of which provide coverage for living expenses. The company’s financial stability is praised, and it receives fewer complaints than would be expected for a business of its size. Coverage of up to $1 million is provided without needing a medical exam, and the company also offers term policies at very competitive rates. You’ll need to get in touch with an agent to apply for coverage, as online quote requests are currently unavailable.
Conclusion
Lincoln Financial Group offers both term and permanent life insurance options. Significantly, a range of riders is also available, including several living benefit riders. Notably, a number of them are supplied with no upfront expense. In addition, the financial stability of the business receives good marks. It receives far fewer complaints than expected for a company of its size. In addition, it provides up to $1 million in no-medical-exam coverage and incredibly affordable term insurance. However, quotations are not available online; you must contact a representative to apply.