More on Life Insurance
Fidelity Life provides term life or whole life insurance that could suit your needs, especially if you want fast underwriting and no medical exam requirements. Unfortunately, coverage amounts are low and premiums are higher than the industry average.
Published April 13, 2020
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Fidelity Life Insurance
OVERALL
6.2
THE GOOD
No medical exams for permanent policies
Unique accidental death benefit policy
30-day trial period
THE BAD
Relatively expensive
Whole life limited to ages 50 and above
Low coverage amounts
Term life not convertible
Misleading quote tool
THE BOTTOM LINE
Illinois-based Fidelity Life (not to be confused with Fidelity Investments), which has been around for over 120 years, provides life insurance products for basically everyone. Younger or older, you’ll find term life or whole life insurance that could suit your needs, especially if you’re in the market for quick applications with no medical exam requirements. Unfortunately, the coverage amounts are low and premiums are higher than the industry average.
Fidelity Life is number 12 on Policygenius' list of the best life insurance companies, based on cost, financial confidence, third-party customer ratings, life insurance policy options, and ease of application.
Cost
1.0
Confidence
8.5
Customer Ratings
7.3
Policy Options
5.6
Customer Experience
8.4
FIDELITY LIFE COMPANY SPOTLIGHT
N/A
J.D. Power Rating
A trusted customer satisfaction and product quality research agency
A+
BBB Rating
A nonprofit organization focusing on marketplace trust and product quality
A-
A.M. Best
100-year-old U.S. credit rating agency focused on the insurance industry
No medical exams for permanent policies. All of Fidelity Life’s whole life policies require no medical exam while applying, and their Guaranteed Issue product requires no exam or health questions. If you need guaranteed coverage, Fidelity Life could be the insurer you’ve been looking for.
Unique accidental death benefit policy. If all you want is accidental death protection, or additional coverage on top of another policy (with plenty of optional riders that can also cover your family), Fidelity Life offers a standalone accidental death benefit product.
30-day trial period. Fidelity Life offers customers a 30-day trial period to find out more about their coverage while they have it. If you’re not satisfied with your policy for whatever reason you can cancel it and get your premiums back.
Relatively expensive. Fidelity Life advertises low prices, but any promising numbers you see on their site are for healthy, young people applying for low coverage amounts and lower term lengths. Expect to pay much higher than the industry average, especially if you’re older or struggle with chronic health conditions.
Whole life limited to ages 50 and above. Younger shoppers interested in whole life insurance are out of luck here, as all of Fidelity Life’s permanent policies are aimed for the 50-and-over set.
Low coverage amounts. With Fidelity Life, you’re only getting a maximum of $1 million in coverage on one product, which is a lot less than other life insurance companies offer. For the most part, Fidelity Life’s benefits are only able to cover final expenses, medical bills, and other debts.
Term life not convertible. Fidelity Life’s term life products are not convertible to permanent plans. If you want more insurance after the term runs out, you’ll have to reapply – which means higher premiums.
Misleading quote tool. It’s often difficult to get a clear picture of what your monthly premiums will be in the first place, and Fidelity Life’s online quote tool doesn’t make things any easier. You can’t select the state you live in, and terms and rates are all over the place. It can be quite confusing. You’re likely better off calling an agent or their customer hotline.
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1.0
Rates for life insurance depend on all sorts of factors. Your age, gender, the state you live in, and health background, including tobacco use and other pre-existing medical conditions, can all impact how much your premiums will be.
Unfortunately, Fidelity Life’s quote tool makes things more difficult than they should be. It will only reveal certain rates, term lengths, and products for certain age groups, and you can’t select the state you live in, which would affect your monthly premiums. We tried to make our sample rates as consistent as the quote tool would allow.
With the exception of the 30s and 60s age groups, these groups are all applying for $250,000 coverage of Fidelity’s RapiDecision Life product. The sample rates reflect a single male, employed full-time, and in “good” health:
AGE | FIDELITY LIFE AVERAGE | INDUSTRY AVERAGE |
---|---|---|
20s | $18.92 | $14.24 |
30s | $27.84 | $23.42 |
40s | $37.19 | $30.01 |
50s | $85.26 | $70.30 |
60s | $71.78 | $56.22 |
The 30s age range is the rate for a 30-year term, while the 60s range is for $100,000 of coverage for a 10-year term.
Fidelity Life’s prices are not very competitive when compared to carriers that offer similar benefit amounts. . For a clearer picture, AIG offers an average rate of $13.53 for a healthy male in his 20s for a $250,000, 20-year policy. You’re likely not going to save money in the long-run with a term life policy from Fidelity Life.
8.5
Only one credit rating company, A.M. Best, has rated Fidelity Life. Otherwise, it might help to know that Fidelity Life has been around since the late 1800s and they currently have $32 billion worth of life insurance policies in force.
Here’s the almost-full breakdown:
A.M. Best, the credit rating firm that focuses specifically on the insurance industry, gives Fidelity Life an A- score, which is considered an “excellent” rating by the company. That basically means Fidelity has the strength and ability to fulfill financial obligations to its customers and their beneficiaries. In other words, Fidelity Life’s financial outlook is stable.
Neither Moody’s nor Standard & Poor’s have scores available for Fidelity Life.
7.3
There’s slightly more information about Fidelity Life’s customer satisfaction. For a company that’s been around for over 120 years, it looks like they haven’t received too many complaints. On the other hand, some firms simply don’t have any data regarding customer response available.
Here’s how it shakes out:
The Better Business Bureau grades companies on the truth of their advertising and customer complaints. Fidelity gets an A+. But, it has a 1-star rating based on 11 customer reviews. They mention difficulty with billing, rude customer service, and receiving too many spam messages.
Consumers Advocate, which focuses on a company’s reputation, policies, and stability, gives Fidelity Life an “excellent” 4.5 out of 5.
Consumer Affairs lets customers directly review and rate companies, but there is no page for Fidelity Life available.
J.D. Power ranks insurance companies based on the clarity of billing and policy information, policies, and price. Fidelity Life is not included on their 2019 life insurance study.
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) tracks complaints submitted to state insurance departments. Based on their complaint index, Fidelity life has a score of 2.14, which means they’ve received a higher number of complaints than usual. A score of 1 represents the baseline average, and a zero means there weren’t enough customer complaints to count.
5.6
Fidelity Life has multiple term life and whole life insurance products available. Several products require no medical exam and some include a speedy underwriting process, so policies will activate a lot quicker.
If you’re unsatisfied with your policy, you cancel it and receive any paid premiums or fees back after a 30-day trial period.
However, if it’s universal or variable life insurance you’re looking for, you’ll have to look at another carrier.
Term life insurance is the most affordable type of life insurance for most people. Most Fidelity Life term lengths are 10, 15, 20, or 30 years, and all premiums stay level throughout the term period. That means your monthly rates won’t increase unless you renew after the end of the term.
Fidelity Life’s main term life product. It provides coverage amounts between $50,000 and $1 million for shoppers between the ages of 18 and 65.
Thanks to a fast underwriting process, Fidelity Life says you can have coverage within days based on the information you provide and places like your state’s motor vehicle registration database.
A medical exam could be required for this product based on your answers to questions in the application.
Initial coverage from day one is “blended”, or part all-cause, part accidental death coverage.
There’s no medical exam required for this product, so expect a quick underwriting process if you’re between the ages of 18 and 65. Coverage can begin as soon as one day after application. However, you should also expect a much lower maximum benefit because coverage amounts range from $25,000 to $100,000.
Meant to pay off debt or medical bills, or cover final expenses, shoppers aged 50 to 70 can apply for coverage amounts between $10,000 and $150,000 for 10, 20, or 30-year term lengths.
There is no medical exam required unless there’s something in your medical history that needs clarifying. Otherwise, you just need to answer questions about your health.
Another caveat for this product: The benefit amount and policy expiration will vary depending on the term length you choose.
Partial coverage is provided immediately. Full coverage starts in year four of the selected term.
There is no policy conversion available for Fidelity Life’s term life products. When your term ends, coverage ends. However, you can renew your policy every year up to age 95, or choose a different life insurance product.
Fidelity Life’s permanent life insurance options are simplified issue products, which means they do not require a medical exam to apply. If you’ve had trouble applying for life insurance before, or have underlying health issues, these could be great options for you.
As usual for most whole life products, Fidelity Life’s whole life policies build cash value over time.
It’s right there in the name – this product is meant for burial costs and paying off any outstanding debts or medical bills. Applicants aged 50 to 85 are eligible for coverage amounts between $5,000 and $35,000.
All you have to do to apply is answer some questions related to your health. Full coverage begins immediately after approval.
Another product meant to relieve debt, funeral, or medical costs, applicants between the ages of 50 and 85 are guaranteed to be approved for this policy. There’s no medical exam and no health questions you have to answer, so if you have serious health issues this could be the product for you.
Coverage starts immediately, with amounts up to $25,000.
One major asterisk: Fidelity Life’s RapiDecision Guaranteed Issue policy provides only a reduced death benefit in the first three years. Full death benefits kick in at year four.
This is a standard permanent whole life insurance policy that pays out a death benefit. Applicants aged 50 to 85 are eligible for coverage amounts between $10,000 and $150,000.
There’s no medical exam required for this product, but there are still health questions. A medical exam could be required if the underwriter, during the approval process, thinks it’s necessary. So, if you have serious health conditions, you may want to go for the Guaranteed Issue option above.
Partial coverage begins immediately after approval, although full death benefits kick in after year three.
Fidelity Life also offers a standalone accidental death benefit policy. There’s no medical exam required, with coverage that ranges from $50,000 to $300,000 for applicants aged 20 to 59.
It pays out a benefit to survivors in, as the name hints at, the event of an accidental death. It even includes a few rider options.
Just know, this product does not replace a traditional life insurance policy, which covers more situations. Plus, Fidelity Life’s life insurance products already cover accidental death, in addition to illness and other circumstances. Only consider this standalone product if you want to supplement an existing life insurance policy if you want additional payout for an accident.
8.4
Fidelity Life’s website looks pretty good at first glance. But then you actually start to use it and realize it can be quite finicky. Menus disappear because your mouse isn’t in the right spot, and information is scattered all over the place. Several links to important claim forms are also broken. Then there’s the online quote tool, which doesn’t allow you to select the state you live in or your desired coverage amount. Overall, the user experience could be much better, and much less misleading.
With some digging, however, you should find most major questions you have answered — unless they’re cost-related, then you should probably contact an agent instead of relying on the site’s quote tool.
There’s no online chat on Fidelity Life’s site, but there are email and phone options available.
Fidelity Life is available in nearly all states, including District of Columbia, except for Wyoming and New York.
Depends on the product. You can apply for some policies online within minutes, but others will require answered health-related questionnaires and scheduling medical exams.
Fidelity Life promises activated policies within days. Still, if your application has any issues regarding your health complications, expect to wait anywhere from one week to a month before a decision is reached.
Policies are delivered electronically and through the mail.
You can request most changes, including name, address, and beneficiary, using Fidelity Life’s online customer service. To cancel a policy, you need to mail a written request.
To change payment options, you either need to use the online customer portal or submit a form.
Fidelity allows customers to pay on an annual, monthly, quarterly and semi-annual basis, though the last three add an administrative fee to the premium payment amount. You can pay a variety of ways:
Besides the online quote tool, you’ll find a coverage calculator on the Fidelity Life website.
Beneficiaries need to send a certified death certificate to Fidelity Life, along with a state-specific claim form, although many of the form links on the website are currently broken.
Policygenius offers insurance policies from many of the nation's top insurers, who pay us a commission for our services. However, all editorial choices are made independently.
Tim Torres
Reviews Expert
Tim Torres is the reviews editor at Policygenius. His work has appeared in Computer Shopper, Tom's Guide, and numerous other outlets over the last ten years.
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