AARP Life Insurance Review – AARP Life Insurance Cost & Rates

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The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) is known for offering resources and discounts to as 38 million members at once. This AARP life insurance review found it also promises a range of health and financial tools, volunteering opportunities, and financial products geared to seniors ages 50 and older in exchange for a $16 annual membership fee.

This AARP life insurance review found members can follow a few simple steps to buy life insurance and answer questions like “how much does AARP life insurance cost” through AARP’s website. However, plans are underwritten by New York Life. Is AARP life insurance worth it?

AARP life insurance comes with its share of benefits. Most importantly, it can be tailored to fit the budget and needs of most of its members. Both companies remain trusted names in insurance. AARP offers both term life insurance and permanent life insurance policies for seniors.

New York Life has received an A++ rating from AM Best for its financial strength, meaning it’s as stable as a company of its size can be. As a result, it will likely be around for decades to ensure your claim gets paid on schedule.

In addition, New York Life agents are highly knowledgeable. So if you’d like to discuss other products, they can advise you on options. However, these specific programs are only offered to AARP members.

If you’re an AARP member or considering joining and need to secure term or permanent life insurance coverage, read on to learn about the company’s policies, how it works, and who can qualify.

Life Insurance Plans from AARP and New York Life

As we mentioned, AARP offers both term life and permanent life insurance coverage through its partnership with New York Life. Guaranteed acceptance life insurance is also available, and none of its policies require a medical exam. However, the company may use medical records to determine your policy limit.

New York Life has many options for buyers of any age looking for a significant investment or retirement planning tool. However, AARP’s partnership only encompasses a limited number of New York Life’s smaller insurance plans targeted to seniors.

The chart below provides an overview of the types of life insurance you can purchase from AARP via its partnership with New York Life.

Keep reading to learn more about the options available through AARP’s partnership with New York Life.

Level Benefit Term Life Insurance

AARP and New York Life offer a level benefit term life insurance product similar to competitors’ term life insurance policies. This policy does not require a medical exam, and approved applicants can maintain coverage up to age 80. Consumers also have the option to exchange this coverage for AARP-endorsed group permanent life insurance without another medical exam.

It’s important to note while a medical exam may not be required for conversion, coverage and premiums are subject to change. Life insurance companies may still pull medical records and ask medical-related questions.

Level benefit term life insurance from AARP is available in amounts up to $150,000, and most applicants can get a quote online in a matter of minutes. Buyers should expect to answer some medical questions, and the company will pull existing medical records as part of the qualification process.

Permanent Life Insurance

Permanent life insurance from AARP is based on a fast and easy online quote. No medical exams are required to qualify, but this does not mean existing medical data is not used.

Consumers pay premiums toward their permanent life insurance policy until age 95, when AARP considers the policy “paid up.” The death benefit will then remain fixed until a claim is made with no further financial burden on the policyholder.

Permanent life insurance from AARP also builds cash value you can borrow against. Many buyers also use accelerated death benefits to withdraw money to pay for medical bills and the cost of living when diagnosed with a terminal illness.

Policies allow loans and other early withdrawals for different reasons. We recommend discussing details with a licensed New York Life agent.

Rates for permanent coverage are fixed. But the maximum available benefit is $50,000 for qualifying buyers.

Guaranteed Acceptance Life Insurance

AARP also offers guaranteed acceptance life insurance with no medical exam required. Note, however, this type of coverage requires a two-year waiting period. During that time, the full death benefit applies for accidental death, but death by natural causes only qualifies for a return of 110{a652ac39cb023ff8fd1cc85f4393f5b1bb70bf2f880b7bee35f712e4bd8633f7} of premiums paid.

This type of protection can stay in force up to the age of 95 as long as customers pay their premiums, and it builds cash value over time. The maximum death benefit for guaranteed acceptance life insurance with AARP is $25,000.

Additional Coverage Options from AARP

AARP offers a limited selection of life insurance options through New York Life, but it also provides riders to customize plans. Additional riders available through AARP and New York Life include:

• AARP Term Rider Protect Plus: This rider lets customers increase coverage for a limited time with an attached term benefit. If you die within the predetermined term, your beneficiaries will receive the value of two policies. If you die after, it will default to the permanent policy value.
• Accelerated Death Benefit Rider: All life insurance policies from AARP offer an accelerated death benefit rider. It provides members with immediate access to half of their death benefit if diagnosed with a terminal illness with a life expectancy of 24 months or fewer. This rider is especially comforting for term policy buyers as the policy might otherwise lapse, resulting in no death benefit.
• Waiver of Premium: AARP offers a waiver of premium for customers who have been ordered to stay in a nursing home for at least 180 days. In short, you don’t have to worry about making payments during this time.

In addition to these riders, AARP also offers the Guaranteed Exchange Option. This guaranteed option lets its term life insurance customers convert coverage to permanent life insurance with no health questions or medical exams required. But, again, rates and the death benefit are subject to change.

How Much Does Life Insurance from AARP Cost?

Age, zip code, coverage limits, and how long you want your protection to last are a few of the things considered in cost of life insurance. The costs may not represent the full picture as a cheap term policy also expires without necessarily paying anything. Fortunately, AARP makes it easy to get an idea of the cost of its plans online and from home.

Seeing is believing. So we ran term life insurance quotes for a 53-year-old woman and a 65-year-old man. Prices are as follows:

How Do I File Claims with AARP?

AARP and New York Life make it easy for customers to file claims, displaying all the required information prominently on the AARP website. In addition, the claims portal explains the different options for filing a claim and what policyholders can expect.

Specifically, AARP encourages its members to file claims through the company’s online portal. However, filing a life insurance claim by fax or mail is also possible.

You can fax all claims information to (855) 381-5010. Meanwhile, claims filed by mail should be sent to one of the following addresses:

Regular Mail

New York Life Ins. Co. AARP Operations

Attn: Claims Department

PO Box 30713

Tampa, FL 33630-3713

Express Mail

New York Life Ins. Co. AARP Operations

Attn: Claims Dept.,

Bldg. 3 – 1st Floor

5505 West Cypress Street

Tampa, FL 33607

Before starting a claim, AARP members need a claims packet downloaded from the website. Required information for a life insurance claim includes a certified death certificate, proof of guardianship for a minor beneficiary (if applicable), and executorship papers for the estate (if applicable).

Other documents may also be required depending on the type of claim (e.g., proof of accidental death).

Who Are The Ideal Customers for AARP?

Because AARP is only available to members at least 50 years old, its life insurance offerings reflect those demographics. Policies from AARP tend to come with relatively low coverage amounts, and the premiums can be high.

However, AARP life insurance is available without a medical exam, and you can even get guaranteed acceptance coverage. More importantly, it offers options for seniors who struggle to find life insurance coverage.

With all this in mind, AARP offers some of the best life insurance for seniors limited to final expenses. For example, buyers who qualify for $150,000 in coverage may leave enough to pay off other debts, add to beneficiaries’ college funds, and more.

Compare AARP vs. Colonial Penn

Seniors can also check out Colonial Penn for guaranteed acceptance coverage for final expenses. It offers guaranteed acceptance life insurance with no medical exams required, and it claims premiums start at just $9.95 per month.

Colonial Penn life insurance also comes with a locked-in premium and benefit. So providers cannot cancel coverage. Colonial Penn has an ‘A’ rating for financial strength from AM Best.

AARP has more comprehensive policies for qualifying buyers, and Colonial Penn only offers permanent life policies. However, its pricing may be more budget-friendly for seniors with more concerns about price.

Compare AARP vs. Gerber Life Insurance

If you’re specifically looking for permanent life insurance for seniors, you can also shop with Gerber Life Insurance. It sells guaranteed acceptance life insurance for individuals ages 50 to 80 with no medical exams required with death benefits of $5,000 to $25,000.

Each policy builds cash value that policyholders can withdraw for medical bills, modest costs of living, and more. Gerber also offers children’s plans and accident protection and whole life policies for working-age adults. However, it does not provide term or whole options for seniors to match the policies offered by AARP.

Gerber Life Insurance currently has an A rating for its financial strength from AM Best.

Compare AARP vs. Protective Life

Protective Life offers more types of life insurance than AARP, including term life insurance, whole life insurance, and a few types of universal life insurance. Its available coverage limits are also significantly higher. For example, Protective Life lets applicants purchase term life insurance ranging from $100,000 to $50 million.

However, buyers can expect more restrictions without a medical exam. AARP makes no medical exams a defining feature of its policies aimed at seniors. Protective Life doesn’t publish limits as openly. Its no medical exam policies may be tailored more for young, healthy buyers looking to avoid a little hassle.

Like other popular life insurance companies, Protective Life has solid ratings for financial strength (currently an A+ rating from AM Best).

Methodology

To write a comprehensive review of AARP life insurance offered through New York Life, we compared the company’s life insurance offerings with similar policies from popular insurance providers.

We analyzed individual policies based on unique details, benefits, and drawbacks and considered the range of applicants who could qualify. To ensure our review is as comprehensive as possible, we only ranked companies based on the facts we gathered.

Our insurance rating methodology breaks down life insurance products side by side to simultaneously give shoppers a number for each product. However, working with a professional life insurance agent is often the best way to find the right coverage for your family’s needs and goals. Agents can look at your unique situation and make appropriate recommendations.

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