Primerica Life Insurance Review 2023

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Products and Features

Primerica Life Insurance specializes in term life insurance. They offer two term life plans, available in different terms. The insurer does not offer permanent life insurance coverage. This means that they do not offer any life insurance policies with a guaranteed payout regardless of when you pass.

Term Life Insurance

Term life insurance provides protection for a set number of years. They are usually available in increments of 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 years or until a specific age, like 85.  

Also called pure life insurance, term life has only one function — to support your loved ones if you die. The insurer pays out the death benefit if you die within the policy term. If you outlive the term, you have the option to renew the policy at a higher rate or let it expire.

Primerica Life Insurance offers two term life plans: Custom Advantage and TermNow.

Custom Advantage

No life insurance companies' review would be complete without covering their flagship life insurance product — Custom Advantage.

This is a traditional term life insurance plan requiring medical underwriting. As such, it is much cheaper than TermNow, which lets you forgo a medical examination.

Features:

• The death benefit available is from $150,000 to $400,000
• The following terms are available with Custom Advantage: 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, and 35 years
• You will need to undergo a medical exam to prove eligibility
• Comes with a “guaranteed insurability” option. That means you can renew coverage without evidence of insurability up to age 95. Each renewal premium will be higher than the previous one, but the increase will only be due to age
• Ability to add various life insurance riders to customize coverage as per your needs

TermNow

Not everyone has the time or inclination to undergo a medical exam. For such people, Primerica Life Insurance offers TermNow. It is also a good option for all those with an underlying condition that makes it difficult for them to qualify for a medically underwritten life policy.

TermNow does not require a medical exam, but Primerica runs a background check through the Medical Information Bureau as well as DMV. If there are no issues, you will receive coverage in a few minutes of applying.

However, the convenience of skipping a medical exam and quick approval comes at a price. TermNow is significantly more expensive than a comparable fully underwritten policy. This holds true for all no-medical life insurance products, and TermNow is no different in this regard.

The other downside is that the coverage is capped at $300,000. By contrast, you can purchase $400,000 in coverage with a Custom Advantage policy.

Features:

• The death benefit available is from $15,000 to $300,000
• The following terms are available with Custom Advantage: 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, and 35 years
• You do not need to take a medical exam
• You can get coverage within a few minutes
• Comes with a “guaranteed insurability” option. That means you can renew coverage without evidence of insurability up to age 95. Each renewal premium will be higher than the previous one, but the increase will only be due to age
• You can add various riders for more comprehensive coverage

Some Key Points about Primerica’s Term Life Insurance Plans

• A Primerica Life Insurance policy offers the following terms: 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, and 35 years like many other life insurance companies. However, all options might not be available to every applicant.
• Some longer-term life policies (like the 35-year option) do not offer guaranteed level premiums throughout the policy term. Instead, they offer guaranteed level premium rates for a part of the term — usually for the first 20 years. which means after this period, your premium rate may increase. If you are unable to afford the new premium, you may lose coverage.
• Primerica offers its policyholders an option to add an “increasing benefit rider”. It allows you to bump up your coverage amount by up to 10% per year for a period of 10 years. Increasing benefit is a rare rider with most providers offering its opposite add-on — the “decreasing benefit rider”. This rider is more common because financial obligations tend to decrease rather than increase with age.

Riders offered by Primerica

A life insurance rider is an optional add-on that lets you customize your coverage for a small additional cost. Riders help you increase the life insurance coverage of your policy or add benefits that were not originally there.

Primerica offers you a choice of several riders, such as the following:

• Child Rider – This add-on allows you to buy coverage for your children — both biological and adopted — under the age of 24. Your future children will be covered automatically. The coverage amount available is $50,000.
• Terminal Illness Benefit Rider – This rider offers extra financial protection for you and your family if you are diagnosed with an illness that you are unlikely to recover from. Primerica allows you to take 40% of your life insurance amount if you are diagnosed with a terminal illness and expected to live less than six months. If you have also opted for the waiver of premium add-on, you can take 70% of your coverage amount.
• Waiver of Premium Rider – This optional benefit prevents your policy from lapsing if you cannot make the premium payments due to disability. If you become disabled while your policy is active, Primerica will waive off your future premiums. You can add this rider to your TermNow or Custom Advantage policy until the age of 55.
• Increasing Benefit Rider – This rider allows policyholders to increase their coverage amount for a specific period. You can increase the life insurance amount of your term life insurance policy by up to 10% per year for a period of 10 years — up to a maximum of $500,000 — from the second policy year onward. You do not need to undergo any further underwriting, though your premium rate will go up along with your death benefit amount. This add-on is available until the age of 55.

Primerica Life Insurance Rates

Term life insurance is easy to understand and affordable, providing you with more coverage for less. For this reason, it is a good option for most people. To find out how affordable Primerica term life insurance rates are, we collected multiple quotes from them.

Here are the monthly premium rates for non-smoking, healthy men and women of different ages. These quotes are $40,000 coverage over a 20-year term length.

Primerica Insurance Insurance Price Example

Quotes are for $400,000 in coverage over a 20-year term length. They represent quotes for someone who is a non-smoker and in good health.

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Why We Like Primerica

• Financially strong

It is important to pick a life insurer that is on solid footing financially. After all, selecting a provider that closes shop a few years down the line would not only mean a loss of investment but also having to buy a new life insurance policy, at a higher rate, from another insurer. Thankfully, with Primerica, you can rest easy knowing your investment is in good hands. They received an impressive A+ rating from AM Best.

• No medical coverage for $300,000 or less

You do not require a medical exam if you want $300,000 or less in term life coverage. This limit is higher than what many other Canadian life insurers offer.

• Increasing benefit rider available

By adding this rider to your policy, you can increase the life insurance amount by 10% every year for 10 years — the maximum limit is capped at $400,000 — without any further underwriting.

• Guaranteed insurability

All term life insurance policies offered by Primerica include a guaranteed insurability option. What that means is you can renew your coverage without any medical underwriting until you are 95 years old. Your premium may go up at every renewal, but that would only be because of age. This is an immensely useful feature since it helps you maintain coverage even if your health takes a turn for the worse.

• Term life policies are renewal up to age 95

Most life insurance companies in Canada do not allow policyholders to renew their term life insurance coverage beyond 85 years of age.

What We Did Not Like About Primerica

• Offers only term life insurance

While term life insurance is sufficient for most people, there are situations when a permanent life plan may be a better option. Primerica, however, does not offer permanent life insurance. So, if you need a whole life or universal life insurance policy, you must look elsewhere.

• Pushy sales tactics

The insurer sells its life insurance companies' products through designated representatives who earn commission based on sales and referrals. These representatives can only sell Primerica’s products. In other words, they have a financial motive to encourage applicants to sign up for Primerica’s products, even if they do not perfectly suit your long-term financial goals.

• Higher than average rates

Primerica’s term life rates are not the cheapest. In fact, regardless of your age and coverage need, you may find much better options out there with similar financial ratings.

• Online quotes are not available

It is not easy to compare Primerica’s rates with those of other providers. That is because the insurer does not offer online quotes, which makes comparison shopping challenging. To get a quote, you must contact a representative.

• Website is not very informative

Primerica does not offer a lot of information about its term life insurance plans on its website.

Is Primerica Life Insurance Right for You?

If you have a family member or a friend who is a Primerica representative, this insurer could be a good choice. You can buy a standard term life plan, and if you require $300,000 or less in coverage, you would not need to take a medical exam.  

However, the rates for a Primerica Life Insurance policy are not the cheapest. Plus, they do not provide whole life or universal life insurance. And the maximum death benefit you can get is $400,000. If you want more coverage or a permanent life policy, you need to look elsewhere.

👉  Looking for something else? Read our other life insurance company reviews here