Best Guaranteed Acceptance Life Insurance Companies
Find Cheap Life Insurance in Your Area
Guaranteed acceptance life insurance, also called guaranteed issue (GI) life insurance, is usually a whole life insurance policy with a limited death benefit.
As with other whole life insurance policies, guaranteed issue policies will build a cash value over time, and coverage lasts as long as you continue to pay the premiums. Unlike most life insurance policies, there are no health questions and no medical exam when applying. However, death benefits are typically restricted to less than $25,000. Quotes will also be significantly more expensive, because the insurer has no health details and has to assume you're high risk.
Quotes are entirely based on your age, location and sex. Given the simplicity of the application, you can often get instant coverage — in many cases, you can purchase a policy online.
Should I buy guaranteed issue life insurance?
While GI insurance is convenient, we only recommend it if you don't qualify for other forms of life insurance.
First, consider some of the drawbacks. Up front, a guaranteed life insurance policy comes with a two- to three-year waiting period. If you die during this time frame due to a natural cause, such as a disease or heart attack, your beneficiaries won't get the full death benefit. Typically, they will only receive the amount of money you had paid in premiums, plus interest (which varies by insurer).
Guaranteed acceptance insurance is also incredibly expensive for the amount of coverage, since the insurer is unable to collect or verify any information about your health.
Guaranteed issue insurance should provide a large enough death benefit if you just want to take care of final expenses. Funerals, for example, cost $10,000 on average. But if you want enough coverage to send a child to college or pay off a mortgage, guaranteed acceptance insurance won't provide a large enough death benefit.
We recommend you consider simplified issue life insurance, which doesn't require a medical exam and accepts a wider range of health problems than fully underwritten coverage. Because you answer a few questions about your health, your premiums will be lower than with guaranteed acceptance insurance. In addition, you can find simplified issue term life and universal life insurance policies, so you're not restricted to whole life insurance.
But, in some cases, guaranteed life insurance could be the way to go, because some medical conditions preclude you from qualifying for fully underwritten or simplified issue life insurance. You'll want to consider guaranteed issue life insurance if:
- You're on dialysis.
- You have cognitive impairments.
- You're restricted to a wheelchair.
- You're in a nursing home.
- You have HIV, kidney disease or cancer, particularly if you were diagnosed in the past two years.
The best and worst guaranteed acceptance life insurance companies
It can be challenging to find the best guaranteed acceptance life insurance for your needs, so we've assessed the top nine carriers based on quotes and coverage.
Best guaranteed acceptance life insurance companies
AIG is our favorite insurer for guaranteed acceptance life insurance, because their prices are competitive, and the company may accelerate death benefits if the policyholder becomes ill. However, each of the five companies below has reasonable quotes and a good range of coverage options for their guaranteed issue policies.
AAA | AIG | Gerber Life Insurance | Mutual of Omaha | New York Life | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age availability | 45–85 | 50–85 | 50–80 | 45–85 | 50-80 |
| Waiting period | 2 years | 2 years | 2 years | 2 years | 2 years |
| Payout during waiting period | Premiums paid + 30% interest | Premiums paid + 10% interest | Premiums paid + 10% interest | Premiums paid + 20% interest | Premiums paid + 10% interest |
| Minimum coverage | $5,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $2,000 | $2,500 |
| Maximum coverage | $25,000 | $25,000 | $25,000 | $25,000 | $15,000 |
Find Cheap Life Insurance in Your Area
Guaranteed acceptance life insurance carriers to avoid
These companies aren't necessarily bad, but we'd recommend starting your search for guaranteed acceptance insurance elsewhere. This is because the companies listed below have higher premiums, longer waiting periods and a smaller range of available death benefits.
Americo | Columbian Financial Group | Colonial Penn | MassMutual | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age availability | 50–75 | 25–80 | 50–85 | 50–75 |
| Waiting period | 3 years | 3 years | 2 years | 2 years |
| Payout during waiting period | Premiums paid + 5% interest (year 1); premiums paid + 10% interest (year 2); 75% of death benefit (year 3) | Premiums paid + 6% interest | Premiums paid + 7% interest annually | Premiums paid + 10% interest |
| Minimum coverage | $2,000 | $2,500 ($5,000 if below 45) | Approx. $400 (varies by age) | $2,000 |
| Maximum coverage | $10,000 | $25,000 ($10,000 if below 45) | Approx. $17,000 (varies by age) | $25,000 |