Globe Life Insurance Review August 2022 – NerdWallet
NerdWallet rating
NerdWallet’s ratings are determined by our editorial team. The scoring formula takes into account consumer experience, financial strength ratings and complaint data.
Bottom line: This company offers term and permanent policies without a medical exam, but coverage is capped at low amounts.
Policies offered:
Term, permanent & no-exam.
Financial strength:
Strong.
Complaints:
Far more than expected.
Buy online?
Yes.
How we review life insurance companies
Founded in 1951, Globe Life offers a mix of term and permanent life insurance. The company highlights its initial low cost, with $1 buying your first month’s coverage — but that cost quickly increases.
Formerly known as Torchmark, Globe Life also sells policies through subsidiaries including American Income Life, Liberty National Life, United American and Family Heritage Life. It’s headquartered in McKinney, Texas, and has life insurance agents across the country.
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Globe Life insurance
3.0
NerdWallet’s ratings are determined by our editorial team. The scoring formula takes into account consumer complaint and customer satisfaction data.
NerdWallet rating
Globe Life earned 3 stars out of 5 for overall performance. NerdWallet’s ratings are determined by our editorial team. The scoring formula takes into account consumer experience, complaint data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and financial strength ratings.
Globe Life insurance pros and cons
Pros
Cons
Offers life insurance policies without a medical exam.
Far more than the expected number of complaints for a company of its size.
Low rates for the first month.
Relatively low coverage amounts available.
Can buy a policy online, over the phone or via mail.
Can’t file a claim online.
Globe Life insurance policies
Globe Life sells a range of life insurance policies online and through its network of captive agents. None of the policies require a medical exam.
Term life insurance. Get $5,000 to $100,000 of term life insurance that usually lasts one to 30 years.
Whole life insurance. If you need lifelong coverage, you can buy a whole life insurance policy worth $5,000 to $50,000. It builds cash value over time, and once you’ve accumulated enough, you can begin taking out loans against your policy.
Child whole life insurance. Globe Life allows you to purchase $5,000 to $30,000 in whole life insurance for your child.
Final expense insurance. Designed to cover end-of-life costs, this burial insurance policy requires you to fill out a health questionnaire.
Globe Life’s pricing can include a reduced rate in the first month. The rate after that is based on the insured person’s age when the policy takes effect. Whole life policies cost the same amount every month for the life of the policy, while term policies increase in cost every five years. For example, a man living in Virginia will pay 25% more for a $50,000 policy from ages 36-40 than for the same coverage from 31-35 years old.
Globe Life customer complaints and satisfaction
Globe Life Insurance drew far more than the expected number of complaints to state regulators for a company of its size for life insurance, according to three years’ worth of data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.
Globe Life ranked No. 6 out of 21 companies in J.D. Power’s 2021 U.S. Individual Life Insurance Study, which assesses overall customer satisfactionView all sources
J.D. Power . 2021 U.S. Individual Life Insurance Study . Accessed Jun 9, 2022.
More about Globe Life
There’s limited policy information on Globe Life’s website. To learn more about its coverage, you’ll need to provide your contact details or reach out to an agent.
If you already have a life insurance policy with Globe Life, you can pay premiums, set up automatic payments and add coverage via the Apple or Android app.
In addition to life insurance, Globe Life also offers:
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Accidental death insurance.
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Mortgage protection insurance.
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Supplemental health insurance, including critical illness insurance, hospital insurance, cancer insurance and accident insurance.
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How we review life insurance companies
In our life insurance reviews, our editorial team considers both the customer and the insurer. These are some of the factors we take into account:
Policies offered. There are many types of life insurance on the market, and they fall into three key categories:
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Term life insurance offers temporary coverage and a guaranteed payout if the policyholder dies during the term.
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Permanent life insurance typically lasts a lifetime and builds cash value that can be borrowed against in the future.
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No-exam life insurance issues coverage without the need for a medical exam.
Financial strength. We use A.M. Best ratings to confirm an insurer’s long-term financial stability and ability to pay claims. NerdWallet does not recommend companies with a rating lower than a B. Here’s the breakdown:
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Exceptional: A+, A++
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Strong: A, A-
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Moderate: B+, B
Complaints. These ratings are based on complaints to state regulators relative to a company’s size, according to three years’ worth of data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. The best life insurance companies have fewer than the expected number of complaints.
Buy online. This indicates whether an insurer allows you to apply for and buy a policy completely online.
Dive deeper: Ratings methodology for life insurance
Life insurance buying guide
Before you start comparing companies, choose the type of life insurance you want, such as term or whole life. Decide which life insurance riders, if any, you want the policy to include. Calculate how much life insurance you need and how long you want the coverage to last. Check that the insurers you’re considering offer the coverage you’re looking for.
When comparing rates, be sure the quotes are for the same amount of coverage over the same period of time. It’s also important to make sure the policy’s medical requirements match your needs. For example, if you want to skip the life insurance medical exam but don’t mind answering health questions, confirm that the application process for each policy you’re comparing aligns with that.
Price may not be the biggest driver behind your decision to buy. Look at the number of consumer complaints each company receives, as high numbers can be a red flag about the quality of service.
For more guidance, see our life insurance buying guide.
Life insurance ratings methodology
NerdWallet’s life insurance ratings are based on consumer experience, complaint index scores from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners for individual life insurance, and weighted averages of financial strength ratings, which indicate a company’s ability to pay future claims. Within the consumer experience category, we consider ease of communication and website transparency, which looks at the depth of policy details available online. To calculate each insurer’s rating, we adjusted the scores to a curved 5-point scale.
These ratings are a guide, but we encourage you to shop around and compare several insurance quotes to find the best rate for you. NerdWallet does not receive compensation for any reviews. Read our editorial guidelines.
Insurer complaints methodology
NerdWallet examined complaints received by state insurance regulators and reported to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners in 2018-2020. To assess how insurers compare to one another, the NAIC calculates a complaint index each year for each subsidiary, measuring its share of total complaints relative to its size, or share of total premiums in the industry. To evaluate a company’s complaint history, NerdWallet calculated a similar index for each insurer, weighted by market shares of each subsidiary, over the three-year period. Ratios are determined separately for auto, home (including renters and condo) and life insurance.