EQUITRUST LIFE INSURANCE REVIEW 2022
By James Tobin, CFP®
Bequest Mutual Rating
Expert Review Of Equitrust life Insurance
Reviewed by
Jim Tobin, CFP®
Why you can trust this review
At Bequest Mutual, we value our editorial independence. We keep our reviews strictly factual so you can use them to make informed decisions. Life insurance carriers referred to on this site do not approve reviews.
Equitrust life insurance is a member of the Guggenheim Partners financial services family.
This review will address company history, financial ratings, and the positives and negatives of the Equitrust life insurance company.
Additionally it will address some specific situations where it may make more sense to go outside the Equitrust family of products.
The goal is to make sure that you get the policy that provides you the most value.
Equitrust Life Insurance Company History
Equitrust Life Insurance is one of the smaller specialty insurance carriers in the US. It was started in 1966 and now collects over $52M in premiums in the United States. That’s still less than 1% of the insurance market in the US though. The company was acquired by Guggenheim in 2011.
While the company does not offer any term life insurance products, it does offer a single premium whole life insurance product that has been widely praised by reviewers and insurance experts across the country for the number of benefits it offers. Equitrust offers annuity products to its customers as well, which are highly regarded in the market.
Equitrust Life Insurance Company Ratings
While the company is financially stable enough to honor all its commitments, rating agencies have only awarded it average-to-good ratings. As a rule of thumb, we generally recommend staying away from insurance carriers whose ratings are less than an A. We’ve provided details of the ratings awarded by different rating agencies:
- S&P Ratings – BBB+
- Moody’s Ratings – No rating
- A.M. Best – B++
- Comdex Score – 43/100
Equitrust Term Insurance
You cannot purchase term life insurance from Equitrust life insurance since they don’t offer any product in that department. But no worries, you can make use of our quote tool available on our website to compare insurance quotes from different insurance carriers for term insurance policies.
Equitrust life insurance company Products
Equitrust primarily offers fixed annuities and whole life insurance products with a focus on single premium. Single premium whole life insurance is a highly specialized insurance product, which normally triggers a modified endowment contract. However, MECs are usually viewed negatively due to the high negative tax consequences associated with policy surrender.
Equitrust Life Insurance Company Rates
Equitrust’s policies are usually marketed either directly via company agent or via independent insurance brokers. However, you won’t find many independent brokers who are affiliated with Equitrust.
The best way for most people to receive an insurance quote is by contacting one of their agents for an appointment as there’s no online quote tool you can use to find out information about its pricing policies.
Are Equitrust Life Insurance rates competitive
It’s kind of a hard question to answer.
Since Equitrust’s pricing details are confidential and not available to the general public, it’s extremely difficult to make a fair comparison of their policies with products offered by other companies.
But based on our experience, companies that don’t practice transparency in this department are never the market price leaders. This goes even if the company is widely reputed and recommended by experts of the industry.
If you want term insurance products, we recommend choosing a major insurance carrier who will provide you with direct online quotes and make it easier for you to compare the quotes with that of other insurance companies.
Cases Where Equitrust Life Insurance Company Is Not A Great Choice
We’re going to be honest – you’re unlikely to find any of Equitrust’s policies appealing. The company caters to a very niche market and unless you’re unwilling to settle for anything other than a whole life single premium insurance policy, there’s no point in approaching this company.
Instead, we recommend reaching out to a registered independent agent who can help you find the right company and insurance policy for your needs that costs the least amount of money.
But if you’re already availing of financial services from Equitrust, you may be able to score policies with better benefits from the company. In such cases, it doesn’t hurt to take a look at their offerings and quotes.
Equitrust Life Insurance Suicide Exclusions
An insurance policy purchased within the US generally comes with a 2-year suicide exclusion clause, though this may be reduced to 12 months in certain states.
Equitrust Customer Service
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners reports a complaint index of 1.83 for Equitrust (2018) . This is well above the national average of 1 percent
Additionally, while life of Equitrust life Insurance is not rated by JD Power & Assoc., it's has a BBB rating of A+.
Equitrust Life Insurance Contact Info:
Address:222 W. Adams Street, Ste. 2150
Chicago, IL 60606
Phone:(888) 400-5759
Web:https://www.equitrust.com
The Equitrust Life Insurance review Final Verdict
Is Equitrust right for you It really all depends on your situation.
If you have notable health impairment(s), you will likely be better suited by shopping around on the open market where it is convenient to make apples to apple comparisons.
Moreover, having the use of an independent expert who can send your application to a carrier that is likely to view you in the best possible light has value that Equitrust can't offer.
However, if you happy with other services being being provided by Equitrust and in good health and require their products, it may be convenient to keep things "in house".
Thank you for choosing Bequest Mutual to shop for life insurance.