TruStage Life Insurance Review: Comprehensive Guide

If you are looking for a life insurance policy and need fast no-medical approval, TruStage life insurance may be worth a look.

Life insurance products by TruStage offer the convenience of an online application without taking an in-person medical exam. But is it any good?

TruStage is an insurance provider that offers an accessible solution for credit union members looking for small amounts of insurance coverage.

This post will comprehensively review TruStage life insurance products to help you make an informed decision before purchasing.

For those in a hurry, here is the gist: While TruStage is convenient and offers almost instant approval, you pay for that convenience through their high premiums and possibly two-year waiting period, depending on the policy you buy.

TruStage Overview

Headquartered in Madison, WI, TruStage is not a standalone insurance company; instead, a well-established consumer-facing agency and brand.

Its life insurance products are underwritten by its parent company, CMFG life insurance company. CMFG life insurance company is an affiliate of CUNA mutual group.

For seniors looking to buy TruStage’s life insurance products, it is worth noting that TruStage often works with credit unions.

As such, you need to be a member of any of the partner credit unions to access its products. TruStage offers a user-friendly online platform through which credit union members can initiate the insurance buying process.

Notably, although TruStage has successfully partnered with over 3,500 credit unions to conveniently offer its products, non-credit union members are still eligible to purchase their coverage.

While TruStage offers policies underwritten by another company, it has remained committed to fulfilling the mission of its founders – putting the insurance needs of consumers first and providing them with reasonable and accurate policies.

Even so, make sure to read the fine print and understand all restrictions and limitations before investing your hard-earned money in their products.

TruStage life insurance products

TruStage is a reputable online life insurance provider that offers quality insurance policies to its customers. They offer individual insurance plans that credit union members can get with a short online application.

The most exciting thing about TruStage’s life insurance plans is that you don’t need to take a medical exam to qualify for a policy.

That said, credit union members considering TruStage may qualify for the agency’s term and permanent policies upon meeting the minimum qualifying criteria.

Here are life insurance products offered by TruStage:

1. TruStage guaranteed issue whole life plan

This is the insurance plan that TruStage most heavily promotes, so if you respond to any of their online advertisements, they will most likely offer you this policy.

Like guaranteed issue policies by other providers, TruStage’s guaranteed insurance coverage is a simple permanent policy.

With this plan, you don’t take any medical exam or fill out a health questionnaire, which means you cannot be turned down for health reasons. This makes it worth considering for seniors who have struggled to qualify for traditional life insurance.

TruStage guaranteed acceptance policies are available for credit union members aged 45 through 80. Seniors who qualify for this plan can obtain coverage between $2,000 and $20,000.

However, the policy has a 2-years waiting period, meaning you are not fully covered within the first two years.

Like comparable products, this policy doesn’t expire and builds cash value over time. Further, TruStage guarantees that the premiums won’t increase and the coverage won’t increase.

When it comes to how much you will pay for your policy, the rates depend on your age during applications, gender, state, and whether you smoke.

Sample rates for females for a $10,000 policy

• $39 at 45 years
• $44 at 50 years
• $49 at 55 years

Sample rates for males for a $10,000 policy

• $50 at 45 years
• $55 at 50 years
• $60 at 55 years

Compared to rates offered by competitors, TruStage rates are relatively high. For this reason, if for some medical reasons you need a guaranteed acceptance whole life insurance policy, you can get better deals elsewhere.

Note: This plan is not available in New York and Washington

2. TruStage simplified issue whole life plan

Commonly branded as a whole life insurance plan, TruStage’s simplified issue whole life insurance plan is a form of permanent life insurance for which you must qualify medically.

Although applicants are not required to take a medical exam, you must answer a few health questions to qualify.

Upon application, TruStage will review your medical history to check for any past medical issues, then approve or decline your application based on your health conditions.

Notably, while the process sounds lengthy, it only takes a few minutes to apply and get approved.

With this plan, you get full coverage immediately after making the first payment. For whatever reason, your premiums will not increase, and coverage will never decrease throughout your lifetime.

These policies are available for individuals aged 18 to 85 years, but the exact face amount you can obtain depends on your age during application.

Policyholders ages 18 to 70 can obtain up to $100,000 worth of coverage; ages 71 to 75 can obtain a coverage amount of up to $50,000, and ages 76-85 can obtain a coverage amount of up to $25,000. The minimum coverage amount for all groups is $5,000.

Like other forms of whole life insurance, TruStage simplified issue whole life insurance policies build cash value over time, and policyholders have the option to borrow against the accumulated cash value.

For individuals who may consider this plan, it is extremely important to note that TruStage does not offer riders for its simplified issue whole life insurance policies. The product is also not available in New York and Montana.

Importantly, while simplified issue whole life insurance policies allow policyholders to obtain a considerable face amount with no medical exam requirement, their rates are not the most affordable.

The underwriting for this plan is also rather strict, so most moderate to serious health issues can result in your application being declined.

Overall, while TruStage offers large amounts, its terms are not favorable. You can get better deals from rivals like Mutual of Omaha.

3. TruStage term life insurance policies

TruStage also offers term life insurance policies, but they take a different approach to this product.

Unlike most companies that allow policyholders to choose a term, typically between 10 and 30 years, TruStage terms policies expire once the policyholder turns 80 years.

The policies are also characterized by increasing premiums, where the rates increase after every five years.

Premiums change when a policyholder turns 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, and 75, then terminates on the 80th birthday – The increases coincide with the policyholder’s age, not the age of the policy.

Importantly, term life is not guaranteed acceptance, meaning you must medically qualify and be a credit union member.

Even so, the application is quick and convenient since there is no medical exam. That said, credit union members between 18 and 69 years can apply. If approved, coverage is immediate after your first premium with no waiting period.

With a TruStage term life insurance policy, you can obtain coverage amounts between $5,000 and $100,000. Individuals who apply through partner credit unions or call TruStage directly may get higher face amounts of up to $300,000.

If you are approved for a TruStage term life insurance policy but change your insurance needs, you can effortlessly change it to a whole life policy.

TruStage offers a term conversion rider, which allows policyholders to switch their term policies to permanent coverage.

As for pricing, TruStage’s term insurance products are competitively priced relative to other no medical exam term insurance policies.

All in all, it doesn’t mean they are the cheapest. Individuals looking for lower rates on term life insurance policies can apply with a company where they have to take a medical exam.

Accidental Death and Dismemberment (AD&D)

Accidental death and dismemberment are often provided as a rider to customize other policies, particularly final expense policies. This is not the case with TruStage.

TruStage offers Accidental death and dismemberment as a standalone policy. This type of coverage from TruStage is only available through partner credit unions to qualifying members. It functions pretty much the same as the rider.

With AD&D policy, TruStage pays the sum assured to the designated beneficiary when you are seriously injured or pass away in a covered incident.

It protects you while at work, at home, on vacation, or during travel. Apart from the policy payout, there are additional benefits, like increasing benefits, hospital coverage, and extra coverage.

Available riders

It is not uncommon for life insurance providers to offer riders to allow their customers to customize their policies, especially whole life policies. Unfortunately, this doesn’t happen with TruStage policies.

Precisely, there are no riders available for TruStage term, simplified issues, and guaranteed acceptance whole life insurance policies.

Only accidental death and dismemberment policies, offered as riders by most companies, seemingly have three riders: increasing benefits, family coverage plan, and hospital benefit.

For the most part, the convenience of TruStage life insurance products will cost you more or as much as you would pay elsewhere for a policy (with potentially higher coverage) that comes with multiple riders.

The cost of TruStage life insurance products

There are a lot of factors that go into the pricing of life insurance coverage.

When it comes to how much you will pay for your policy by TruStage, the rates vary depending on your location, age, gender, tobacco use, medical history, the policy you are applying for, and the amount of coverage you obtain.

Generally, policies with lenient underwriting attract rates more than those you must medically qualify for. That said, the best way to know how much you will pay for your policy is to request a quote online.

As with most life insurance providers, TruStage requires you to identify gender, date of birth, and zip code when requesting a quote.

Overall, TruStage policy rates are relatively higher compared to rates of similar or comparable offerings by other life insurance providers. They do not offer any discounts.

Note: Although TruStage life insurance policies are far from being cheap for an average person, the company that underwrites its policies has an A rating with A.M. Best, meaning they are financially stable.

If you buy a policy, there is a strong likelihood that the company will be around when designated beneficiaries file a claim.

Pros of TruStage life insurance policies

TruStage life insurance company may not be among the top-rated companies, but it still has some goodies that attract its customers.  It is the best or only option for some people because of the following reasons.

• No medical exam for most policies:

Basically, all applicants seeking a TruStage life insurance cover can access the coverage without a medical exam or any invasive health status testing.

An applicant will only be required to answer a few health-related questions online and be ready for coverage.

• Easy and fast Online application:

To get a quote and coverage, applicants can search for TruStage online, request a quote, and apply for coverage. It takes not more than 10 minutes to complete the whole process, and the client relaxes, awaiting coverage.

•      No waiting period:

Apart from the guaranteed life insurance policy, all other policies sold by TruStage life insurance companies have no waiting period.

The coverage starts as soon as the first premium payments are made. Clients who need immediate or instant coverage can buy any life insurance cover from this company because of the assurance that coverage is immediate.

• 30 days for a money-back guarantee on all policies: 

No matter the kind of policy you buy, you will be given a 30 day trial period to affirm if you are comfortable with the policy or not.

According to your needs, you can cancel it within 30 days and get a 100% refund if you find it unpleasant and unsatisfying.

• Conversion of policies is allowed:

You don’t necessarily need to buy new coverage if you have already bought term coverage and wish to advance to a whole life cover.

You can convert the term policy to a whole life policy while the coverage is still effective. You will not be subjected to a medical exam during this conversion process either.

• Offers AD&D coverage to certain credit unions:

Even though the accidental death and dismemberment  (AD&D) coverage is not available online, TruStage insurance company offers it to a few selected credit unions.

• Whole life insurance premiums and coverage do not change:

With TruStage life insurance, the whole life premiums remain constant throughout, and it does not expire as long as premiums are paid. The coverage amount too does not reduce despite the economic fluctuation.

• Guaranteed acceptance:

Once you apply for coverage and answer the few health questions correctly, you will get guaranteed acceptance and policy activation after paying the first premium.

Customers that have been denied coverage elsewhere can easily get it with TruStage life insurance company.

• Well rated financially:

The company is financially stable with positive high-rank ratings from different financial rating companies. It is therefore capable of paying for all the claims made on time.

• Good customer service:

TruStage insurance offers good customer service that can be accessed with ease online.

Cons of TruStage life insurance policies

1. Minimal riders:

TruStage does not offer riders on term or whole life policies. If you need to customize your policy, you will have to shop it elsewhere, not with TruStage insurance.

1. Limited coverage for term life:

Term life insurance is capped at a maximum of $300, 000 yet the premiums are generally very expensive. You cannot buy a policy that exceeds the capped amount.

1. Term life insurance expires at 80 years:

If you buy a term life insurance cover, it automatically ends at 80 years even after paying all the premiums, and no refund is made.

If you live past the 80 years age limit, your beneficiaries will not benefit from the term life coverage.

1. Premiums increase after five years for the term:

For all term life insurance policies sold by TruStage, the premiums increase by a certain predetermined factor up to the age of 75 years. Therefore, the premiums a client pays keep rising after every five years.

1. Has no universal life products:

If you plan to buy a universal life insurance cover, TruStage may not serve you because it does not offer such policies.

1. The online application is not clear:

Even though applications can be done online, the quotes are confusing, and one may buy a cover they did not intend to buy. Similarly, the application process is short but confusing unless you seek help from an insurance expert.

FAQs

• Is TruStage a good insurance provider?

TruStage is a reputable online life insurance provider offering a number of products for its consumers. They are committed to offering consumers accurate and reasonable policies.

• Does TruStage underwrite its policies?

TruStage is rather a consumer-facing agency, not an insurance company. They partner with other insurance companies that underwrite the policies they sell.

For instance, TruStage life insurance policies are underwritten by CMFG Life Insurance Company, a well-established and financially stable insurer with an A rating with AM Best.

• Do I have to be a credit union member to purchase TruStage policies?

While TruStage partners with over 3,500 credit unions to make its products accessible to members of credit unions, you don’t necessarily need to be a credit union member to purchase policies from TruStage. All TruStage life insurance products are available to everyone nationwide.

• Is TruStage safe?

TruStage is a safe and reliable insurance provider and has a safe, user-friendly platform where individuals can initiate the process of buying policies.

• What happens when a policyholder turns 80 years?

With TruStage, term life insurance policies expire when the policyholder turns 80. Other policies – guaranteed acceptance and simplified issue whole life policies – will remain in force for a lifetime as long as the policyholder continues to pay premiums.

Conclusion

Purchasing a life insurance policy is by no means an easy feat. If you want a life insurance policy and prefer an online application that requires no medical exam and fast approval, TruStage might be worth a look.

The only issue with TruStage policies is the higher rates that might not be affordable for an average person.

If you want reasonably priced coverage, you can almost certainly get better deals elsewhere.