Banner's 40 Year Term Life Insurance Policy - Is It Worth the Cost?

Clifford PendellWritten by Clifford Pendell, Managing Partner and Co-founder

banner life 40-year term review bannerIt's no secret, the major downside to term life insurance is that most people outlive their policy.

If you expect to pay off all of your debts and meet the majority of your financial obligations within in 20 or 30 years, this shouldn't be an issue.

But what should you do if you need to secure affordable life insurance longer than 30 years?

In this post we've evaluated the rates and benefits that Banner's 35-year term and 40-year term policies offer and compared them to some alternatives to help you determine if one options offer the best coverage for your situation.

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Is There 40 Year Term Life Insurance?

The Banner Life/William Penn company is an A+ rated life insurance provider that offers a variety term lengths including a 35 and 40 year level term. Like traditional term policies, Banner's OPTerm offers a fixed death benefit with guaranteed rates for set number of years.

Banner's OPTerm policies are annually renewable until the age of 95 and they are offer a conversion option. This feature allows you to convert your term policy into permanent coverage, but it must be exercised before you reach the age of 70, or the end of your term - whichever occurs first.

Other term lengths available from Banner Life include 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 years, and you have the option to you cancel your coverage at any time without penalty. Currently, a 35 and 40 year term are available until age 45, while a 30 year term is available until the age of 55.

How Much Does a 40 Year Term Policy Cost?

With term life insurance, the longer the period of coverage your policy provides, the more expensive your premiums will be. When we are young and healthy, the increase in cost is minimal, but as we get older a longer term can double the cost of your coverage.

Let's take look at how Banner's rates for 30 year term compare to the cost of a 35 and 40 year level term policy.

$250,000 Term Life Rates for a Male in Preferred Health

Age30-Year Term35-Year Term40-Year Term
25$22.73$27.05$30.32
30$23.74$29.19$33.72
35$25.28$30.48$43.57
40$34.19$42.88$71.92
45$54.78$67.45$107.43

*Displayed monthly rates are for the "preferred" rate class and are accurate as of 03/16/2019. Rates are subject to change at any time and are provided for illustrative purposes only.

$500,000 Term Life Rates for a Male in Preferred Health

Age30-Year Term35-Year Term40-Year Term
25$38.81$46.93$53.22
30$39.99$49.92$60.63
35$43.56$53.35$81.99
40$60.76$78.15$136.41
45$99.24$127.30$205.86

*Displayed monthly rates are for the "preferred" rate class and are accurate as of 03/16/2019. Rates are subject to change at any time and are provided for illustrative purposes only.

The Banner Life company offers 16 different rate classes for applicants in excellent to fair health, and they are very lenient with some health issues like well-controlled diabetes. The rates displayed above are available to applicants with some minor health issues.

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Life Insurance Riders Available

Life insurance riders are additional benefits or features that can be added to a life insurance policy to customize your coverage. Most insurers offer a handful of free riders, but others may be available for an added fee. Here are the riders the Banner's 40 year term currently offers:

• Waiver of Premium Rider

The waiver of premium rider is a fairly-common benefit that is available from most insurers at an additional monthly cost. With this rider, the life insurance company pays your premiums if you become critically ill or disabled for more than six months.

The only downside to this benefit is that you must be disabled for at least six months before it becomes active and you are still responsible for making your monthly payments during this time. You are also required to present proof of disability to your insurance provider.

The waiver of premium benefit is available to qualifying individuals in excellent to fair health, with a maximum face amount of $6,000,000. All of Banner's policy's offer this option, and it available to smokers until the age of 50, and non-smokers until the age of 55.

• Accelerated Death Benefit Rider

With an accelerated death benefit, also known as an ADB rider, the insured can access their policy's death benefit if they are diagnosed with a qualifying terminal illness. The maximum benefit available with this rider is $500,000, or 75% of the policy’s face amount.

If they insured does not pass away, the accelerated death benefit does not need to be repaid. However, if the insured does not outlive their term, their policy's death benefit will be reduced by the amount of the ADB rider when they pass away.

The life insurance companies do not put restrictions on how your accelerated death benefit is spent. It can be used to pay off the mortgage, medical bills, family vacations, or supplement your income while you take time off work to focus on getting better.

• Children Protection Rider

A child protection rider provides a small amount of life insurance protection to the insured's juvenile child or children.

A child rider covers all of the insured's children to until the child’s 25th birthday, the insured's 65th birthday, or policy termination (whichever comes first).

With a child protection rider, any unmarried child, stepchild, or legally adopted child under the age of 18 is eligible for protection. However, due to state laws, the Banner Life company does not offer this benefit in New York or Maryland.

• Term Conversion Rider

A term conversion rider, or policy conversion rider, is a free rider that allows a policy holder to convert their term policy into permanent coverage. This benefit must be utilized during before your policy expires, the age of 70, or the first five years of your policy, whichever occurs first.

This rider can be invaluable for anyone who's health takes a turn for the worse as they get older. With a term conversion rider, you do not have to reprove your insurability. Your coverage is guaranteed regardless of your health.

Term Riders Banner offers a benefit known as a term rider which allows you to adjust length the of policy if your needs change as you get older. You can also cancel your policy at any time without penalty if you pay off of mortgage or retire sooner than you expected.

Please note: Some of the riders we've listed may not be available in all states. Before you apply for coverage, please consult with your licensed agent to verify availability and eligibility in your state.

Questions? We Can Help!

Thinking about purchasing a term life policy? We can help!

JRC works with more than 50 top-rated insurance companies and all of our licensed agents offer multiple years of life insurance experience.

By asking you a few questions about your health and lifestyle, we can match you with the best life insurance options available. Our agents are not pushy sales people with weekly quotas or monthly sales goals to meet, we’re here to help.

Most importantly, our non-partial shopping services are completely free, and there is no cost to apply for coverage.

Give us a call today, toll-free at: 855-247-9555, or request free quote below to instantly compare rates from dozens of top-rated life insurance providers.

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Clifford Pendell

Clifford Pendell

Managing Partner and Co-founder

Cliff is a licensed life insurance agent and one of the owners of JRC Insurance Group. He has helped thousands of families of businesses with their life insurance needs since 2012 and specializes with applicants who are less than perfect health. In his spare time he enjoys spending time with family, traveling, and the great outdoors.

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