Life insurance is a type of financial protection you can purchase to help provide for your loved ones if you pass away. When you buy a life insurance policy, you agree to a premium rate to the insurance provider in exchange for a death benefit. If you pass away while the policy is active, your named beneficiaries will receive the death benefit to use towards end-of-life expenses, living costs or other financial needs.
Formerly known as the CUNA Mutual Group, TruStage offers a wide variety of life insurance products. While it primarily sells life insurance to credit unions and businesses, it also offers personal products to individual policyholders. TruStage currently offers both term life and whole life insurance products, with guaranteed-issue whole life policies also available.
Term Life Insurance
Term life insurance is a type of life insurance coverage that is active for a specific term — usually 10 to 30 years — following the date you sign up for coverage. If the policyholder does not die during the term, the policy will not pay out the death benefits. However, you may have the option to convert your term policy into a whole life policy.
Unlike most insurance providers, TruStage does not offer a range of term options. Its only term length is five years, which means your rate may increase every five years if you choose to renew your coverage.
TruStage offers multiple options for term life insurance coverage, with death benefits between $5,000 and $300,000. TruStage offers term policies using a simplified application process, which means no required medical exam, health questions or blood testing.
While this range of death benefits is lower than most other major term life insurance providers, TruStage’s no-exam-required application could be beneficial for those with a health history that may result in higher premiums or exclusion from a standard policy.
Whole Life Insurance
Whole life insurance is a type of permanent life insurance, which means it does not have a term. Instead, whole life insurance lasts for the lifetime of the insured person — so long as premiums remain paid.
Life insurance rates for whole life policies are typically higher than term policies. But as an added benefit, a portion of premiums paid into whole life insurance gets invested into a cash value portion of your policy, which you can access and borrow against while you’re alive.
TruStage whole life insurance insurance is available with death benefits ranging between $5,000 and $100,000, which is higher than most competing life insurance providers offering coverage through an online application and underwriting processes. Whole life policies lock in your premium for the course of your life.
TruStage also offers guaranteed-acceptance whole life insurance options, which means you will not be turned down for coverage due to health issues. These policies, which tend to be pricier than traditional whole coverage, are available for applicants between the ages of 45 to 80, but death benefit options are limited to $25,000.
For guaranteed-acceptance whole life policies, if your death is not accidental in the first two years, TruStage limits your benefits to a return of 100% of premiums paid plus 10%.
Accidental Death and Dismemberment Insurance
Generally, accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D) insurance is an add-on you can choose to include with your life insurance policies. This type of coverage provides an additional cash payout if you die in a covered accident or sustain a qualifying injury that prevents you from returning to work permanently.
Like the payout from a life insurance policy, you or your beneficiaries can use the payout for any type of financial need, ranging from final expense bills to day-to-day bills.
TruStage does not offer AD&D insurance as an independent policy, nor does it offer it as an add-on after purchasing coverage. Instead, TruStage offers complimentary AD&D coverage to members of more than 3,500 credit unions across the country, with coverage amounts ranging between $10,000 and $300,000.
AD&D coverage also increases by 5%, up to 50% over 10 years, every year until the policyholder reaches age 70. The TruStage website provides a list of credit unions whose customers qualify for this additional coverage.
