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Lincoln Financial Life Insurance Review
By Susan Doktor MONEY RESEARCH COLLECTIVE
Founded in 1905 as The Lincoln National Life Insurance Company, Lincoln Financial is one of the longest-serving insurance companies in the US. It offers customers several types of life insurance to suit their needs and financial circumstances throughout life’s changes. The company also offers financial planning services, employer-sponsored retirement savings accounts, annuities, and long-term care planning products.
Table of contents
- Lincoln Financial life insurance overview
- Lincoln Financial’s services
- Lincoln Financial’s credentials
- Lincoln Financial’s accessibility
- Lincoln FInancial’s customer satisfaction
- Lincoln Financial vs. the competition
- Lincoln Financial life insurance FAQs
- How we evaluated Lincoln Financial life insurance
- Summary of Miami Herald’s Lincoln Financial review
Lincoln Financial Life Insurance Overview
You want life insurance options? The Lincoln Financial Life Insurance Company has a lot of them. The company offers term life policies and a wide range of permanent life insurance subcategories, including Universal, Indexed Universal and Variable Universal policies.
The one type of policy Lincoln Financial doesn’t offer, however, is traditional, level-premium whole life insurance, which is the most commonly purchased kind of whole life. Frankly, that surprised us. But Universal, Indexed Universal and Variable Universal policies are well-suited to some customers’ goals, particularly those looking to grow their wealth and have flexible premium options.
But customers looking for a digital life insurance buying experience won’t find it with Lincoln Financial. The company doesn’t offer online quotes — pretty much a must for comparing policies online. Nowadays, it’s easy to request an instant quote from many insurance providers. You can’t apply for a policy online, either. You’ll need to speak with an insurance advisor for that.
That being said, Lincoln Financial’s website offers some resources to help customers understand the features of their life insurance policies and figure out what type and how much life insurance they need. Among those tools is a simple-to-use “How Much Life Insurance Do I Need” calculator. You can also talk with a Lincoln Financial insurance advisor by phone or via live chat on the company’s website.
Lincoln Financial’s Services
What it offers
- Term life policies
- Universal, Indexed Universal and Variable Universal permanent life insurance products
- No-medical-exam term life policies
- Personalized service from an insurance advisor
- Life insurance calculator
What it doesn’t offer
- Traditional level-premium whole life insurance policies
- New Universal Life policies
- Online insurance rates
- Online application
Term Life Policy Options
Lincoln Financial offers two term life policy options: Lincoln TermAccel® Level Term and Lincoln LifeElements ® Level Term.
Lincoln TermAccel® Level Term offers the following features:
- Guaranteed level premium period: 10, 15, 20, or 30 years. After the level premium period, premiums will increase annually until age 95.
- Minimum coverage amount: $100,000
- Maximum coverage amount: $2,500,000
- Policy fees: $100,000-$249,999: $80 payable all years / $250,000-$2,500,000: $90 payable all years
- Accelerated benefits rider: Pays out a portion of the death benefit if you were to develop a terminal illness likely to result in death within six months. (There is a one-time charge if this rider is exercised.)
- Children’s level term insurance rider: Available at an additional cost, provides level term coverage for all children of the insured.
- Waiver of premium rider: Available at an additional cost, waives premium payments during the disability period of an insured who becomes totally disabled.
Lincoln LifeElements® Level Term policies offer the following features:
- Flexibility to convert your term policy into permanent life insurance
- Guaranteed level premium period: 10, 15, 20 or 30 years. After the level premium period, if you continue the contract, the premiums will increase annually until age 95.
- Minimum coverage amount: $250,000
- Maximum coverage amount: Subject to individual consideration and underwriting limits.
- Policy fees: All term periods, payable each year: $90 for policies under $1,000,000; $70 for policies $1,000,000 and above.
- Accelerated benefits rider: Pays out a portion of the death benefit if you were to develop a terminal illness likely to result in death within six months. There is a one-time charge if this rider is exercised.
- Children’s level term insurance rider: Available at an additional cost, provides level term coverage for all children of the insured.
- Waiver of premium rider: Available at an additional cost, waives premium payments during the disability period of an insured who becomes totally disabled.
Whole Life Policy Options
Level-premium Whole Life Insurance
Lincoln Financial doesn’t offer level-premium Whole Life insurance.
Universal Life Insurance
Lincoln Financial isn’t currently issuing new Universal Life insurance policies.
Indexed Universal Life Insurance
Lincoln Financial offers three Indexed Universal Life policy options. Generally speaking, Indexed Universal Life has greater earning potential. That potential varies by option. Customers should be aware that the greater the wealth-building potential a policy has, the more risk that is involved. Indexed Universal Life is categorized as a medium-risk option by Lincoln Financial. Here are the three Indexed Universal Life policies offered by the company.
Lincoln WealthAccumulate® 2 IUL (2020) — This policy allows policy owners to select from 6 different investment options:
- Fidelity AIM® Dividend Indexed Account – Fixed Bonus
- Fidelity AIM® Dividend Indexed Account
- S&P 500® Multiplier Indexed Account
- S&P 500® Fixed Bonus Indexed Account
- S&P 500® Traditional Indexed Account
- S&P 500® Performance Trigger Indexed Account
Lincoln WealthPreserve® 2 IUL (2020) — This policy offers a long-term death benefit guarantee that lasts for up to 40 years or to age 90 (whichever comes first). Customers can choose between five investment options:
- Fidelity AIM® Dividend Indexed Account – Fixed Bonus
- Fidelity AIM® Dividend Indexed Account
- S&P 500® Fixed Bonus Indexed Account
- S&P 500® Traditional Indexed Account
- S&P 500® Performance Trigger Indexed Account
Lincoln WealthPreserve® 2 Survivorship IUL (2022) — This policy offers the option of insuring two individuals under the same policy. Policyholders can select between six investment options, each of which offers downside protection. It’s the least risky option among Lincoln Financials Indexed Universal Life policies. Investment options are as follows:
- Fidelity AIM® Dividend Indexed Account – Fixed Bonus
- Fidelity AIM® Dividend Indexed Account
- S&P 500® Multiplier Indexed Account
- S&P 500® Fixed Bonus Indexed Account
- S&P 500® Traditional Indexed Account
- S&P 500® Performance Trigger Indexed Account
Variable Universal Life Insurance Options
Variable Universal Life Insurance is the category of policy within which Lincoln Financial offers the widest range of choices. We counted fourteen. Some are single life insurance products, some are survivorship life insurance products, and others are trust insurance products. With a trust insurance product, you are not the legal owner of your policy; rather, the proceeds of the policy are owned by a trust.
You can read about each of Lincoln Financial Variable Universal Life insurance options in detail on the company’s website. According to the company, Variable Universal Life insurance products have multiple benefits in common:
- All the benefits of universal life insurance
- Flexible premiums and death benefits
- Cash value growth potential based on the performance of your market-driven fund allocations
- Ability to choose where your premiums are invested
- Multiple tax advantages now and in the future
- Access to rider options that can help you meet multiple planning goals
- Lincoln Financial Life Insurance Cost
Lincoln Financial plays it close to the vest when it comes to policy premiums — at least online. To find out how much you’ll pay for any of the provider’s policies, you must speak to one of the company’s financial advisors. However, we were able to get an estimate of costs through a third-party website and the quoted rates are listed below.
- 30-year term life with a $500,000 death benefit policy for a healthy, non-smoking 30-year-old female: $25-$47 per month
- Whole life policy with a $500,000 death benefit for a healthy, non-smoking 30-year-old female: $374-$384 per month
Lincoln Financial’s Credentials
Licenses and registrations
Lincoln Financial is owned by Lincoln National Corporation. The company offers a wide range of financial services in addition to life insurance and is licensed by a variety of regulatory organizations, including the Security & Exchange Commission, and is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange. Lincoln Financial is registered with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) under the name Lincoln National Life Insurance and the number 65676.
Awards and certifications
Lincoln Financial Group has earned several distinctions, including:
- Named “One of The World’s Most Ethical Companies in 2022” by Ethisphere
- Included in Forbes’ “List of Best Employers for Women”
- Included in Newsweek’s “America’s Most Responsible Companies in 2021”
Regulatory or legal actions
According to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, Lincoln National Life Insurance has a very low complaint volume, indexed at 0.08 where 1.0 is average. We consulted the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s database and found zero complaints filed for the company with that organization.
Lincoln Financial’s Accessibility
Availability
Lincoln Financial life insurance policies are available in all states except New York. Customers can purchase policies once they reach the age of 18. New term life policies are offered to customers up until 60 years of age. If you’re between 18 and 60 years old, enjoy excellent health, and wish to purchase a policy with a $1 million or smaller death benefit, you may not need to complete a medical exam to qualify for coverage.
Contact information
You can contact Lincoln Financial by calling its toll-free phone number, 877-275-5462. You can address any questions via live chat on the company’s website. You can also mail the company at 150 N Radnor Chester RD Radnor 19087.
User experience
Lincoln Financial Group’s website is not the most user-friendly. While it contains a lot of information on its products, many details that make life insurance shopping easier are not well-indexed and hard to find. In addition, the company doesn’t offer a robust online experience: it doesn’t offer real-time policy quotes or support online applications for life insurance. For those customers who are more comfortable with personalized service and researching products by phone, Lincoln Financial can offer the experience they’re looking for.
Limitations
The primary limitation we noted with Lincoln Financial Group’s product line-up is the absence of traditional, level-premium life insurance policies. In addition, the company is not currently issuing new fixed Universal Life policies. These are some of the most popular, easiest to understand and low-risk insurance options.
Lincoln Financial’s Customer Satisfaction
Customer complaints
Lincoln National Corporation, which owns Lincoln Financial Group, earns an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau. However, customers who review the organization on the BBB’s website give the company just 1.06 out of 5 stars. That rating is based on just 17 reviews. We also noted that many of the customer complaints registered through the BBB don’t relate to life insurance products, so you shouldn’t infer too much about the company’s capabilities as a life insurance provider.
Overall, Lincoln Financial receives positive reviews in the personal finance press, with ratings generally in the 4-out-of-5 star range. Lincoln Financial is not rated on Trustpilot at this time.
Third-Party ratings
There are a number of organizations that rate the financial strength of insurance and other publicly traded companies. Here’s how Lincoln Financial stacks up with the top rating providers:
Lincoln Financial Group’s Financial Rating Summary
| Agency | Outlook | Long-Term Credit Rating |
| AM Best | Negative | bbb+ (8th highest of 22 ratings) |
| Fitch | Negative | BBB+ (8th highest of 21 ratings) |
| Moody’s | Negative | Baa1 (8th highest of 21 ratings) |
| Standard & Poors | Stable | BBB+ (8th highest of 22 ratings |
Lincoln Financial vs. the Competition
| Lincoln Financial | Transamerica | AIG | |
| AM best rating | bbb+ | a+ | a |
| Types of insurance | Term Life, Indexed Universal, and Variable Universal, Medical Long Term Expense | Term, Whole, Indexed Universal, Final Expense | Term, Whole, Guaranteed Issue Whole, Quality of Life, Universal |
| Coverage | $100,000 to $2,500,000 | $25K–$10 million and up | $100,000 to $2,000,000 |
Lincoln Financial Life Insurance FAQs
How We Evaluated Lincoln Financial Life Insurance
Customers purchase life insurance for a wide range of financial and personal reasons. We looked at the policy types Lincoln Financial offers customers to see whether, in total, they meet the needs of the lion’s share of individuals. The company does offer a lot of choices but does not offer two of the permanent policy types that people often select: whole life and universal.
Policyholders want to know that their insurance providers are going to be able to meet their financial obligations. We researched Lincoln Financial’s financial strength ratings and they’re mixed. Some ratings agencies gave the company a negative outlook, though Lincoln Financial’s long-term credit ratings are respectable and fall on the high side of average.
We also evaluated the customer experience Lincoln Financial offers and found it to be a little old-school. The company doesn’t offer online quotes — which make comparison shopping easier — or an online application process. Customers can’t make premium payments online, either.
Summary of Miami Herald’s Lincoln Financial review
- Types of Life Insurance offered: Term, Variable Universal Life, and Indexed Universal Life policies available
- No-medical-exam policies under certain circumstances
- Offers multiple riders to customize your policy
- Financial advisors available by phone to offer personalized service
- Moderately-strong financial ratings
