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Top 10 Best Burial Life and Final Expense Insurance Companies

Researcher & Writer
May 06, 2020

When looking for the best whole life final expense insurance or burial insurance, choose a company that specializes in insurance policies designed to pay funeral and other end-of-life expenses.

The following insurance companies have shown themselves to be the best companies for final expense life insurance. Companies are listed alphabetically rather than in any particular order because no single company on this list is best for everyone.

The right insurance company for you may not be the right one for someone else because there is no one size fits all company. However, any of these ten companies could be a good choice for final expense insurance.

The Best Final Expense Life Insurance and Burial Insurance Companies

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Final expense insurance vs. burial life insurance

Before expanding on why these companies are some of the best in the industry, let's focus on burial and final expense life insurance and how they differ.

What is final expense life insurance?

Final expense insurance is a small whole life insurance policy ranging from $5,000 to $25,000. The primary purpose of the lump sum death benefit payout is to cover funeral expenses, such as a grave marker, cemetery plot, and other final expenses (such as any outstanding debts that are not forgivable upon death).

There are funeral insurance policies that name the funeral home as the beneficiary, which seems beneficial. However, it's probably best to keep a family member you trust as your burial insurance beneficiary, in case the funeral home goes out of business or different arrangements need to be made.

What is burial insurance?

Burial insurance is a small whole life policy ranging from $5,000 to $25,000 in which the death benefit's primary purpose is to cover burial or funeral home expenses. The policy pays out a lump sum death benefit to the beneficiary upon the death of the insured. Some companies market burial insurance as pre-need insurance, which are typically small whole life policies with an increasing death benefit.

Understanding the difference between final expense insurance and burial insurance

Both final expense and burial insurance are forms of end-of-life insurance. The biggest difference between final expense insurance and burial insurance is that final expense insurance typically includes a death benefit large enough to cover other final expenses in addition to the cost of a burial. Whereas burial insurance, also known as a funeral insurance policy, is typically strictly for the cost of paying for a funeral and nothing more. Generally, most people want enough to cover burial and final expenses.

Contrast this with those considering between life insurance or prepaid funeral plans. Burial and final expense insurance policies are typically cash value whole life insurance. Alternatively, a prepaid funeral plan is a contract between the funeral parlor and the individual. A prepaid funeral plan is not individual life insurance.

The main benefit of a prepaid funeral plan is that you lock in the price of your funeral (minus a few administration and other expenses your loved ones pay pay later). The benefit of final expense life insurance, however, is that the beneficiary can use funds to cover additional expenses, such as medical bills or other debt.


Planning Your Future

While planning for your family's future, consider creating a will using Fabric. Fabric is an online life insurance company that also offers a free will creation service and more.


Top 10 Final Expense Whole Life Insurance and Burial Insurance Companies

AIG - Guaranteed Issue Whole Life

American General made a big splash on the final expense insurance scene in 2017 with the introduction of its new Guaranteed Issue Whole Life policy. You can now get life insurance from AIG that requires no health questions or medical exam.

The policy is available for ages 50-85, for coverage up to $25,000. It is a graded death benefit policy, paying 110% of premiums if the insured dies in the first two years, and the full death benefit payout in the third year. The payor on the policy can be someone other than the insured, making it a great life insurance for parents policy, if you want to make sure your parent has life insurance coverage but they cannot afford the premiums.

Read more in our AIG Life Insurance Company Review.

Americo - Ultra Protector Series

Americo offers various whole life products to help with final expenses and burial costs for applicants ages 50-85. The burial policy offers guaranteed level premiums and coverage cannot be canceled due to health or age. Face amounts range from $2,000 to $30,000.

Accelerated Benefit rider is available on Ultra Protector I and II allowing up to 50% of face amount to be paid to the insured if he or she is diagnosed with a terminal illness. Ultra Protector I and II are simplified issue and do require the applicant to pass a health screening involving health questions and height and weight requirements.

Read more in our Americo Life Insurance Company Review

American National - Strategy Whole Life

American National offers level, graded and modified death benefit plans. This insurance company offers face amounts from $2,000 to $50,000 for level, and up to $25,000 for graded and modified death benefit plans. The policy builds cash value that can be borrowed against and there is a terminal illness rider on all polices with face amounts of $25,000 or greater.

Read more in our American National Life Insurance Company Review

Assurity - Simplified Level Benefit Whole Life and Graded Benefit

Assurity is a top no medical exam company. Assurity's simplified level benefit plan is a great option for those looking for an affordable burial or final expense whole life insurance policy. this insurance company’s whole life product provides whole life coverage that starts from day 1. Up to age 65 the death benefit offered is between $5,000 to $50,000. From 66 to 80 the face amount offered is $5,000 to $25,000.

Premiums and face amount stay the same for the life of the policy. The product is simplified issue permanent life insurance so there are some health questions that need to be answered. Assurity is a great option for people looking for a permanent final expense policy or burial insurance policy who are somewhat healthy (i.e. not currently being treated for cancer, heart disease, or liver disease).

Read more in our Assurity Life Insurance Review

Foresters - PlanRight Whole Life

Foresters is one of our picks for the best life insurance in the U.S. The company's PlanRight product is a simplified issue final expense insurance policy offered from Foresters. Since it is simplified issue there are some health questions involved.

The product is priced well for those who can qualify, making it one of the most affordable final expense insurance companies. And the good news is the underwriting guidelines are very liberal so many clients can qualify.

As a result, the PlanRight Whole Life product from Foresters makes an excellent final expense or burial insurance choice. The Policy is available for ages 50-85 with a maximum face amount of $35,000 to age 80 and $15,000 for applicants 81-85 year old.

Read more in our Foresters Life Insurance Company Review

Gerber Life - Guaranteed Life

Gerber offers an excellent guarantee issue whole life policy for clients with serious health issues looking to secure cheap final expense insurance or burial insurance with no questions asked, no exams, no blood draws and no urine samples. The coverage is available for ages 50-80 for face amounts ranging from $5,000 to $25,000.

Premiums are fixed for the life of the policy, and there is a cash account that accumulates cash value and can be used to pay premiums for a period of time or borrowed against. Just know that if you take out a policy loan and don't pay it back before you pass away, your beneficiary may receive a lower payout.

This is 2-year graded benefit life insurance policy. If the insured dies due to an accidental death, the full face amount will be paid due to the accidental death benefit, which will pay out from the policy issue date. However, if the insured dies from a natural cause during the first two years of the burial policy, the beneficiary will receive all premiums paid plus 10%.

Gerber offers some of the best burial insurance for seniors. Often, those looking for life insurance on someone else, such as a parent or grandparent will find that Gerber is a great fit.

Read more in our Gerber Guaranteed Life Insurance review

Mutual of Omaha - Living Promise

Available for ages 45-85, United of Omaha Life Insurance Company offers a great level benefit policy. This is a whole life burial or final expense insurance policy that builds cash value. Face amounts range from $2,000 to $40,000.

This is not guaranteed acceptance. There is a background check including the medical information bureau (MIB) and prescription drug database.

The insurance comes with an accelerated death benefit rider which will pay out early if the insured is diagnosed with a terminal illness and given less than 12 months or if the insured is confined to a nursing home for more than 90 days and is expected to remain confined for the duration of the insured’s life. If you need cheap burial life insurance that builds cash value and offers some unique riders, this is a great choice.

Read more in our United of Omaha Life Insurance Review

Sagicor - Sage NLUL Standard

Sagicor offers an excellent simplified issue universal life product for ages 18-65. Ages 66-85 will need to be fully underwritten in order to qualify. Sagicor's No Lapse Universal Life is available on face amounts at or above $25,000.

Sagicor is an excellent choice for an affordable final expense insurance because the company offers various health classes including preferred, standard and rated up to table 8. An Accelerated Benefit Insurance Rider covering terminal illness or chronic illness is included at no additional cost.

Read more in our Sagicor Life Insurance Review

Transamerica - Immediate Solution Standard

Offering level premiums to age 121 for applicants up to age 85, Transamerica is another fine choice when looking for an affordable final expense or burial whole life insurance. This policy has a minimum face amount of $1,000 and a maximum up to $50,000 for applicants age 55 and under, $40,000 up to age 65, $30,000 up to age 75, and $25,000 up to age 85. That is why this is a great final expense policy for older applicants who need a bit more coverage.

Read more in our Transamerica Life Insurance Review

United Home Life - Express Issue Premier

Issue ages for this simplified issue product are from age 20-80. Face amounts range from $5,000 to $100,000 through age 60 and $5,000 to $50,000 through age 80, making it a great burial insurance for seniors option. This is a cheap final expense product for healthier applicants, such as type II diabetics non-insulin dependent.

For more, see our article: United Home Life Insurance Company Reviews.

Honorable Mention

The following company almost made the list but was just slightly edged out:

Vantis Life Insurance Company offers burial whole life insurance at highly competitive rates.

Why choose Burial Insurance or Final Expense Insurance?

Typically, the benefits of final expense insurance coverage or burial insurance coverage is twofold:

  1. The potential insured has no coverage and some pre-existing condition is preventing them from buying a conventional life insurance policy.
  2. The potential insured desires to leave money behind so that family or friends have a way to provide a proper burial.

A funeral and burial plot can be expensive. And even if you don't let the funeral director up-sell you on additional services, the average funeral expense and burial costs run anywhere from $6,000-$10,000. For cremation, you might pay $3,000-$5,000. So you should consider a minimum of $5,000 to have the proper insurance coverage.

Plus, there are additional fees when wrapping up an estate, such as paying off any secure creditors. And the alternative to having money for a proper burial is not pretty. If your family can't pay your funeral costs or medical bills, they may not be able to say goodbye to you in the way that comforts them most.

What type of final expense life insurance is best for me?

This is a great question. The reality is the best final expense insurance is an insurance policy you can qualify for, that will last your whole life. You have two main choices for whole life burial or final expense insurance: simplified issue and guaranteed issue.

Simplified issue: these policies ask health questions and some conduct background screenings such as checking the medical information bureau and prescription database. If you can pass the health questions and/or background check this type of policy is a less expensive alternative to guaranteed issue.

Guaranteed issue: No exam, no health questions, everyone between the ages 50-80 can qualify. However, if you are looking for the most affordable burial insurance or final expense insurance, this might not be the best choice. Why? Premiums will generally be higher on guaranteed issue life insurance because the risk to the company is higher.

Beware of Graded Premium Whole Life

A Graded Premium Whole Life Insurance Policy (as opposed to a Graded Death Benefit) starts out with a very low premium that increases over a period of time. The problem with graded premium life insurance is the premium can increase substantially, which puts a strain on your budget.

As the premium increases, many policy owners are forced to let the policy lapse, thereby losing their coverage. Rather, choosing fixed premium whole life insurance for final expense or burial insurance is a better route since the premiums do not change for the entire policy.

Beware of Term Life Masquerading as Final Expense Insurance

Final expense insurance needs to be permanent life insurance, specifically whole life, otherwise don't waste your time and money. There are certain insurance companies out there that market to seniors that are offering term life, rather than whole life.

The major problem is the term policy will increase in premiums every five years. Further, the term life insurance policy ends at a specific age, such as age 80.

So what ends up happening is you buy the policy thinking it is permanent, only to find out your premiums are going up and that it ends at age 80. Or worse yet, you don't find it out until your policy expires and you end up wasting all your money on a temporary policy.

The bottom line

Here's what to look for in a final expense insurance or burial life insurance company

The key to finding the best final expense whole life insurance or burial insurance company is to work with an independent insurance agent and know how to read between the lines. All too often a company will seemingly offer everything under the sun only to have too many restrictions or clauses once you read the fine print.

The best final expense whole life insurance or burial insurance companies are those that are top rated, competitively priced, and offer a fixed premium for the rest of your life.

Written by
TermLife2Go
We are a team of life insurance experts with the simple mission of helping you find the best coverage for your unique situation. We research, review, and rank life insurance companies to make that process easier.