Farm Bureau Life Insurance Review

When planning for financial growth and protection, it is almost always necessary to consider life insurance.

The proceeds from this type of coverage can be applied to a wide variety of needs by loved ones and survivors, such as for the payoff of debt (including a mortgage balance), as well as for paying everyday living expenses.

These funds can essentially help to keep beneficiaries from facing financial hardship if the unexpected occurs.

If you are in the process of seeking the right life insurance protection, it is important to keep some key criteria in mind.

These should ideally include getting the right type and amount of coverage, as well as ensuring that the insurance company you choose to purchase the policy through is secure and stable financially.

One company that provides a long history of financial strength to assure its policyholders better is Farm Bureau Financial Services.

The History of Farm Bureau Life Insurance

Farm Bureau was founded in 1939 in Des Moines, Iowa. The company’s initial mission was to meet the unique liability insurance needs of farmers.

As the company has grown throughout the years, though, it has added many additional coverage options, including home and property coverage, auto insurance, and life insurance protection. These products are offered primarily via the company’s 4,000plus field agents.

Today, the companies that make up the Farm Bureau Financial Services brand include the following:

• Farm Bureau Mutual Holding Company. This company consists of two property casualty underwriting companies – Farm Bureau Property and Casualty Insurance Company, and Western Agricultural Company.

• Farm Bureau Life Insurance Company. Farm Bureau Life Insurance Company came into existence in 1945, and it initially operated under the name of Iowa Life Insurance Company.
  
  The Farm Bureau Life Insurance Company offers a wide array of life insurance coverage options to choose from, including term and permanent coverage.

Farm Bureau Life Insurance Review

Farm Bureau Financial Services is today being financially stable, and the company pays out its policyholder claims quickly.

In 2016, Farmers brought in a record $170 million in net income. The company also added $173 million to its policyholder surplus – which is more than $30 million higher than that of the prior year.

Farm Bureau Financial Services reports an annual revenue of $732.3M as of 2023. After thorough research and analysis, Zippia’s data scientists have uncovered the following vital financial figures for the company

For Farm Bureau Life Insurance Company, in 2016 it showed that the company had nearly $8.8 billion in total assets and more than $6.1 billion in total reserves. (This figure encompasses both individual and industrial life insurance, as well as individual annuities).

As of 2023, Farm Bureau Life Insurance Co.’s estimated net worth stands at a minimum of $281 million. They hold a 10% ownership in American Equity Investment Life Holding Co, possessing approximately 5,233,500 shares of its stock valued at over $281 million.

Insurer Ratings and Better Business Bureau Grade

Due in large part to its financial strength, Farm Bureau has attained high ratings from the insurer rating agencies. These ratings represent the opinions of rating agencies about the ability of an insurance company to meet its financial obligations.

The Farm Bureau companies have been given ratings from A.M. Best Company for more than 50 years. Currently, Farm Bureau Life Insurance Company is rated as an A (Excellent).

Also, Farm Bureau Financial Services has been an accredited company through the Better Business Bureau (BBB) ever since November 1, 1955. The Better Business Bureau has given Farm Bureau a grade of A+, which is on a general grading scale of A+ to F.

Over the past three years, Farm Bureau Financial Services has wrapped up a total of 12 customer complaints via the Better Business Bureau (of which two were closed out within the past 12 months).

Of these total 14 charges, eight had to do with problems with the company’s products and services, three dealt with advertising/sales issues, two had to do with billing and collection issues, and the remaining one was regarding delivery issues.

Life Insurance Coverage Offered Through Farm Bureau

Farm Bureau offers a broad range of different life insurance coverage options from which to choose. These include both term and permanent plans. With term life insurance, there is death benefit coverage only, without any monetary value or savings build-up.

Because of this, term life insurance can often be quite affordable – even for high death benefit amounts. This applies if the insured is younger and in good health at the time of the application.

Term life insurance, as its name suggests, is purchased for a set period – or term – such as ten years, 15 years, 20 years, or even 30 years. During that time, the premium and the death benefit amount will usually remain level.

There are many different term life insurance alternatives that are available through Farm Bureau. These include:

• Choice Term – The Choice Term life insurance plan is the most popular of the term products offered via Farmers. Here, you can choose to purchase protection for 10, 15, 20, or 30 years.
  
  There is also another option where an individual may opt to remain protected for the duration of his or her working life with the To Age 65 option.

• Simple Term – The Simple Term life insurance product offers the ability to obtain coverage without the need to go through a medical examination as a part of the underwriting process. There is also minimal application paperwork to fill out.

• Return of Premium Term – The Return of Premium term life insurance policy allows the insured to receive a return of the premiums paid in, should he or she live through to the end of the policy’s term.

• Children’s Term – Farmers also offers a children’s term life insurance option. While nobody ever wants to think about the tragedy of losing a child, the reality is that unanticipated illnesses and accidents can and do occur.
  
  By having a child protected, the financial details will be taken care of, allowing for one less thing to worry about at an already difficult time. The First Step Children’s Life Insurance policy offers coverage for children until the policy anniversary following the child’s 25th birthday.

Insured who are covered under a term life insurance policy through Farmers may be able to qualify for a premium discount if they have not used tobacco products in the past 12 months before application.

They may also qualify for a lower premium if they meet other set requirements, such as having healthy blood pressure and good cholesterol levels.

Farmers also offer permanent life insurance coverage. With these policies, there is death benefit protection, as well as a cash value build-up that allows for the tax-deferred growth of the funds.

This means that there is no tax due on the gain of the cash value unless or until the money is withdrawn.

There are both whole life and universal life insurance plans from which to choose. With whole life insurance, there is a set amount of death benefit for the remainder of the insured’s lifetime (provided that the premium is paid).

The amount of the premium will also remain level for the life of the policy.

There are several whole life insurance options offered by Farmers. These are the:

• AccumuLife – If building up the cash value is a priority for a policyholder, then the AccumuLife option can be a viable choice.
  
  This whole life insurance policy is designed to grow the cash value more quickly than other permanent policy offerings. These funds can be borrowed against or withdrawn and used for any need that the policyholder sees fit.

• AllLife – AllLife provides long-term life insurance protection, as well as a cash value that grows steadily over time.

• Generation Builder – The Generation Builder is a whole life insurance plan that is specifically geared to children. By purchasing this policy, a child may keep the coverage, even as they become an adult. And, the cash value built up in the policy may be used for future needs in life.

For a permanent life insurance option that provides death benefit coverage, as well as cash value, but that is also more flexible than whole life, there is universal life insurance.

Here, policyholders have the flexibility of changing the timing and placement of where the premium dollars go (within certain guidelines) to accommodate their changing needs in life.

Farmers offer several universal life insurance coverage options, including the following:

• Foundations Universal Life – The Foundations plan can be a good fit for those who are seeking flexibility in coverage and cash value.

• Foundations Indexed Universal Life – With the Foundations Indexed Universal Life policy, the return on the cash value will be based on the performance of an underlying market index. If the index performs well, a return will be credited to the account (typically up to a set cap).
  
  If, however, the performance of the underlying index is negative, the cash account will just be credited with a 0% for that time. This can help to raise principal during market upswings, yet protect principal during market downturns.

• Universal Life with Secondary Guarantee – For those who want “whole life insurance at term life insurance rates,” the Universal Life with Secondary Guarantee may be a good product option.
  
  Provided that the policy’s premiums are paid on time, the plan will remain in force to the insured’s desired age – up to age 121.

Other Products and Services Available

In addition to its wide range of life insurance policies, Farm Bureau also offers a myriad of other products and services.

These include the following:

• Auto insurance

• Home and property insurance

• Health Insurance

• Business Insurance

• Farm and Ranch Insurance

• Mutual Funds

• College Funding

• Retirement Planning Strategies

• Estate Planning

• Liability Protection

Farm Bureau also offers several retirement annuity options. These include:

• Fixed Annuities – Fixed annuities offer a fixed rate of interest that can ensure that the funds within the account will grow and compound at a steady rate. These annuities can also provide a set amount of income in retirement for as long as you need it – regardless of how long you live.

• Indexed Annuities – With an indexed annuity, the return on the funds in the account is based on the performance of an underlying market index, such as the S&P 500. When the underlying index performs well, a positive return will be credited (typically, up to a certain cap).
  
  If, however, the underlying index has a negative performance in each time frame, the account will simply be credited with a 0% for that time. So, while there will be no gain in the account, there will also be no loss – no matter how negatively the underlying index performs.

How to Get the Best Life Insurance Premium Rates on Coverage With Farm Bureau

If you are looking for the best life insurance premium rates on coverage with Farm Bureau – or from any insurer – then it is recommended that you partner with an independent life insurance agent or brokerage.

That way, you can assess, in an impartial manner, the policies and the premium prices from many different insurers – and from there, choose the one that will work the best for you, and for your budget.

We can help you with getting all the life insurance information that you need for making a well-informed purchase decision.

We can do this for you directly via your computer, and without you having to meet with a life insurance agent in person. When you are prepared to proceed, then just click and fill out our quote form.

How We Review Insurance Companies

Good Financial Cents systematically reviews U.S. insurance companies, emphasizing policy offerings, customer experiences, and overall reliability.

Our goal is to present a balanced and comprehensive perspective to potential policyholders. Editorial transparency remains a cornerstone of our approach.

We actively collect information from insurance companies and place significant weight on customer feedback. By integrating this feedback with our research, we can offer a well-rounded evaluation.

Each company is then rated based on multiple criteria, resulting in a star rating from one to five.

For a deeper understanding of the criteria we use to rate insurance companies and our evaluation approach, please refer to our editorial guidelines and full disclaimer.