Bankers Life Launches Accelerated Benefit Rider

CHICAGO, October 23, 2017 – Bankers Life and Casualty Company today announced a new accelerated death benefit rider available on their universal life policies, offering partial accelerated life insurance benefits for qualified chronic illnesses.

The Accelerated Benefit Rider provides access to a portion of the policy’s death benefit if the insured is certified to have a permanent chronic illness. The policy owner can choose either a monthly benefit equal to 3 percent of 75 percent of the death benefit, or a lump-sum semiannual payment.

The benefits of Accelerated Benefit Rider include:

• Benefits are paid directly to the policy owner
• No restrictions on how benefit payments are used, even for expenses not typically covered by insurance
• When receiving benefits, premium and policy charges are waived, and policy won’t lapse
• Benefit payments may be income tax-free
• If living benefits are not used, the full death benefit is still available to beneficiaries

“Our customers need to be prepared for the costs associated with living longer,” said Scott Goldberg, president of Bankers Life. “With around 92 percent of older adults having at least one chronic disease, and 95 percent of healthcare costs among older adults attributed to chronic conditions, the accelerated benefit rider can help give peace of mind to our customers and offer the flexibility to spend their life insurance benefits when and how they need them most.”

The Accelerated Benefit Rider is available on Bankers Life’s universal life policies in all states except New York and California.