Royal Neighbors of America Life Insurance Company Review

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Royal Neighbors of American Life and Annuity

Written by Brian Greenberg
CEO / Founder & Licensed Insurance Agent

Last updated: July 18th, 2022

Reviewed by Grant Desselle
Licensed Insurance Agent

Our take on Royal Neighbors

Royal Neighbors of America began in Council Bluffs, Iowa, in 1895. A group of eight women sought to provide affordable life insurance to women and children, groups that were previously dismissed as uninsurable. Royal Neighbors would later become an avid supporter of the Women’s Suffrage Movement, and over the years the company has grown to become one of the largest women-led insurance companies in the industry.

Royal Neighbors operates as a fraternal benefit society, meaning that they require membership for their goods and services. There are no requirements for membership, other than either the purchase of one of their insurance products or by paying a $20 annual fee. Membership also comes with some additional benefits and discounts through approved retailers and health care providers.

Royal Neighbors life Insurance Company Details
A.M Best Rating A
S&P Rating A-
BBB Rating A+
Customer Service Phone 800-627-4762
Website www.royalneighbors.org
Address Royal Neighbors of America
230 16th Street
Rock Island, IL 61201-8645

What we like

Serving Women and Children

Royal Neighbors has certainly achieved its goal of providing life insurance options to women and children, and they continue to give back by offering a scholarship program for their members.

Flexible Options

Royal Neighbors offers their customers with a suitable range of products, including whole, universal, and term life policies. These policies can be further modified with available riders.

What we don’t like

Membership Requirements

While membership confers some additional benefits, some customers may be put off by the membership requirements.

Reliance on Sales Representatives

Many companies allow their customers to receive online quotes and even policy coverage through an online portal. Royal Neighbors relies on sales representatives. While some may appreciate this personal touch, others may prefer the convenience of online tools.

Royal Neighbors Insurance Products

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4.0/5
Royal Neighbors offers a standard assortment of life insurance policies, though the flexibility of each is lacking when compared to other companies. Royal Neighbors offers whole, universal, and term life insurance policies.

Term Life

Royal Neighbors also provides a variety of level term life insurance policies through their JETerm coverage. These policies can be further modified through multiple riders, and they also permit customers to convert their policy into a permanent policy following the initial term.

Whole Life Insurance

Royal Neighbors offers four types of permanent whole life insurance policies:

The Essential Whole Life Policy

This policy is available with coverage starting at $25,000. This policy can also be modified with a variety of riders including:

  • Accelerated Death Benefits
  • Accidental Death
  • Guaranteed Insurability
  • Waivers for Cancer and Disability

These riders allow customers to get the coverage they need, but they also raise the premium.

Youth Whole Life

Royal Neighbors also offers a youth whole life plan for those under 18. This can include a guaranteed insurability rider and an accelerated death benefit.

The Royal Legacy Single Premium

Available to applicants between ages 45-80, this single premium life insurance policy requires a lump-sum payment of at least $10,000, though the death benefit is guaranteed to be higher than the premium paid.

Simplified Issue Whole Life

Available to applicants between ages 50-85, this policy offers instant issue life insurance coverage ranging from $5,000 and $25,000. The product is a no medical exam life insurance policy. This policy is ideal for use as a final expense insurance policy, covering medical bills and other outstanding financial obligations.

Universal Life

The Royal Neighbors SecureLife universal life insurance plan offers customers flexibility in premiums, modifying payments depending on the insured’s financial needs.

They also offer a 20-year no lapse guarantee. This is helpful, though admittedly lower than the guarantees offered by some competitors.

Policy benefits

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4.0/5
Royal Neighbors offers several rider options, and membership also comes with benefits that extend beyond life insurance.

Riders

Royal Neighbors also offers a variety of ways to customize their policies, including:

  • Disability Waiver – This rider waives the premium requirements in the event that the insured becomes disabled.
  • Accelerated Death – In the event of a terminal illness, policyholders can borrow money from their death benefit to pay for other expenses, such as medical bills.
  • Guaranteed Insurability – A guaranteed insurability rider allows the policyholder to increase their coverage in increments of $25,000, without requiring a medical exam. While this rider is not uncommon, Royal Neighbors offers this rider for term life policyholders as well as whole.
  • Children’s Rider – A life insurance for children rider pays a smaller amount than an actual child life insurance policy, but it can be used to cover the cost of a funeral and final expenses in the event of the death of a child.

Annuities

Royal Neighbors offers a variety of annuity options. These aren’t related to life insurance per se, but Royal Neighbors members may appreciate the convenience of these investment options offered through the same company.

A Single-Premium Deferred Annuity

Single-premium deferred annuities require only a lump-sum payment to provide the initial funding, which grows on a tax-deferred basis until maturation. This can be helpful for those planning additional retirement savings.

Flexible-Premium Deferred Annuity

A flexible-premium deferred annuity allows the customer to make multiple unscheduled payments into the annuity until maturation, which lets you invest at your own pace.

Single-Premium Immediate Annuity

A single-premium immediate annuity allows you to pay Royal Neighbors an up-front premium in exchange for guaranteed payments over time.

Membership Benefits

Membership in Royal Neighbors comes with several benefits:

  • Dental Discounts in the amount of 5-50%
  • Vision Discounts in the amount of 20-40% off retail price of glasses
  • Lab services 10-80% off
  • Free and discounted legal advice and services through the pre-qualified network
  • Imaging discounts 10-60%
  • Hearing aids at 30% off
  • Retail/ecommerce offering 1-40% off at 4,000 leading merchants

Of course, it’s worth mentioning that you can become a member of Royal Neighbors without purchasing an insurance policy, so these benefits are available to non-policyholders.

Cost

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4.0/5
Costs are relatively consistent with other companies, though applicants will remember the membership cost. Royal Neighbors requires membership. Membership may be obtained either by purchasing one of the company’s insurance products, or by paying a $20 annual fee, which grants access to a selection of discounted services and access to a member relief fund. There are no requirements to become a member.

Average Pricing

Accelerated underwriting will raise the monthly premium, but the rates remain competitive with other companies that don’t require a medical exam.

No Online Quotes

Additionally, there are no online options for obtaining a quote, let alone securing a policy. Members are encouraged to contact a representative who can walk the customer through the various policy options. If you prefer this human-to-human interaction, Royal Neighbors may be a great option for you. Others may prefer to avoid the hassle of solicitation by finding a web-based company.

Performance

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4.0/5
Royal Neighbors has been ranked highly and as a fraternal benefit organization, they can be trusted to deliver on the terms of their policies.

Financial ratings

Royal Neighbors has enjoyed a solid financial performance:

  • A.M. Best Rating: A
  • BBB: A+

The company’s history also indicates that they can be relied on to pay the death benefit and other expenses at the appropriate time.

Customer reviews

Below you’ll find reviews from some of Royal Neighbors customers.

5.0 /5
Based on 2 reviews

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Jul 06,2020
Sylvia Donnell Verified
,OK
Very simple, all online and over the phone.
Company:
Royal Neighbors of America
Product:
Level Benefit
Policy length:
Whole Life Life Insurance

Jan 29,2020
Harry Leach Verified
,OR
I feel like this was a very speedy and honest process and I am very pleased with the way it went down. Thank you
Company:
Royal Neighbors of America
Product:
Essential Life
Policy length:
Whole Life Life Insurance

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