3 Best Return-of-Premium Life Insurance Policies in November 2024
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An insurance policy generally isn’t something you can return for your money back. But there’s one exception: return-of-premium life insurance.
Also known as ROP life insurance, this type of coverage reimburses you for the money you paid in premiums if you don’t die during the term. Some insurers offer it as a stand-alone policy, though it’s commonly sold as a rider that can be added on to a life insurance policy.
This list focuses on return-of-premium policies that are sold separately. To narrow down the list, we looked at the life insurance death benefit amounts, term lengths and state availability, as well as insurers’ financial strength and reputation among customers. All of the companies below scored at least 3 out of 5 stars.
While return-of-premium is an uncommon product, it’s a good idea to compare life insurance quotes from at least two companies before making a decision.
The best ROP life insurance policies at a glance
State Farm: Best for earning a discount
Cincinnati Life: Best for transparency
Illinois Mutual: Best user-friendly policy
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Best return-of-premium life insurance policies: Pros and cons
State Farm
on Nerdwallet
Financial strength rating
Online purchase
NAIC complaints
Policies offered
on Nerdwallet
State Farm
Financial strength rating
Online purchase
NAIC complaints
Policies offered
Consistently ranks No. 1 for customer satisfaction in J.D. Power’s U.S. Individual Life Insurance Study.
Not available in Massachusetts.
Overview: Open to applicants from 18 to 60 years old, State Farm’s return-of-premium life insurance policy offers coverage starting at $100,000. Depending on your age, you can buy a policy lasting 20 or 30 years. If you’d like to convert your policy to permanent life insurance, you can do so up to age 75.
State Farm allows you to add a children’s term life insurance rider to your policy, as well as a waiver of premium rider, which pauses your premiums if you become disabled and can’t work for a period of time.
Read the full review: State Farm life insurance review
Cincinnati Insurance
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Financial strength rating
Online purchase
NAIC complaints
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on Nerdwallet
Cincinnati Insurance
Financial strength rating
Online purchase
NAIC complaints
Policies offered
Applicants can contact their life insurance underwriter directly.
Not available in New York.
Overview: Available in 20-, 25- and 30-year terms, Cincinnati Life’s Termsetter ROP policy can be customized with multiple life insurance riders. These include an accelerated death benefit rider that allows you to tap into your policy’s payout while you’re still alive if you’re diagnosed with a terminal illness, and a child term rider that provides coverage for your kids. You can convert all or part of your coverage to permanent life insurance through the end of your term period or your 70th birthday, whichever comes first. The insurer doesn’t list a maximum coverage level; rather, the amount of coverage you can buy depends on your age and the reason for purchasing a policy.
Typically, underwriters work behind the scenes and don’t communicate with customers directly, but Cincinnati Life connects policyholders with its underwriters via phone and email. This access is helpful if you have questions after you’ve submitted your application. Some ROP applicants are eligible for accelerated underwriting, and the insurer is lenient toward non-cigarette tobacco users when it comes to setting rates.
Illinois Mutual
on Nerdwallet
Financial strength rating
Online purchase
NAIC complaints
Policies offered
on Nerdwallet
Illinois Mutual
Financial strength rating
Online purchase
NAIC complaints
Policies offered
Sleek online experience.
Limited policy information on insurer’s site.
Overview: Illinois Mutual’s return-of-premium policy is straightforward. If you’re 18 to 60 years old, you can buy up to $500,000 in coverage, and add an accelerated death benefit rider to your policy. However, the policy isn’t available in Alaska, Hawaii, Montana, New York or the District of Columbia.
How we ranked the top life insurers
NerdWallet’s life insurance ratings are based on consumer experience, complaint index scores from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners for individual life insurance and weighted averages of financial strength ratings, which indicate a company’s ability to pay future claims. Within the consumer experience category, we consider ease of communication and website transparency, which looks at the depth of policy details available online. To calculate each insurer’s rating, we adjusted the scores to a curved 5-point scale.
These ratings are a guide, but we encourage you to shop around and compare several insurance quotes to find the best rate for you. NerdWallet does not receive compensation for any reviews. Read our editorial guidelines.
Companies that offer return-of-premium riders
These companies allow you to add a return-of-premium rider to specific policies. You can expect to pay higher premiums if you opt in to this coverage.
Company | Policies eligible for ROP rider |
|---|---|
20- or 30-year term life insurance. | |
30-year no-medical-exam term life insurance. | |
15-, 20- or 30-year term life insurance. |
How does return-of-premium life insurance work?
When you buy a stand-alone return-of-premium life insurance policy, you’ll select a term length, such as 20 or 30 years. If you die during that time, your life insurance beneficiaries receive the death benefit. But if you don’t, you’ll get a refund of the premiums you paid, without interest — though your insurer might subtract the cost of administrative fees and similar charges. The money you get back isn't taxable, as it’s simply a refund of the payments you made.
To compare, with regular term life insurance, you won’t receive any money if you’re still alive when the policy expires.
ROP life insurance is an interesting product because it’s a term life policy, but it builds cash value over time. Once you’ve accumulated enough cash value, you can borrow against your policy, withdraw the money or surrender the policy for cash if you no longer need coverage.
» MORE: Is life insurance taxable?
What’s the catch with return-of-premium life insurance?
The money-back feature comes with a higher price tag. Let’s say you’re a healthy 40-year-old looking to buy a 20-year, $500,000 policy. You can expect to pay nearly five times as much for a return-of-premium policy compared with a standard term life insurance policy without ROP benefits.
Sample rates for return-of-premium life insurance
These are sample rates for a 20-year, $500,000 return-of-premium life insurance policy for super preferred applicants. These are nonsmokers in excellent health.
Age of applicant | Annual rate for men | Annual rate for women |
|---|---|---|
20 | $820 | $575 |
30 | $865 | $580 |
40 | $1,510 | $1,290 |
50 | $4,305 | $3,470 |
60 | $11,455 | $8,725 |
Source: Sample rates are for Cincinnati Life and are valid as of November 5, 2024. | ||
ROP life insurance pros and cons
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Premiums are reimbursed if you outlive the policy. | It’s more expensive than regular term life insurance. |
Refunds aren’t taxed as income. | If you’re late paying premiums and your policy lapses, you might not get any money back. |
ROP policies can build cash value. |
Is return-of-premium life insurance worth it?
It depends on your budget and how you’re fitting life insurance into your overall financial plan.
For most people, a standard term life insurance policy is sufficient. With this approach, you could put the money you don’t spend on a return-of-premium benefit aside into a high-interest savings account, or invest it.
If you’re not comfortable with the idea of paying into a life insurance policy that may expire, and you can afford the pricey premiums, consider ROP. Just be sure to pay your premiums on time and avoid canceling your policy, as you might not get your money back.
» MORE: Average life insurance rates
More about top-rated life insurance companies
Looking for a different type of life insurance policy? Check out NerdWallet’s top picks across these categories:
Life insurance ratings methodology
NerdWallet’s life insurance ratings are based on consumer experience, complaint index scores from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners for individual life insurance, and weighted averages of financial strength ratings, which indicate a company’s ability to pay future claims. Within the consumer experience category, we consider ease of communication and website transparency, which looks at the depth of policy details available online. To calculate each insurer’s rating, we adjusted the scores to a curved 5-point scale.
These ratings are a guide, but we encourage you to shop around and compare several insurance quotes to find the best rate for you. NerdWallet does not receive compensation for any reviews. Read our editorial guidelines.
Insurer complaints methodology
NerdWallet examined complaints received by state insurance regulators and reported to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners in 2020-2022. To assess how insurers compare with one another, the NAIC calculates a complaint index each year for each subsidiary, measuring its share of total complaints relative to its size, or share of total premiums in the industry. To evaluate a company’s complaint history, NerdWallet calculated a similar index for each insurer, weighted by market shares of each subsidiary, over the three-year period. NerdWallet conducts its data analysis and reaches conclusions independently and without the endorsement of the NAIC. Ratios are determined separately for auto, home (including renters and condo) and life insurance.
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