
Sign up & start saving!
Get our weekly newsletter for the latest in money news, credit card offers + more ways to save
finder.com's rating: 3 / 5 ★★★★★
Bottom line: You can get flexible term lengths if you’re willing to go through the hassle of a medical exam.
18 to 85
Issue Age
$5,000 to $2,000,000
Coverage
Depends on the policy
Medical Exam Required
Policies | Term, Whole, Quality, Universal, Permanent, Variable Universal |
---|---|
Coverage maximum | $2,000,000 |
Term lengths | 10, 15, 30, 35 years |
Medical exam required | Depends on the policy |
Available states | All 50 states |
Issue age | Not listed |
Riders |
Accelerated death benefit rider Accidental death benefit rider Child rider Guaranteed insurability rider Spouse rider Waiver-of-premium rider |
---|
Review by
Katia Iervasi is a staff writer who hails from Australia and now calls New York home. Her writing and analysis has been featured on sites like Forbes, Best Company and Financial Advisor around the world. Armed with a BA in Communication and a journalistic eye for detail, she navigates insurance and finance topics for Finder, so you can splash your cash smartly (and be a pro when the subject pops up at dinner parties).
One of the largest US life insurers, American General life insurance offers 18 term lengths and at least six rider options, including living benefits.
For whole life, you can buy coverage up to $25,000 while bypassing the medical exam typically required. But you’ll find higher whole life death benefits if you take an exam with another insurer.
However, customers complain of a long and frustrating claims process, and the company doesn’t have the best reputation for customer service.
Like most companies, American General offers the best rates to those with a clean bill of health. It uses these specifications to determine your rate class:
You can contact American General by phone at 800-445-7862. Otherwise, you can start the process of getting term life insurance online with American General by following these steps:
American General offers more term policy lengths than most competitors, plus a few less common permanent life options. Its policies are underwritten by AIG Direct.
To customize your policy, American General offers a solid list of add-ons that you’d see from other life insurers.
American General doesn’t have many favorable reviews online, while top life insurers see a mix of reviews that overall lean toward customer satisfaction. AIG customers complain about hiked premiums, callous service and slow claims.
AM Best financial rating |
A |
BBB accredited | Yes |
BBB rating | A- 1/5 out of 4 customer reviews |
Trustpilot score | 3.6/5 out of 66 customer reviews |
Customer reviews verified as of | 18 January 2021 |
A 2005 accounting scandal hurt American General’s reputation, costing the company $1.6 billion in fines.
In 2008, the underwriter AIG fell into trouble again, losing $99.2 billion of its $1 trillion assets in the global financial crisis. The US government gave $85 billion to keep AIG from failing.
AIG has strengthened since through business shifts and selling off some divisions. Today, it stands strong with high financial strength ratings, showing commitment to its customers.
American General’s 18 term life policies stand out because other companies may offer four or five options. Also, not every company guarantees whole life insurance approval, offers universal life policies or lets you convert term to permanent life.
However, AIG scored 742 of 1,000 on J.D. Power’s 2020 Life Insurance Study, less than average for customer satisfaction. Yet it saw a National Association of Insurance Commissioners complaint score of 0.52 in 2019, well below the industry average of 1.00.
American General may work if you need flexible or guaranteed coverage, such as for building investment savings. But since customers complain about its claims process, you might see if other life insurance options offer better customer ratings.
Tap the Compare box to see up to four companies’ features and benefits side by side, then get quotes from your top picks.
★★★★★ — Excellent
★★★★★ — Good
★★★★★ — Average
★★★★★ — Subpar
★★★★★ — Poor
Our experts analyze life insurance companies to help you to find the strongest possible policy and premium for your family’s needs. We assess their financial strength, customer satisfaction, policy features and riders. We then give each insurer a score between one and five stars that reflects their offering and reputation in the industry. American General receives a three out of five stars for a lower than average amount of policy add-ons to customize your policy, and a higher than average number of customer complaints.