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Principal Life Insurance Review
By Victor Rosario MONEY RESEARCH COLLECTIVE
Principal Financial Group is an American global financial investment management and life insurance company based out of Des Moines, Iowa. The company was founded in 1879 and offers term life insurance exclusively through employers.
Table of contents:
- Principal life insurance overview
- Principal’s services
- Principal’s credentials
- Principal’s accessibility
- Principal’s customer satisfaction
- Principal life insurance FAQs
- How we evaluated Principal
Principal Life Insurance Overview
Principal offers flexible group term life insurance (which is paid by the employer) and voluntary term life insurance (which is paid by the employee). These term life insurance policies provide a death benefit to the employee’s beneficiaries in the case of an untimely death.
The type of policy depends on what the employer is interested in offering. Employers can choose to pay for all, some, or none of the premiums for the policyholder. Death benefit coverage varies according to policy: employer-paid insurance includes up to $1 million in coverage, while the employee-paid option only goes up to $500,000. The $1 million coverage varies by case and requires underwriting approval. Most of the types of life insurance Principal offers require a medical exam. Term lengths and annuities can vary from plan to plan, although 30-year terms are typical.
Principal’s policies can include extension riders to continue coverage even after employment ends, and portability to extend coverage to another group life policy. The company also provides permanent policies in the form of three different types of universal life insurance plans, with Variable Universal Life Insurance and Indexed Universal Life including a cash value on top of its death benefit.
Principal’s Services
What it offers
- Group term life and voluntary term life insurance for employees of an enrolled business
- Seven types of universal policies
- Accidental death and dismemberment coverage
- Emotional health support lines for beneficiaries suffering loss
What it doesn’t offer
- Online quotes
- Accelerated death benefit
Principal’s Credentials
Principal Financial Group has won a significant number of awards and is registered with the NAIC, where it has a low complaint index compared to the national average.
Licenses and registrations
Principal Financial Group is registered with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, with license number 61271.
Awards and certifications
Principal Financial Group has won multiple awards, including eight in the Investment Management Education Alliance (IMEA) STAR Awards in 2020. Most of the awards were in the Retirement category, including the prestigious Overall Retirement Communications award.
Regulatory or legal actions
Principal Life’s complaint index on the National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ (NAIC) website is 0.26, well below the average of 1.00.
Principal’s Accessibility
Principal is available in all 50 states as well as worldwide, although it does not offer a live chat option and has limited points of contact.
Availability
Principal is available in all 50 states as well as in international markets. The company has locations in the US and over 15 countries worldwide, including locations in Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Latin America.
Contact information
Principal has an online form you can fill out to have one of its representatives contact you by phone or email. The company also has a dedicated toll-free number for general questions, available from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. CT. You can call Principal Financial Group at 800-986-3343.
User experience
As Principal’s life insurance policies are offered strictly to employers and their employees, individuals will not be navigating its website to solicit life insurance. Therefore, the company’s website does not offer free quotes for life insurance.
Limitations
Principal’s website has no live chat option, instead offering a simple form that you can fill out in order to have someone contact you through email or the phone.
Principal’s Customer Satisfaction
Customer complaints
Principal Financial Group has a low 1.05/5 rating in the customer reviews section of the Better Business Bureau (BBB) website, with most negative reviews centered around the company being difficult when disbursing funds and handling customer service complaints. The company has an 0.26 complaint index with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), holding significantly lower complaints than the national average of 1.00.
Third-party ratings
Principal Financial Group is accredited with the Better Business Bureau (BBB), holding an A+ rating with 312 complaints closed in the last three years. Principal Financial Group ranked third nationwide in overall customer satisfaction in J.D. Power’s 2022 Group Insurance Study, and its financial rating with AM Best is A+ (Superior).
Principal Life Insurance FAQs
How We Evaluated Principal Life Insurance
As it stopped selling life insurance to individuals in 2021, we evaluated Principal Life Insurance company’s standing based on its plans offered through employers, its financial standing and its customer complaints index.
Summary of Miami Herald’s Principal Review
Principal Financial Group’s life insurance offerings are only sold through businesses to employees. The company provides term and universal life insurance, the latter of which can include a cash value in addition to the death benefit included in every plan. The company’s superior financial strength rating and low customer complaint index make it a good option for employers who seek to provide life insurance as an employee benefit.
