What is Prosperity Life Insurance?

Prosperity Life Group operates as an umbrella organization encompassing multiple insurance companies including Shenandoah Life Insurance Company, SBLI USA Life Insurance Company, and S.USA Life Insurance Company. The group specializes primarily in final expense life insurance and simplified issue products targeted at seniors aged 50-85.

Key insight: Prosperity has undergone significant ownership changes in recent years, being acquired by JAB Insurance from Elliott Investment Management in September 2025. This acquisition affects nearly $30 billion in assets and over one million policyholders, creating uncertainty about future operations and service quality during the transition period.

The company’s business model focuses heavily on direct-response marketing through television advertisements, telemarketing, and direct mail campaigns. Their primary products include final expense whole life insurance, simplified issue policies, and Medicare supplement insurance, all designed for the senior market.

What Coverage Options Does Prosperity Offer?

Prosperity Life Group’s product portfolio centers around simplified insurance options designed for seniors who may have difficulty qualifying for traditional coverage. Their offerings reflect a focus on accessibility rather than comprehensive protection, with most products featuring streamlined underwriting and limited coverage amounts.

Final Expense Whole Life Insurance

This flagship product represents Prosperity’s most popular offering, designed specifically to cover funeral and burial expenses. Coverage amounts typically range from $1,500 to $35,000, with guaranteed level premiums and permanent coverage that builds modest cash value over time.

The final expense policies feature simplified underwriting with basic health questions but no medical exams. Most applicants aged 50-85 can qualify, though those with serious health conditions may face graded benefits where full death benefits aren’t available immediately for non-accidental deaths.

PrimeTerm to 100

Prosperity offers a unique term product called “PrimeTerm to 100” that provides 20 years of level term coverage followed by decreasing coverage until age 100. This hybrid approach attempts to combine term affordability with permanent protection, though the decreasing benefits in later years limit its value for long-term planning.

Coverage amounts range from $5,000 to $30,000, with eligibility for individuals aged 40-80 (or 50-75 in New York). The product includes graded death benefits for the first few years, meaning full benefits may not be available immediately for non-accidental deaths.

Simplified Issue Term and Universal Life

For applicants who can answer basic health questions favorably, Prosperity offers simplified issue term life insurance with coverage up to $350,000. These policies require no medical exams but do involve health questionnaires and database checks for underwriting decisions.

Universal life options provide permanent coverage with flexible premium payments and potential cash value accumulation. However, these products receive limited marketing attention compared to Prosperity’s final expense focus, and better universal life options are typically available through traditional carriers.

Medicare Supplement Insurance

Prosperity has expanded into Medicare supplement insurance, offering various Medigap plans designed to cover expenses not paid by original Medicare. These products compete primarily on price, often featuring some of the lowest rates in their markets.

How Strong is Prosperity’s Financial Rating?

Prosperity Life Group maintains generally adequate financial strength ratings from major rating agencies, though recent ownership changes have created some uncertainty about future stability. Understanding these ratings helps assess the company’s ability to meet long-term policyholder obligations.

A.M. Best Ratings

A.M. Best currently assigns Prosperity member companies a Financial Strength Rating of A- (Excellent) and Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “a-” (Excellent). However, these ratings were placed under review with developing implications in February 2025 following the announced acquisition by JAB Insurance.

The “under review” status means A.M. Best is evaluating how the ownership change and integration with JAB’s insurance platform may affect future financial strength and operational performance. While this doesn’t indicate immediate concerns, it does create uncertainty about future rating stability.

S&P Global Ratings

S&P Global Ratings provides additional perspective on Prosperity’s financial strength, assigning an A- long-term issuer credit and financial strength rating to S.USA Life Insurance Company. The parent company Prosperity Group Holdings received a BBB- long-term issuer credit rating with stable outlook.

These ratings reflect adequate capitalization and reasonable operating performance, though they fall short of the A+ and A++ ratings typically associated with the industry’s strongest carriers.

Recent Ownership Changes Impact

Key insight: The September 2025 acquisition by JAB Insurance represents a significant change for Prosperity policyholders. While JAB promises continuity of operations and benefits, major ownership transitions often bring operational disruptions and potential service quality changes during integration periods.

JAB’s stated goal of building a “global life insurance platform at scale” suggests potential future changes to Prosperity’s current business model and product focus. Existing policyholders should monitor communications about any operational changes resulting from the ownership transition.

What Does Prosperity Coverage Cost?

Prosperity Life’s pricing strategy focuses on competitive rates within the final expense and simplified issue markets, though their costs typically exceed traditional life insurance options available to healthy applicants. Understanding their pricing structure helps determine whether their products offer genuine value for your specific situation.

Final Expense Pricing Structure

Prosperity’s final expense whole life insurance uses age and gender-based pricing with level premiums guaranteed not to increase over time. Coverage amounts typically range from $1,500 to $35,000, with most customers purchasing between $5,000 and $15,000 in coverage.

Sample pricing for final expense coverage shows monthly premiums that vary significantly by age and gender. For example, a 65-year-old female might pay approximately $25-35 monthly for $10,000 in coverage, while a 75-year-old male could pay $45-60 monthly for the same amount.

Term Coverage Costs

Prosperity’s PrimeTerm to 100 product pricing reflects its hybrid nature, with costs typically higher than traditional term insurance but lower than permanent coverage. However, the decreasing benefits after year 20 significantly impact the long-term value proposition compared to level term alternatives.

For applicants who can qualify for traditional term coverage through other carriers, Prosperity’s pricing often proves uncompetitive when comparing the actual protection provided over the policy lifetime.

Comparing Value Against Alternatives

Key insight: While Prosperity’s rates appear competitive within the final expense market, healthy applicants can often obtain significantly better value through traditional life insurance carriers that offer medical underwriting. Even simplified issue products from A-rated carriers may provide better rates for the same coverage amounts.

The value comparison becomes particularly important when considering that traditional carriers often provide larger coverage amounts, better financial ratings, and superior customer service for similar or lower premiums.

What Are the Customer Service Issues?

Customer service represents Prosperity Life’s most significant operational weakness, with consistent patterns of complaints about unresponsive representatives, poor communication, and inadequate support during critical moments when families need assistance most. These issues extend beyond typical insurance industry challenges to systemic problems that impact customer experience.

Communication and Responsiveness Problems

Multiple customer reports indicate significant difficulties reaching Prosperity representatives when needed. Common complaints include phone calls that go directly to voicemail with no return calls, representatives who provide conflicting information, and extended wait times for simple policy servicing requests.

The company’s recent transition to using EXL, a third-party administrator, for certain customer service functions has created additional confusion about which phone numbers to call and which departments handle specific types of requests. This complexity particularly impacts older customers who may struggle with multiple contact points and changing procedures.

Administrative and Billing Issues

Customer complaints frequently mention billing problems including incorrect premium amounts, difficulty processing address changes, and challenges obtaining basic policy information. Some customers report receiving bills for incorrect amounts months after purchasing coverage, with customer service unable to provide clear explanations for the discrepancies.

Key insight: The administrative issues appear to stem from fragmented systems across Prosperity’s multiple subsidiary companies and recent operational changes. Customers often find themselves transferred between different departments without resolution, creating frustration during routine transactions.

Senior-Specific Service Concerns

Given Prosperity’s focus on seniors aged 50-85, their customer service challenges particularly impact vulnerable populations who may have limited options for advocating for themselves. Elderly customers report feeling overwhelmed by complex procedures and frustrated by representatives who seem impatient with their questions.

The company’s heavy reliance on phone-based service without robust online alternatives creates additional barriers for customers who prefer written communication or need assistance outside normal business hours.

Recent Operational Changes Impact

The transition to EXL for administrative functions and the recent ownership change to JAB Insurance have created additional uncertainty about customer service quality. Some policies are now serviced by different companies entirely, with S.USA Final Expense and Term policies transferred to American Amicable Life Insurance Company of Texas.

These changes mean customers may need to contact entirely different companies for service, creating confusion about warranty of policy terms and who to contact for assistance. The fragmentation of customer service across multiple entities complicates what should be straightforward policy administration.

How Does Claims Processing Work?

Claims processing represents the ultimate test of any life insurance company’s commitment to their policyholders, and unfortunately, Prosperity Life has developed a concerning pattern of claims handling practices that create additional stress for grieving families during their most difficult moments.

Documented Claims Processing Issues

Multiple customer complaints reveal systematic problems with Prosperity’s claims processing procedures. Families report being asked for extensive medical records spanning five years or more, even for policies that required no medical underwriting when purchased. These requests often come as surprises to beneficiaries who were told claims processing would be simple and straightforward.

Particularly troubling are reports of claims representatives suggesting families accept “premium refunds” instead of full death benefits, even when policies appear to qualify for full payment. This practice raises serious concerns about whether the company prioritizes minimizing payouts over honoring legitimate claims.

Two-Year Contestability Period Complications

Like all life insurance policies, Prosperity’s coverage includes a two-year contestability period during which the company can investigate claims for potential fraud or misrepresentation. However, customer reports suggest Prosperity may be using this period more aggressively than typical industry practices.

Key insight: Several families report excessive documentation requests and lengthy delays for claims filed during the contestability period, even when the policies were sold as “no questions asked” coverage. This disconnect between marketing promises and claims reality creates significant problems for beneficiaries who expected straightforward processing.

Communication During Claims Process

Customer complaints consistently mention poor communication during the claims process, with families reporting that claims representatives are difficult to reach and slow to respond to questions. Some beneficiaries describe being forced to leave voicemails repeatedly without receiving return calls, creating anxiety about whether their claims are being processed.

The lack of transparency about claims status and required documentation appears to be a systemic issue rather than isolated incidents. Families often report receiving contradictory information from different representatives about what documentation is needed and how long processing should take.

Required Documentation Concerns

Recent complaints indicate Prosperity may be requesting medical records and documentation that seem excessive for the types of policies they sell. For final expense policies marketed with simplified underwriting, requests for comprehensive medical histories spanning multiple years appear inconsistent with the products’ positioning.

These documentation requests create particular hardships for elderly surviving spouses who may not have access to their deceased partner’s complete medical history or the ability to navigate complex medical record retrieval processes.

What Are the Pros and Cons?

Evaluating Prosperity Life requires weighing their accessibility and competitive pricing against significant operational challenges that impact customer experience. Understanding these trade-offs helps determine whether their products align with your needs and risk tolerance.

Advantages of Prosperity Life

• Simplified Application Process: Prosperity’s final expense and simplified issue products offer easy application procedures with minimal health questions and no medical exams. This accessibility serves individuals who may struggle with traditional underwriting or prefer streamlined processes.
• Competitive Final Expense Pricing: Within the final expense market, Prosperity often offers competitive rates that can provide reasonable value for small coverage amounts designed to cover burial and funeral expenses.
• Multiple Product Options: The company provides various coverage types including final expense, term to 100, simplified issue term, and universal life options, giving customers some flexibility in choosing products that match their specific needs.
• Reasonable Financial Ratings: Despite operational challenges, Prosperity maintains A- ratings from both A.M. Best and S&P Global, indicating adequate financial strength to meet policy obligations.

Significant Disadvantages

• Customer Service Problems: Persistent issues with responsiveness, communication, and problem resolution create ongoing frustration for policyholders who need assistance with routine policy administration or have questions about their coverage.
• Claims Processing Concerns: The documented pattern of excessive documentation requests, poor communication during claims, and suggestions to accept premium refunds instead of death benefits raises serious concerns about the company’s commitment to honoring claims fairly.
• Operational Instability: Recent ownership changes, third-party administrator transitions, and policy servicing transfers to different companies create uncertainty about future service quality and operational continuity.
• Limited Coverage Amounts: Maximum coverage typically remains modest compared to traditional carriers, potentially leaving families underinsured if their needs exceed final expense coverage levels.
• Better Alternatives Often Available: Many applicants who qualify for Prosperity’s simplified issue products could obtain better rates, higher coverage amounts, and superior service through traditional carriers with medical underwriting.

What Are Better Alternative Options?

Before choosing Prosperity Life, most applicants can benefit from exploring alternative options that may provide better value, superior customer service, and more reliable claims processing. The key involves understanding that Prosperity should typically be considered only after exhausting options with higher-rated carriers.

Traditional Life Insurance with Medical Underwriting

For individuals in reasonable health, traditional life insurance through A+ and A++ rated carriers typically provides significantly better value than Prosperity’s offerings. Even applicants with some health conditions may qualify for standard or substandard rates that beat Prosperity’s simplified issue pricing.

The medical underwriting process, while more involved, often results in premium savings of 30-60% compared to simplified issue products. These savings can amount to thousands of dollars over the policy lifetime, making the extra application effort worthwhile for qualified applicants.

No Exam Life Insurance from A-Rated Carriers

Many top-rated no exam life insurance companies offer simplified issue policies that require health questionnaires but no medical exams. These products often provide better rates than Prosperity while offering higher coverage amounts and superior customer service from financially stronger carriers.

Companies like Mutual of Omaha, Globe Life, and AIG offer no-exam products with competitive rates for applicants who can answer basic health questions favorably. These options deserve serious consideration before choosing Prosperity’s simplified issue products.

Specialized Final Expense Carriers

For seniors primarily seeking coverage for funeral and burial expenses, specialized final expense insurance companies often provide better value than Prosperity’s final expense products. These companies focus exclusively on the senior market and may offer more competitive rates or better service for smaller coverage amounts.

Carriers like American Memorial Life, Senior Life Insurance Company, and Foresters Financial offer final expense products with strong financial ratings and customer service track records that often exceed Prosperity’s performance in these areas.

Group Life Insurance Options

Seniors may have access to group life insurance through professional associations, unions, or membership organizations. These group policies often provide guaranteed issue coverage for members at rates that compete favorably with individual guaranteed acceptance policies.

AARP, for example, offers group life insurance through New York Life that provides guaranteed acceptance for members with competitive rates and the financial strength of an A++-rated carrier.

Professional Guidance Benefits

Working with experienced insurance professionals helps identify the best available options based on your specific health status, coverage needs, and financial situation. Many applicants who initially consider Prosperity discover they qualify for better options through proper evaluation of their circumstances.

Professional agents can help navigate the application process with multiple carriers, compare actual costs and benefits, and ensure you understand policy terms before making final decisions. This guidance becomes particularly valuable given the complexity of comparing different underwriting approaches and policy structures.

How to Apply for Prosperity Insurance?

Prosperity Life’s application process emphasizes speed and simplicity, designed to appeal to seniors who prefer straightforward procedures without complex medical underwriting. However, understanding this process helps set appropriate expectations and reveals potential issues that may arise.

Application Methods and Process

Applicants can apply through multiple channels including phone applications, online forms, or responding to direct mail solicitations. The phone application remains most common, as representatives can explain product features and pricing while completing the application in real-time.

For final expense products, the application typically requires basic personal information, beneficiary details, and answers to a few simple health questions. Simplified issue products may involve slightly more detailed health questionnaires but still avoid medical exams or extensive underwriting procedures.

Required Information and Documentation

Application requirements remain minimal for most Prosperity products. Applicants typically need government-issued identification, Social Security number, banking information for premium payments, and basic beneficiary information including names, addresses, and relationships.

Key insight: While the application process appears simple, applicants should carefully review all policy terms and limitations before signing. The streamlined process may not adequately explain important features like graded benefits, waiting periods, or specific exclusions that could affect future claims.

Underwriting and Approval Timeline

Prosperity typically provides coverage decisions quickly, often within 24-48 hours for simplified issue products. Final expense policies with no health questions may be approved immediately upon application completion and first premium payment.

However, the quick approval process means limited medical underwriting, which often results in higher premiums compared to traditional coverage. Applicants should consider whether the speed benefit justifies the additional cost compared to traditional underwriting that might provide better rates.

Premium Payment and Policy Delivery

Coverage typically becomes effective immediately upon approval and first premium payment. Prosperity offers various premium payment options including monthly bank drafts, quarterly payments, or annual payments, with potential discounts for less frequent payment schedules.

Policy delivery may occur electronically or by mail, depending on state requirements and customer preferences. Given Prosperity’s customer service challenges, applicants should carefully review all policy documents upon receipt and contact customer service immediately with any questions or discrepancies.

Frequently Asked Questions