Pros Explained

• No-medical-exam coverage available to most applicants: All of Fidelity’s permanent policies offer no-medical-exam coverage, and most healthy applicants for term coverage can forgo an exam as well. Even if you have to get an exam, temporary coverage can begin immediately. 
• A range of policy options for seniors: Seniors age 50 and older can choose from a range of term options, plus a whole life policy up to $150,000, a simplified-issue final expense policy, or a guaranteed issue policy. 
• Terminal illness rider included with final expense policies: Fidelity Life includes an accelerated death benefit with final expense and guaranteed issue policies that allows you to access a portion of the death benefit while you’re still alive if you become terminally ill. 

Cons Explained

• High number of complaints with the NAIC: Fidelity Life received many more complaints than expected for a company of its size, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). This indicates problems with customer satisfaction. 
• No conversion options for term policies: While many providers offer term policyholders the option to convert to a permanent policy, term coverage from Fidelity Life can only be renewed once the term expires. It’s not eligible to be converted to permanent coverage. 
• Few available riders: Most policy types only have one rider option, so your choices for customizing your coverage are limited.

Complaint Index

The high number of consumer complaints Fidelity Life receives is concerning. Each year, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) calculates a complaint index for every insurance provider that measures how many complaints that company received, based on its size. An index of 1.00 indicates a company received an expected number of complaints for its size. An index of less than 1.00 is ideal, as it indicates the company received fewer complaints than expected. Most of our picks for best life insurance companies don’t have an index higher than 1.00 in any given year. 

The average complaint index for Fidelity Life over three years (through 2022) is 1.8. While the company's complaint index slightly decreased in 2022, this still indicates the company received more complaints than expected, given its market share.

Third-Party Ratings

Fidelity Life is highly rated for financial strength by AM Best, an independent credit ratings agency focused on evaluating insurance providers. But many other life insurance companies have higher ratings, and Fidelity Life’s financial strength grade is just on the border of what we would typically recommend. 

As of 2022, Fidelity Life has an A- (Excellent) financial strength grade from AM Best. AM Best has also revised the outlook for Fidelity Life from stable to negative, which means that if certain unfavorable trends continue, there’s a good possibility the rating will be downgraded. We don’t recommend insurers that score below the A bracket. AM Best's ratings are important because they indicate the likelihood that an insurer will be able to fulfill its financial obligations, such as paying future claims.

Policies Available

Term Life Insurance

Term life insurance provides a death benefit to your beneficiaries only if you die within the specified term. It’s more affordable than permanent life insurance, but it won’t build cash value and will expire unless renewed or converted to permanent coverage. 

With Fidelity Life, you can choose a 10-, 15-, 20-, or 30-year term and apply for up to $2 million in coverage. The company offers instant approval, and most healthy applicants won’t need a medical exam. Fidelity also offers a term policy to seniors with lower coverage limits. 

Whole Life Insurance

Whole life insurance is permanent insurance with a guaranteed death benefit. It features level premiums and a cash value component that can be borrowed against. Fidelity Life only offers a whole life policy to applicants ages 50 to 85. It doesn’t require a medical exam, but face amounts cap at $150,000, and full coverage doesn’t begin until year four. 

Final Expense Insurance

Final expense insurance is a type of whole life policy with a small death benefit intended to cover burial expenses and other end-of-life costs. Fidelity offers both a simplified-issue policy, which requires you to answer a few health questions and offers immediate full coverage, and a guaranteed issue life insurance policy, which has lower coverage limits and a graded death benefit for the first three years for all causes of death other than an accident. Both are available to applicants ages 50 to 85.

Available Riders

Riders are add-ons that can help you get more out of your coverage, such as living benefits or the ability to pause premium payments. While some of our top companies offer a wide selection of customization options, Fidelity Life only offers a few. 

Terminal Illness Rider

Included at no cost with Fidelity final expense and guaranteed issue policies, this rider gives you access to a portion of the death benefit while you’re still living should you be diagnosed with a terminal illness resulting in a short life expectancy. 

Accidental Death Benefit

Available with term and whole life policies, this rider offers an additional death benefit between $50,000 and $300,000 if the insured dies of an accident or related injuries within 90 days of the accident. Full coverage lasts until age 70 and the rider expires at age 80. 

Child Life Rider

Available with the Fidelity Life RAPIDecision Life term policy, this rider provides term coverage for all your dependent children ages 15 days through 18 years. You can select a death benefit between $5,000 and $25,000. Coverage for each child lasts until they turn 23 or until the policy expires. Each child will also have the option to convert the rider to their own permanent policy. 

Customer Service

You can make payments on your Fidelity Life policy through your online account, but phone support is available during business hours. Call 1-800-369-3990 on weekdays between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. CST or email service@fidelitylife.com. Claims must be submitted by mail at 8700 Bryn Mawr Ave., Suite 900S, Chicago, IL 60631. You can find claims forms on the company's .

Final Verdict

Fidelity life insurance offers an easy no-medical-exam application process that most applicants will qualify for. However, Fidelity also offers relatively low coverage limits and few customization options on its policies, and term policies aren’t convertible. It's worth shopping around and getting a quote from some competitors, as our best life insurance recommendations tend to have stronger financial strength ratings, fewer customer complaints, and more affordable pricing.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Long Does It Take to Get a Payout From Fidelity?

Fidelity life insurance claims are typically paid within 30 days.

How Do I Claim My Fidelity Life Insurance?

After you die, your beneficiary will need to contact Fidelity to fill out a claim form.

Can I Cash Out My Fidelity Life Insurance?

Yes, if you have a cash value permanent life insurance policy from Fidelity, you can borrow against the value of the policy.

Methodology

We designed a comprehensive ranking methodology based on consumer priorities and life insurance company fundamentals to rank more than 90 insurers across five general categories: financial stability, customer satisfaction, product and feature variety, the overall buying experience, and cost. In order to do this, we collected over 5,000 data points and scored each company based on 55 metrics. We grouped metrics by category to see how insurers performed in each; we then weighted category scores to determine how companies performed overall.

To learn more, read our full Life Insurance Methodology.