AuguStar Life (formerly Ohio National) vs Western & Southern Financial Group

Verdict

Both companies are based in Cincinnati, but their ownership has moved in opposite directions. AuguStar Life is the new name of Ohio National. Ohio National was a mutual until Constellation Insurance Holdings completed a sponsored demutualization on March 31, 2022; its investors are La Caisse (CDPQ) and Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan. The company renamed itself AuguStar Life in October 2023, so Ohio National policies are now serviced by AuguStar. Policyholders no longer own the company, though the change did not alter existing policy terms. Western & Southern Financial Group remains ultimately owned by a mutual holding company, Western & Southern Mutual Holding Company, and sells through several brands.

Product focus differs. AuguStar emphasizes indexed universal life and indexed whole life, plus FlexTerm (10, 15 or 20 years, convertible until the end of the level period or around age 70), whole life and universal life, sold through agents, marketing organizations and broker-dealers. It is not licensed in New York. Western & Southern sells through career agents, a call center and independent agents, and through Gerber Life: participating whole life, term, children's whole life (Grow-Up Plan), guaranteed-acceptance whole life for ages 50 to 80 up to $25,000, and Gerber term of 10 to 30 years quoted online up to $5 million.

Ratings favor Western & Southern on the published figures: A+ (Superior) from AM Best (April 2026), AA from Fitch, AA- from S&P and Aa3 from Moody's. AuguStar holds A (Excellent) from AM Best (November 2025), A from Fitch, A- from S&P (assigned July 2026) and Baa1 from Moody's. Neither was ranked in the J.D. Power life study. AuguStar's 2018 annuity commission cuts led to distributor lawsuits, which concerned payments to sellers rather than policy benefits. Western & Southern's several insurers mean beneficiaries must identify which company issued the policy.

Choose AuguStar Life if

• You own an Ohio National policy and want to understand who services it now.
• You want indexed universal life or indexed whole life through an agent.
• You want a convertible 10-, 15- or 20-year term with an accelerated benefit rider covering chronic, terminal and critical illness.
• You accept a private, institutional owner and ratings in the A range.

Choose Western & Southern if

• You want ownership by a mutual holding company and A+ AM Best, AA Fitch and AA- S&P ratings.
• You want children's whole life (Grow-Up Plan) or guaranteed-acceptance whole life for ages 50 to 80.
• You want participating whole life from a local career agent, or term quoted online through Gerber Life.
• You want one group with several brands for different needs, accepting that you must confirm which Western & Southern company issues your policy.

Key differences

Before you decide

Quote identical coverage from both and compare conversion terms (converting term life to permanent: how the conversion option works) and how guarantees differ from illustrated values; IUL pros and cons: what the sales pitch leaves out covers indexed policies. See private equity's push into life insurance and when your life insurance policy is sold to another company for what ownership changes mean, and AM Best, S&P, Moody's and Fitch ratings explained for the rating scales.