Banner Life life insurance

Overview

Banner Life Insurance Company and its New York subsidiary, William Penn Life Insurance Company of New York, are among the largest sellers of term life insurance in the United States. For 15 years they marketed themselves as Legal & General America, the U.S. arm of Britain's Legal & General Group. Japan's Meiji Yasuda Group bought them in a deal that closed on February 2, 2026, and they now call themselves the Banner Life family of companies; the old lgamerica.com address forwards to bannerlife.com. Existing Legal & General America policies did not change: they were always issued by Banner Life or William Penn, and those same companies still service them.

The Banner Life group ranked #27 among U.S. life insurance groups by 2024 individual life direct premiums written, according to NAIC market share data, with $1.66 billion in premiums and a 1.06% share. The company says LIMRA's 2025 sales survey ranked it the second-largest U.S. provider of individual term life, with more than $202 billion of new coverage issued that year, and that it has more than 1.6 million life policyholders and about $17 billion in assets. Banner Life sells in 49 states, Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico; William Penn sells only in New York.

History

The business began in 1949, when Government Employees Life Insurance Company (GELICO) was chartered as part of the Government Employees Group founded by Leo Goodwin. Legal & General Group plc acquired GELICO in 1981 and renamed it Banner Life Insurance Company in 1983. William Penn started in 1963 as Modern Life Insurance Company, took the William Penn name in 1975, and became a Banner Life subsidiary in 1989.

Banner began selling through independent brokerage agencies in 1995, and that channel built its reputation for low-cost term coverage. In 2011 the two companies adopted the single brand Legal & General America, and in 2015 they launched a pension risk transfer business under the Legal & General Retirement America name. The company rolled out Horizon, a digital application platform for brokers and customers, in 2019. Its headquarters moved from Rockville to Frederick, Maryland.

Legal & General agreed on February 7, 2025, to sell the U.S. protection business to Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Company, a Tokyo-based mutual insurer, for about $2.3 billion. Under the deal Meiji Yasuda also took a 20% economic interest in L&G's U.S. pension risk transfer: when your pension becomes an annuity business and set up a long-term partnership with L&G. The sale closed on February 2, 2026, with $2.6 billion paid at completion after price adjustments. Banner Life is now Meiji Yasuda's main U.S. individual life insurer, and Mark Holweger stayed on as president and CEO. If you are wondering why your Legal & General America statements now carry a different logo, see when your life insurance policy is sold to another company.

Life insurance products

Banner Life sells new term policies only. Its level term coverage comes in 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35 and 40-year lengths, longer than most insurers offer, for applicants aged 20 to 75. Coverage starts at $100,000 and goes above $10 million. The company says that through its accelerated underwriting, eligible applicants can get up to $5 million of coverage with instant approval and no medical exam; others go through full underwriting.

• Term riders: one or more 10, 15 or 20-year term riders can be stacked on a longer base policy, a built-in way to ladder coverage so it drops as debts are paid off.
• Children's rider: covers children until age 25.
• Accelerated death benefit: issued with term policies originally effective in 2011 or later, subject to availability; it advances part of the death benefit after a qualifying terminal illness diagnosis.
• Renewal and conversion: term policies can be renewed or converted to permanent coverage. The permanent product for conversions is a guaranteed universal life policy that can last to age 121.

Banner does not sell whole life, indexed or variable universal life, or final expense coverage as new business.

Other products

The retirement division, based in Stamford, Connecticut, writes pension risk transfer annuities for employers moving pension obligations off their books. The company says that business has written more than $14 billion of premium in about 130 transactions since 2015 and administers benefits for more than 200,000 annuitants.

Buying and service

You can get a term quote on bannerlife.com and then apply online or speak with a licensed financial professional at 888-984-3393. Most policies are still sold through independent brokers; the company says it works with more than 150,000 agents nationwide. Policyholders can sign in online for service. Customer service for Banner Life is at 800-638-8428 (8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern, weekdays) and for William Penn at 800-346-4773 (8:30 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Eastern).

Claims

Beneficiaries can call the claims team at 800-638-8428, extension 6974. A claim needs a Proof of Death Claimant's Statement with original signatures from each beneficiary, a certified death certificate that shows the cause and manner of death (one listing the cause as "pending" is not accepted), and the original policy if available. When the policy proceeds total $50,000 or less, the beneficiary may qualify for an accelerated claims process by phone; larger claims get a packet of forms by email, fax or mail. The company says it paid more than $1.24 billion in claims to more than 3,700 families and businesses in 2025 and pays 99% of term life claims. The claims guide explains the general steps.

Ratings and reputation

The ownership change cost Banner a notch with AM Best. On March 13, 2026, AM Best downgraded the financial strength rating of Banner Life and William Penn to A (Excellent) from A+ (Superior), with a stable outlook, saying the ratings now reflect Banner on its own, separate from Legal & General's rating, in the early stages of its role inside Meiji Yasuda; it still assessed the balance sheet as very strong. The company's ratings page lists S&P Global at A (Strong), updated January 27, 2026, and Fitch at A+ (Strong), updated February 4, 2026. Banner was not among the insurers ranked in the J.D. Power 2026 U.S. Individual Life Insurance Study.

Banner's main legal history involves older universal life policies. In 2015 Banner and William Penn raised cost of insurance charges on certain universal life policies, prompting class actions; in May 2020 a federal judge in Maryland approved a $38.2 million settlement covering more than 10,750 policyholders. A later putative nationwide class action over $1 million universal life policies was dismissed with prejudice in September 2024 because the earlier settlement already covered those claims. The broader issue is explained in cost-of-insurance lawsuits against life insurers: cases and outcomes.

Who it suits

Banner Life suits families and individuals who want straightforward term coverage, especially those who need an unusually long level period (35 or 40 years) or want to stack term riders to match a mortgage. It fits less well for anyone who wants cash value, whole life or a single company for all of their insurance, and buyers who weigh ratings heavily should note the 2026 AM Best downgrade.

• Strengths: term lengths up to 40 years and coverage above $10 million; instant-approval underwriting up to $5 million for eligible applicants; online quotes and a direct application option alongside a broad broker network; a separate New York company.
• Weaknesses: no permanent products for new buyers except conversions; AM Best downgraded it to A (Excellent) in March 2026, and S&P rates it A (Strong), below many large rivals; a new foreign owner since February 2026; a past $38.2 million settlement over universal life cost of insurance increases.

How to contact Banner Life