Brighthouse Financial life insurance

Overview

Brighthouse Financial is the Charlotte, North Carolina, company that took over most of MetLife's U.S. retail life insurance and annuity business when MetLife spun it off in 2017. It issues policies through Brighthouse Life Insurance Company, New England Life Insurance Company (NELICO, which no longer writes new business) and, in New York only, Brighthouse Life Insurance Company of NY. The group ranked #24 among U.S. life insurance groups by 2024 individual life direct premiums written, according to NAIC market share data, with $1.87 billion in premiums and a 1.19% share. It had more than 2 million annuity contracts and life policies in force at the end of 2025.

Most of those life premiums come from a large inherited book of term, whole, universal and variable life policies. Brighthouse's new sales focus on annuities, especially its Shield index-linked annuities, plus a small set of life products. It sells through more than 400 independent distribution partners, including broker-dealers, banks, brokerage general agencies and financial advisors.

The biggest current development is a pending sale. On November 6, 2025, Brighthouse agreed to be acquired by an affiliate of Aquarian Holdings for $70 a share in cash. Founded in 2017, Aquarian describes itself as a diversified holding company with insurance and asset management businesses and about $25.9 billion of assets under management. Shareholders approved the deal on February 12, 2026. In its August 2026 quarterly report, Brighthouse said the deal still needed approval from insurance regulators in Delaware, New York and Massachusetts and was expected to close in 2026. If those approvals are the only thing outstanding, the agreement extends automatically to December 6, 2026.

History

Brighthouse traces its roots to the Travelers Insurance Company, founded in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1863. The oldest policy on its books is a Travelers life policy issued in 1923. Several other lines run into Brighthouse. Metropolitan Life merged with New England Life's parent in 1996. It bought the annuity maker Security First Group in 1997, whose companies became MetLife Investors and, in New York, First MetLife Investors, now Brighthouse Life Insurance Company of NY. In 2005 MetLife acquired Travelers Life & Annuity from Citigroup. In 2014 several of these companies were merged into MetLife Insurance Company USA, which is today Brighthouse Life Insurance Company.

MetLife announced in January 2016 that it would separate most of its U.S. retail business. The spin-off was completed on August 4, 2017, and Brighthouse Financial began trading on Nasdaq as BHF on August 7, 2017. MetLife sold its remaining minority stake in June 2018. Eric Steigerwalt, who ran MetLife's U.S. retail business, has been CEO since the separation.

In July 2025 S&P lowered its financial strength ratings on Brighthouse's insurers to A from A+. After a sale process, Brighthouse signed the Aquarian merger agreement in November 2025. Under the deal, an Aquarian affiliate would also enter investment management agreements with the Delaware and Massachusetts insurance subsidiaries, which means it would manage investments backing those insurers' policies. Our private equity's push into life insurance guide explains what such ownership changes can mean for policyholders.

Life insurance products

Brighthouse's current life lineup is small:

• Brighthouse SmartCare: an index-linked universal life policy marketed as a hybrid life and long-term care policy. It pays a death benefit and can accelerate much of the face amount to pay for qualified long-term care, with continued benefits for up to four more years after that. The company says it offers a guaranteed death benefit and uses a "simple underwriting" process.
• Brighthouse SmartGuard Plus: an index-linked universal life policy launched in 2023 with a Guaranteed Distribution Rider included automatically for an additional charge. After the 10th policy year, it pays guaranteed minimum distributions in the form of policy loans, charged up to 8% interest a year.
• Brighthouse One Year Term: one-year term coverage for short-term needs. Brighthouse stopped selling 10-, 20- and 30-year level term in the first half of 2025.
• Brighthouse Conversion Whole Life: available only when converting term or group coverage, or to meet other contractual obligations.

It no longer sells variable life or universal life with lifetime secondary guarantees, and its online term product, SimplySelect, is no longer available. Brighthouse continues to service its large in-force book of participating and non-participating whole life, universal life, variable life and term policies. Many of these were originally sold under the MetLife, New England Financial, General American and Travelers names.

Other products

Annuities are Brighthouse's core business. Its flagship Shield Annuities are Registered index-linked annuities (RILAs): buffers, caps and risk that offer index-linked growth up to a cap with a set level of downside protection. It also sells variable annuities with withdrawal and death benefit guarantees, and fixed and income annuities. An older block of individual long-term care insurance, acquired with Travelers, is reinsured to Genworth and then to a General Electric subsidiary, but Brighthouse still has separate service and claims lines for it.

Buying and service

New policies are sold through financial professionals at broker-dealers, banks, brokerage general agencies and other distributors. Existing customers can manage policies online and download service forms, including beneficiary change and death claim forms, from their account.

Because the in-force book comes from many predecessor companies, Brighthouse routes calls by policy number. The main line, 800-882-1292, handles annuities, most life policies and former Travelers policies. Other numbers cover former New England Financial (NEF) policies, former General American policies and Metropolitan Tower and General American policies. Check your latest statement for the policy number before calling. Hours are 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Eastern time on weekdays. In 2026 Brighthouse's contact page warned that call-center waits could be longer than usual because of a high volume of requests after a system upgrade.

Claims

To report a death, beneficiaries call the customer service number that matches the policy number on the most recent statement. A representative then guides them through the claim. Death claim forms are also available through the online account and the company's claim and service forms page. Have a certified death certificate ready. If you are not sure whether a relative had a policy from Brighthouse or one of its predecessors, the company runs an online policy locator, and our how to find a lost life insurance policy guide lists other ways to search. Individual long-term care claims have their own line, 877-582-7767.

Ratings and reputation

In the J.D. Power 2026 U.S. Individual Life Insurance Study, released in October 2026, which measures customer satisfaction with buying and owning a policy, Brighthouse tied with Equitable for 21st of 23 brands with 582 points against a study average of 649, down from 16th in 2025.

Brighthouse's ratings are lower than MetLife's and have been under pressure. As of March 2026, the company listed A (Excellent) from AM Best, A- from Fitch, A3 from Moody's and A from S&P for its main operating companies. Fitch downgraded its ratings from A to A- on November 10, 2025, after the merger announcement. In November 2025 S&P placed the companies on CreditWatch negative, Moody's placed them on review for downgrade, and AM Best put them under review with negative implications. They were still listed that way in the February 2026 annual report. See AM Best, S&P, Moody's and Fitch ratings explained for how these grades compare.

None of this changes the terms of existing contracts, and state guaranty associations back policies up to their limits. But a pending sale to a privately held owner, lower ratings and service delays are all factors to weigh before buying a new long-term contract.

Who it suits

Brighthouse matters most to people who already own a policy or annuity from it or its predecessors, including MetLife retail, New England Financial, MetLife Investors, General American and Travelers. Those owners need to know who services the contract and which number to call. For new buyers, it fits someone working with an advisor who wants a Shield index-linked annuity, a hybrid life/long-term care policy, or an index-linked universal life policy built for later income. It is a poor fit for anyone wanting long-term level term coverage or a top-rated mutual insurer.

• Strengths: a long record in annuities, with Shield index-linked annuities as a flagship; a hybrid life/long-term care policy with continuing benefits; licensed in all 50 states, with a separate New York company; continued service for a very large inherited block of policies.
• Weaknesses: a pending acquisition by Aquarian, a privately held holding company, still awaiting regulatory approval in 2026; ratings in the single-A range and under review after downgrades by S&P and Fitch in 2025; no longer sells 10- to 30-year level term; call-center delays after a 2026 system upgrade; a confusing set of service numbers for legacy policies.

How to contact Brighthouse Financial