CNO Financial (Bankers Life, Colonial Penn) life insurance

Overview

CNO Financial Group is a publicly traded insurance holding company in Carmel, Indiana, that owns three consumer brands: Bankers Life, Colonial Penn and Washington National. It focuses on what it calls middle-income pre-retiree and retired Americans, selling life insurance alongside Medicare supplement, long-term care, supplemental health insurance and annuities. The CNO group ranked #40 among U.S. life insurance groups by 2024 individual life direct premiums written, according to NAIC market share data, with about $893.6 million in premiums and a 0.57% market share.

Each brand sells differently. Bankers Life uses an exclusive agency force of about 4,600 producing agents working from roughly 230 branch and satellite offices. Colonial Penn sells directly to consumers through television, mail, call centers and the web and is known for its guaranteed acceptance whole life plan, sold in units priced at $9.95 a month. Washington National sells supplemental health and life insurance, largely at the workplace and through independent agents. In its 2025 annual report, CNO reported $38.8 billion in total assets, $4.5 billion in revenue and about 3,300 full-time employees. Gary C. Bhojwani has been chief executive since January 2018, and the stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange as CNO.

History

CNO began as Conseco, Inc., an Indiana company organized in 1979 by Stephen C. Hilbert that started operations in 1982 and grew by buying other insurers. Its brands are much older. Bankers Life traces its roots to the Hotel Men's Mutual Benefit Association, which began operating on January 17, 1879. Under John D. MacArthur, Bankers Life and Casualty became one of the nation's largest individual health and accident insurers by 1956 through direct-mail marketing, and it was among the first to offer Medicare supplement insurance in the 1960s. Colonial Penn was founded in Philadelphia by Leonard Davis, a co-founder of AARP, and in 1968 became one of the first insurers to offer guaranteed acceptance life insurance exclusively to people 50 and older. Washington National says it has served customers since 1911.

Conseco's expansion, including a large move into consumer lending, ended in one of the biggest bankruptcies in U.S. history. The company filed for Chapter 11 in December 2002, and the reorganized company emerged on September 10, 2003. It later renamed itself CNO Financial Group. CNO has since moved some legacy blocks off its books through reinsurance; its 2025 annual report lists Wilton Re, Jackson National and RGA as its largest reinsurers, including for certain life, annuity and long-term care business. It also set up a Bermuda reinsurance affiliate, CNO Bermuda Re.

In November 2025, CNO announced it would exit the fee-based services business in its Worksite Division to focus on insurance, with the exit expected to be largely complete in the first half of 2026.

Life insurance products

Life insurance made up about 21% of CNO's collected premiums in 2025. Its annual report describes whole life, graded benefit life, term life (typically 5, 10, 20 or 30 years, sometimes with a return-of-premium option), single premium whole life and universal life, including fixed indexed universal life.

Colonial Penn guaranteed acceptance whole life. This is the group's best-known product and the one advertised on television. Key terms, as described on Colonial Penn's site:

• No medical exam or health questions; you cannot be turned down for health reasons. Ages 50 to 85 in most states, with narrower ranges in some (for example 50 to 75 in New York, Minnesota and Missouri, 55 to 85 in Washington, D.C., and 56 to 85 in Pennsylvania).
• Coverage is sold in units at $9.95 per unit per month, up to 25 units. The premium per unit is fixed, but the death benefit each unit buys depends on your age and sex (age only in Montana) and state when coverage starts, so the same $9.95 buys less coverage the older you are.
• It is a graded death benefit contract with a limited death benefit in the first two years. Read the policy for what a death from illness in that period pays; see our guide to graded death benefits.
• Premiums and benefits are locked in for life, the policy builds cash value after the first year that you can borrow against, and there is a 30-day period to cancel for a full refund.

Colonial Penn also offers "easy-issue" whole life with simplified underwriting. Compare guaranteed acceptance with simplified-issue options before buying; our final expense insurance: what it covers and costs and guaranteed issue life insurance: no health questions, with limits guides explain the trade-offs.

Bankers Life agents sell term, whole, universal and juvenile life, with an accelerated benefit rider available on some policies, and underwrite applications with medical history and sometimes an exam. Bankers Life says it paid life claims to more than 636,000 policyholders in 2025, totaling $266 million.

Washington National sells premium-return life, universal life and whole life, and in June 2025 launched an individual term life product with an optional rider that returns money.

Other products

Health coverage is the larger part of CNO's business. Bankers Life is a major seller of Medicare supplement and long-term care insurance; CNO says Bankers Life ranked second in new individual long-term care premiums in 2024. The group also sells critical illness, cancer, heart and stroke, accident and hospital indemnity coverage, fixed and fixed indexed annuities (Bankers Life added an enhanced death benefit rider to its guaranteed lifetime income annuity in March 2026), and, through agents, Medicare Advantage plans of other insurers. Bankers Life Securities offers brokerage and advisory services.

Buying and service

Colonial Penn policies can be bought by phone (800-517-5102) or online after a quote. Bankers Life sells through local career agents who often meet clients at home; its website has a branch locator. Washington National sells through worksite and independent agents.

Service is brand-specific. Colonial Penn customers call 877-877-8052 (New York residents 877-891-0915) and can manage policies at my.colonialpenn.com. Bankers Life life policyholders call 800-283-8011 and annuity owners 800-787-1431, or use my.bankerslife.com. Washington National policyholders call 800-525-7662. New York residents with Bankers Life policies issued by Bankers Conseco Life call 800-845-5512.

Claims

Colonial Penn beneficiaries can start a claim through the "File a claim" link on colonialpenn.com or by calling 877-877-8052; mail goes to P.O. Box 1918, Carmel, IN 46082-1918. Bankers Life beneficiaries can call 800-283-8011 or download claim forms at bankerslife.com and mail them with supporting documents. Washington National policyholders can check claim status online or call 800-525-7662. For a Colonial Penn policy in its first two years, expect the insurer to review the cause of death because of the graded benefit. Our claims guide explains the documents usually needed.

Ratings and reputation

On April 8, 2026, AM Best affirmed the A (Excellent) financial strength rating of Bankers Life and Casualty, Colonial Penn Life, Bankers Conseco Life and Washington National, with a stable outlook, citing balance sheet strength it assesses as very strong and strong operating performance. CNO's 2025 annual report lists the primary insurance subsidiaries' ratings as A from Fitch, A- from S&P and A3 from Moody's, and notes that many competitors have higher ratings.

None of CNO's brands was ranked in the J.D. Power 2026 U.S. Individual Life Insurance Study.

Who it suits

CNO's brands suit older and middle-income buyers who want simple coverage: a small guaranteed acceptance policy from Colonial Penn when health problems rule out underwritten coverage, or a Bankers Life agent who can combine life insurance with Medicare supplement, long-term care and annuities. They suit less well healthy people who can qualify for underwritten coverage, since guaranteed acceptance policies cost more per dollar of benefit and pay a limited benefit in the first two years.

• Strengths: Colonial Penn accepts anyone in its age range with no health questions and locks premiums for life; Bankers Life offers in-person agent service for retirees across many product types; AM Best affirmed A (Excellent) ratings in April 2026.
• Weaknesses: Colonial Penn's coverage per $9.95 unit shrinks with age and pays a limited benefit in the first two years; ratings (A from AM Best, A- from S&P) are below the strongest life insurers; not ranked by J.D. Power; three brands with separate service lines.

How to contact CNO Financial (Bankers Life, Colonial Penn)