National Guardian Life (NGL) life insurance

Overview

National Guardian Life, known as NGL, is a Madison, Wisconsin, insurer best known for preneed funeral insurance: policies sold through funeral homes to pay for a funeral that has been planned in advance. It ranked #79 among U.S. life insurance groups by 2024 individual life direct premiums written, according to NAIC market share data, with about $227.5 million in premiums and a 0.15% market share. NGL says it has served more than 2.4 million families (as of January 2025).

NGL is owned by its policyholders. It was a mutual insurer from 1936 until January 1, 2026, when it converted to a mutual holding company structure. The insurance company is now a stock company named NGL Insurance Company, owned by NGL Mutual Holding Company, and policyholders keep ownership and control through the holding company. NGL says its logo and branding stay the same, and existing policies, premiums and benefits did not change.

NGL is not related to The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America in New York (Guardian Life). Despite the similar names, they are separate companies.

Joe Celentano is president and chief executive.

History

NGL opened its first office in Madison in January 1909 and issued its first life insurance policy, for $5,000, in 1910. In 1918, when New York's Germania Life Insurance Company renamed itself The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America, the Madison company added "National" to its own name. NGL converted from a stock company to a mutual company in July 1936, and it moved into its current headquarters building at Two East Gilman Street in Madison in the 1960s.

Over the past few decades NGL grew partly by buying smaller insurers and blocks of business. In July 2015 it agreed to take over, through coinsurance, substantially all of the run-off individual life and annuity blocks of Madison National Life Insurance Company and Standard Security Life Insurance Company of New York (both owned by Independence Holding Company), and bought Madison National Life's administrative operations for $42 million. NGL now describes more than 25 years of serving the funeral profession.

Recent changes:

• June 2025: Filed a plan with the Wisconsin Office of the Commissioner of Insurance to reorganize as a mutual holding company.
• January 1, 2026: The conversion took effect after approval by NGL's board, its policyholders and the Wisconsin commissioner. National Guardian Life Insurance Company was renamed NGL Insurance Company. NGL said updated forms and materials would roll out during 2026 as state filings are completed.
• February 2026: Announced a new long-term care insurance product.

Life insurance products

NGL's main life product is preneed funeral insurance, a type of whole life policy bought through a funeral home to fund a specific funeral plan. You arrange the services with a funeral home, and the funeral home or a preneed agent sets up the NGL policy to pay for them. NGL says the average customer starts planning between ages 60 and 84. Many funeral homes guarantee today's prices for some goods and services, such as the casket, embalming and hearse, while items like flowers, obituary notices and death certificates usually stay subject to inflation. Once the policy is paid off, the money stays with NGL until it is needed. See preneed funeral insurance and funeral contracts and burial insurance vs final expense vs preneed.

NGL also offers two trust options tied to its policies:

• Funeral Expense Trust: sets aside up to $15,000 for funeral and final expenses. It is protected from creditors, and the policy value may be excluded as an asset when qualifying for Medicaid. Unused proceeds go to the insured's estate. It is not available in Indiana, where a similar NGL Final Expense Trust is used.
• Estate Planning Trust: sets aside up to $100,000. Funeral expenses are paid first and the rest goes to named beneficiaries. It is subject to the state's Medicaid look-back period.

NGL says Medicaid rules vary by state and recommends consulting an elder law attorney; see medicaid eligibility and life insurance cash value. NGL does not market term life, universal life or other income-replacement coverage to consumers on its website. It also administers older individual life and annuity policies it took on through acquisitions such as the 2015 Madison National Life deal.

Other products

• Long-term care insurance, underwritten by NGL and administered from Woodland Hills, California (888-505-2332). NGL announced a new consumer-driven long-term care product in February 2026.
• Medicare Supplement, administered from Salt Lake City (877-888-1511).
• Supplemental health: dental, vision and hospital indemnity coverage, mainly through partners and third-party administrators. Policyholders should contact the administrator named on their ID card.

Buying and service

You buy NGL preneed coverage at a participating funeral home, not directly from NGL or online. NGL contracts with funeral homes and preneed agents, uses its own AppQore software to issue policies and offers bilingual support. Policyholders can make one-time payments online by card or bank account using their policy number, one policy at a time; recurring payments cannot be set up online. Customer service is at 800-988-0826 or [email protected], weekdays 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Central. Preneed policy questions can also go to [email protected]. NGL added a chat feature to its website in June 2026.

Claims

Preneed claims are normally filed by the funeral home that provides the services, since the policy is usually assigned to it; see assigning life insurance to a funeral home. NGL says it aims to pay preneed claims within two business days, and that most are paid the next business day once a complete claim is received. Families with questions about a policy or claim can call 800-988-0826. For long-term care, Medicare Supplement or supplemental health claims, use the administrator contacts listed below.

Ratings and reputation

• AM Best: A (Excellent), affirmed effective July 23, 2026, after a previous affirmation in July 2025.
• NGL does not publish ratings from S&P, Moody's or Fitch.
• J.D. Power: NGL was not among the brands ranked in the J.D. Power 2026 U.S. Individual Life Insurance Study. Its preneed policies are sold through funeral homes rather than to the general public.

Preneed policies are designed to pay for a specific funeral. Consumers should get the funeral home's contract in writing, know whether the price is guaranteed, and understand what happens to any money left over or if they move away; see what a funeral costs and how families pay for it.

Who it suits

NGL suits people planning a funeral in advance through a local funeral home who want the money held by a policyholder-owned insurer with an A (Excellent) rating, including those using an irrevocable funeral trust while spending down assets for Medicaid. It does not suit anyone shopping for income-replacement life insurance, comparing quotes online, or wanting flexibility to use the money for something other than a funeral.

• Strengths: Preneed specialist with fast claim payment (most next business day); policyholder ownership through a mutual holding company; trust options that may help with Medicaid planning; A (Excellent) AM Best rating.
• Weaknesses: Sold only through funeral homes and agents; no term or universal life for income replacement; the 2026 renaming to NGL Insurance Company and a name similar to Guardian Life can confuse families; ratings from only one major agency.

How to contact National Guardian Life