Sammons Financial Group (Midland National and North American) life insurance

Overview

Sammons Financial Group is the insurance and retirement arm of Sammons Enterprises, a Dallas holding company owned by its employees through an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP). Its two life insurers are Midland National Life Insurance Company and North American Company for Life and Health Insurance, both sold through independent agents rather than a captive sales force. The Sammons Enterprises group ranked #20 among U.S. life insurance groups by 2024 individual life direct premiums written, according to NAIC market share data, with about $2.14 billion in premiums and a 1.37% market share.

Sammons Financial Group is based in West Des Moines, Iowa; Midland National's life insurance service office is in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The group's member companies also include Sammons Institutional Group, Sammons Wealth Management and Lantern Insurance Company. In August 2026 the company said it serves two million customers through life insurance, annuities, retirement solutions, wealth management and preneed insurance. Alongside life insurance centered on Indexed universal life (IUL) explained, it is a large seller of fixed index annuities.

Because there are no outside shareholders, the company describes its employees as "employee-owners" and says it does not face short-term pressure from stock investors. That also means less public financial disclosure than a listed insurer.

History

Midland National began in 1906 as Dakota Mutual Life Insurance Company in Lead, South Dakota, later moving to Watertown. Its stockholders voted in 1925 to adopt the Midland National Life Insurance Company name, and in 1958 Reserve Life Insurance Company of Dallas, owned by Charles A. Sammons, acquired a majority of Midland National's stock. Sammons had founded Reserve Life in 1938 and in 1962 established Sammons Enterprises to hold his growing collection of businesses, which by the 1980s numbered close to 70 companies.

In 1961 Midland National adopted the personal producing general agent (PPGA) system, in which independent agents sell its products, and in 1977 it moved to Sioux Falls. Charles Sammons created the ESOP in 1978. He died in 1988, and his wife Elaine Sammons led the company until her death in 2009; in 2010 their stock was transferred to the ESOP trust, completing the move to employee ownership.

Sammons Financial Holdings was formed in 1996 and renamed Sammons Financial Group in 2002. Its fixed annuity operation started in West Des Moines in 1999 and grew to more than $6 billion of new business in 2016. The group reported reaching $100 billion in assets in 2019, opened a new West Des Moines headquarters in 2021, bought Beacon Capital Management in 2021 and a majority stake in NorthRock Partners in 2023, and formed a wealth management division in 2024. Esfand Dinshaw, chief executive since 2010, retires at the end of 2026; president Rob TeKolste becomes chief executive and chairman on January 1, 2027.

Life insurance products

Both Midland National and North American sell their life policies only through financial professionals; the websites offer a term quote calculator and an agent finder rather than direct online purchase.

• Indexed universal life is the group's main life product. Cash value earns interest linked to market indexes, subject to caps and participation rates, and policy charges rise as the insured ages. Midland National publishes index performance for its IUL policies. Read IUL pros and cons: what the sales pitch leaves out before buying, since results depend heavily on illustrated assumptions.
• Term life is available from both companies; the websites provide quotes through their free term quote calculators.
• Variable universal life from Midland National is sold by prospectus.

Midland National's website says its policies can include living benefits for qualifying serious illness and that cash value can be accessed through loans and withdrawals, subject to eligibility and tax rules. Specific rider lists and product terms are provided through agents rather than on the consumer sites.

Other products

Annuities are a major business for the group. Midland National and North American issue fixed index and fixed annuities through independent marketing organizations, Sammons Retirement Solutions distributes annuities through banks and broker-dealers, and Midland Advisory serves registered investment advisers. Compare our guide to fixed indexed annuities: caps, participation rates and trade-offs.

Buying and service

You buy through an independent agent or financial professional, who is paid a commission on the sale; see captive vs independent life insurance agents. Policyholders can register for an online account to check policy information and update details. Midland National life policies are serviced at 800-923-3223 and North American life policies at 877-872-0757, both Monday through Thursday 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Friday 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Central. Annuity owners use separate lines: 877-586-0244 for Midland National and 866-322-7069 for North American.

Claims

Beneficiaries can report a death online or call the claims line: 800-733-2524 for Midland National, 877-880-6367 for North American. Each company posts claim packets on its life claim forms page, including a claimant statement, a beneficiary guide and an Access Account form for those choosing that payout option; read about retained asset accounts: the checkbook you didn't ask for first. Extra forms apply to trusts, powers of attorney, surviving children, deaths abroad and contestable claims within the first two years (see the two-year contestability period).

Both companies say their processing goal is 10 calendar days after the final claim requirement is received, longer if more review or documents are needed. Midland National life mail goes to One Sammons Plaza, Sioux Falls, SD 57193.

Ratings and reputation

AM Best affirmed the A+ (Superior) financial strength rating of Midland National and North American on September 3, 2026, with a stable outlook, citing very strong balance sheet strength; Midland National says it has held that rating since 1980. AM Best also noted that the group's risk-adjusted capital increasingly relies on significant affiliated offshore and onshore reinsurance, and that Sammons is gradually moving its investment management away from Guggenheim Asset Management, a shift expected to take years. S&P Global Ratings affirmed both companies' A+ (Strong) rating on June 10, 2026, and Fitch rated both A+ with a stable outlook on June 10, 2026, according to Sammons.

On August 17, 2026, after press reports linking it to Guggenheim, Sammons said it is not affiliated with Guggenheim Capital, that its parent holds a non-voting, non-controlling minority interest in Guggenheim Capital that it has been selling down for several years, and that Sammons and its officers, directors and employees are not under investigation.

Midland National ranked 19th of 23 brands in the J.D. Power 2026 U.S. Individual Life Insurance Study, released in October 2026, with 605 points against a study average of 649, up from 21st in 2025; North American was not ranked separately.

Who it suits

Sammons suits buyers who are working with an independent agent and want indexed universal life or a fixed index annuity from a highly rated company without public shareholders. It fits less well people who want to buy term coverage directly online, New York residents, or anyone who wants the simplicity and guarantees of whole life.

• Strengths: A+ ratings from AM Best, S&P and Fitch (2026); employee ownership since the ESOP took full control in 2010; long history dating to 1906; two companies and many independent agents to choose from.
• Weaknesses: Sold only through agents; life lineup centered on indexed products whose cash values depend on caps and charges; a below-average J.D. Power score for Midland National in 2026 (19th of 23); no New York company; limited public financial reporting; AM Best notes growing reliance on affiliated offshore reinsurance.

How to contact Sammons Financial Group