MassMutual Financial Group Review: Rates, Customer Service, & Products
Last Updated: 01/12/2018
AM Best Grade: A++ (Superior) 5 stars
Address: 1295 State St, Springfield, MA 01111
Phone: 1 (800) 272-2216
Website: www.massmutual.com
Also Known As: Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company, MassMutual
MassMutual Financial Group is an American mutual life insurance company with headquarters in Springfield, Massachusetts. The company has over 5 million clients, and employs more than 7,000 people in the United States and 10,000 people internationally. Ranked 76th on the 2016 Fortune 500 list, MassMutual provides services such as life insurance, disability income insurance, long term care insurance, retirement/401(k) plan services, and annuities.
Quick Review Guide:
- Company History
- Insurance Products
- Product Pricing
- Underwriting Niches
- Customer Service & Approval Process
- Financial Stability & Ratings
- Why We Like MassMutual
[render-raindrop-quoter]
Company History
When did MassMutual come into our world, you ask? It dates all the way back to May 15, 1851 in Springfield, Massachusetts. George W. Rice, a Connecticut insurance agent, wanted to open a life insurance company of his own in the neighboring state of Massachusetts. Since Massachusetts came out with a state law in 1851 requiring all insurance companies to take an initial stock subscription of $100,000, Rice gathered 31 investors to purchase stock and meet the requirements. Thankfully, MassMutual experienced lots of success and was able to pay back the stockholders in 1867, eventually becoming a mutual company.
Caleb Rice, a cousin of George W. Rice, was appointed the company’s first president in 1851, where he served for 22 years (fun fact, he was also the first mayor of Springfield, MA from 1852-1853). MassMutual was formed during the California Gold Rush, and reached their success by their westward expansion – selling high-premium insurance policies to railroad and steamship workers, as well as gold-rush adventurers and people relocating south of the Mason-Dixon line. Persevering through devastating events such as the Great Depression and 9/11, MassMutual continued to rise and grow their company into the successful mutual life insurance company that it is today.
Insurance Products
Now that we know all about MassMutual’s background, let’s get onto the products! Like stated before, MassMutual provides more than just life insurance policies. But for the sake of this review, we will just be focusing on those. Here’s a list of what the company offers:
- Term Life Insurance
- Direct Term Life Insurance
- Whole Life Insurance
- Universal Life Insurance
- Variable Universal Life Insurance
- Guaranteed Acceptance Life Insurance
As you can see, MassMutual has a variety of options when it comes to life insurance. Wondering which policy is right for you? Let’s break it down.
Term life insurance is the most popular policy to go with, because it’s generally cheaper than whole or universal life, and requires less commitment. MassMutual offers two term programs that are much quicker than other companies: Haven Life and Valoralife. Both have a very fast application process with Haven Life taking about 20 minutes to apply and buy a policy, while ValoraLife takes about 30. Haven Life also doesn’t require most applicants to take a medical exam to buy the policy. With Valoralife, customers will still get coverage immediately after buying, but they are required to get a medical exam within 90 days. Another advantage to term life insurance is the ability to convert your policy – if you decide you’d like to convert to permanent coverage, you have the option to do so as long as it is within MassMutual’s guidelines.
If you’d like to learn more about companies who offer no exam policies, check out our list of the top 10 no exam life insurance companies in 2018!
Interested in permanent coverage? Whole or universal life is the way to go for you. Both are permanent policies, but universal allows a little more flexibility when it comes to how much you pay each month, and how often you pay (within reason). In addition, whole life insurance has a guaranteed death benefit, as well as cash accumulation.
Lastly, there’s guaranteed acceptance life insurance. This policy is exactly like it sounds – you are guaranteed to qualify and be accepted. You don’t need any medical records, medical exams or messy paperwork to apply. The only drawback to guaranteed acceptance life insurance is the amount of coverage you receive, as well as a limited number of additional benefits to the policy. However, It’s a great option for those needing to just cover a few last expenses or those who fear they don’t qualify for other policies due to age or medical conditions.
As far as riders (products added onto your policy) go, here are some that MassMutual offers:
- Life Insurance Supplemental Rider
- Supplemental Insurance Amount
- Term Life Insurance Riders
- Guaranteed Insurability Rider
- Additional Life Insurance Rider
- Paid Up Additions Riders
Product Pricing
Let’s say that you’re a 30-year-old, non-smoking female currently residing in California. You fall into the “preferred (excellent)” risk class. If you wanted to purchase a 20-year term policy with $500,000 in coverage from MassMutual, it would cost you about $17.25/month with the HavenLife policy. In relation to other companies, this pricing is definitely lower than the average pricing per month for someone of that status. Affordability? Check.
However, we must note that this is just an estimate. Maybe you have a certain medical condition, or play a semi-hazardous sport and don’t know which health class you belong to. That’s a-okay. Give one of our licensed agents a call and let them know your specific conditions and concerns, and they’ll help decide if MassMutual is the best life insurance company for you.
Underwriting Niches
When you complete a phone interview with a life insurance company, you talk to someone called an underwriter. This person will determine which health class you fall into, and determine which policy and rates match your interview answers. Furthermore, every company has certain niches or leniencies that they allow with their clients. Here are some of the niches that MassMutual has:
Tobacco Use
To meet “preferred” guidelines, none of the following must have been used within the past two years: cigarettes, pipe, snuff, chew, smokeless tobacco, electronic cigarettes, Hookah/Hookah Tobacco, smoking cessation aids, and non-nicotine smoking cessation aids. To be considered for non-tobacco rates, urine specimen must be negative. However, clients can still qualify for non-tobacco rates if their only tobacco or nicotine use is cigars – as long as it is no more than 24 cigars a year, and their urinalysis specimen is negative for nicotine.
Weight Guidelines Leniency
MassMutual is quite a bit more lenient than other life insurance companies regarding build. For example, a 5’10” client (age 64 or younger) can still qualify for preferred if they weigh 223 pounds or less (a BMI of 32). For ages 65 and up, the maximum weight for a 5’10” client is 250 pounds (a BMI of 35). A BMI (your height to weight ratio) over 30 is considered obese, so this is a great option if your BMI or weight is a little higher than average.
Driving History
Clients who have had no more than 2 moving violations in the past 3 years and no DUI/DWIs in the past 5 years are eligible for MassMutual’s “preferred” rates. If you haven’t had more than 1 moving violation in the past 2 years and no DUIs for at least 10 years, you can qualify for MassMutual’s “Ultra Preferred” rates, which is their top ranking (dependent on your answers for other categories, of course).
Cholesterol
If your total cholesterol is between 140 and 300 and your cholesterol/HDL ratio is less than or equal to 6.0, you are eligible for “preferred” rates. A nice little perk about this is that MassMutual will still allow you to qualify with these numbers with the help of a cholesterol-lowering medication, which is not always the case with life insurance underwriting.
Blood Pressure
To qualify for “preferred” rates, for the past two years you must have had blood pressure consistently at or below 140/90 for those under 50, and at or below 150/90 for those 50 and older. Again, MassMutual allows these levels even with an anti-hypertensive medication, which many life insurance companies will not allow.
Customer Service & Approval Process
On the Better Business Bureau (BBB) website, MassMutual has been given an A+ rating and only received 30 complaints in the past three years – ten of which were closed in the past year. Given that MassMutual is such a large company, 30 is extremely low compared to other companies its size. Go MassMutual! Here are some positive reviews we found from real-life customers:
“MassMutual Annuities has wonderful customer service, you can actually reach a real person when you call them and they are very professional and friendly. I like that I can access the website first and call them if I need further assistance. I also like that I can withdraw the money anytime I want to and they are fast. They have a lot of different options and ways you can withdraw your money and the payout is quick. They pay you exactly what you are owed with no fuss and hassle, I’ve never had any problems with them before. They have a lot of different ways you can add money to your account as well.”
“I can only say positive things regarding my experience with MassMutual Annuities. Their customer service was friendly, knowledgeable, and helpful. The withdrawal and payout options were reasonable, well thought out, and easy to action upon. When questioned or approached for help, all representatives were well-versed in the details regarding my options. Also, the funding options were safe, yet diversified enough to fit the needs of a wide variety of consumers – myself included. I had no difficulties in any regard.”
“I chose this company upon recommendation from colleagues. The customer service is excellent. I did not know much about annuities and they made it very simple for me. I have never had a problem with mass mutual and would recommend them.”
Now let’s talk approval process. We mentioned earlier that two of MassMutual’s term policies allow you to apply and buy life insurance within 20-30 minutes, which is crazy fast. As far as other policies go, we couldn’t find an exact time frame, but typical applications can take anywhere from 4-8 weeks to be approved. For the most accurate rates and approval time frame, call one of our licensed agents to help you out!
Financial Stability & Ratings
In terms of financial stability, MassMutual ranks quite strongly. As of 2016, the company has revenues of $29.6 billion and assets under management of $675 billion. As of 2017, MassMutual has delivered 5 billion in benefits to customers, paid $4.9 billion in insurance and annuity benefits, and hit their 11th consecutive year of record-breaking whole life sales.
MassMutual’s Financial Stability Ratings:
- A.M. Best: A++ (Superior)
- Fitch: AA+ (Very Strong)
- Standard & Poor’s: AA+ (Very Strong)
- Moody’s: Aa2 (Excellent)
- Comdex: 98/100
Why We Like MassMutual
We like to think that the information above speaks for itself when it comes to our thoughts on MassMutual. At Term Life Advice, we represent over 60 companies, and would not have chosen MassMutual if it wasn’t up to par. To summarize the key points, this is why MassMutual is awesome:
- Over a 160-year history of brilliance
- Term, direct term, universal, whole, and guaranteed acceptance life insurance options
- Many underwriting leniencies
- Additional policy benefits and riders
- Very affordable pricing
- Fantastic customer service
- Extremely high ratings from the big four rating companies
Term Life Advice is an owner-operated life insurance agency that works directly with highly-rated life insurance companies including MassMutual. This company could be the perfect fit for you; but it is always best to shop around and compare rates to make sure that you are matched with the best possible company.
If you’d like to get an accurate quote based on your age and health, or to determine if MassMutual is your best choice for coverage, give us a call today toll-free at: 855-902-6494. Our services are free, and our agency can quickly compare your options and rates by asking you a few questions about your health and lifestyle.
You can also request a free instant quote online below to instantly compare rates from more than 60 highly-rated life insurance companies in less than a minute.
[render-raindrop-quoter]