January 2020 Carrier Updates

January 2020 Carrier Updates

Last Updated: January 31

AIG

  • New Term Rates Are Coming Soon!. We’re starting 2020 out with good vibrations- and new Term rates. As of February 1 2020, Select-a-Term gets even more competitive in some of the most popular issue ages and classes. Keep jamming with: 18 durations (including 10-year and 15 through 30 years and a 35-year term), and convertibility to the earlier of age 70 or the end of the level term period. In addition to rate changes (including increases and decreases in certain cells), the product will now have new Annual Renewable Term (ART) rates, changes to the ART design, and a discontinuation of the Term Conversion Credit.

Need help with any of AIG's products?
Call us at 1-800-823-4852 or click here to email our Brokerage Sales Support team.

AXA

Need help with any of AXA's products?
Call us at 1-800-823-4852 or click here to email our Brokerage Sales Support team.

Gerber

  • A Cross-Sell Opportunity to Help Maximize Success. Now that you’ve discussed how a Medicare Supplement or Medicare Advantage plan can help meet your clients’ healthcare needs, your clients may have other needs to address, such as having a way to pay for expenses if they were to become chronically ill. Fortunately, Gerber Life is here to help with Gerber Life DuetTM — a combined whole life insurance policy with chronic care protection. Designed to help meet the added costs incurred by people living longer and needing some type of skilled care, Gerber Life Duet provides two types of protection that work in harmony: death benefit protection with face amounts ranging from $100,000 to $1,000,0001, and coverage for chronic care expenses with benefit payments ranging from $90,000 to $300,000. Your Medicare Supplement/Advantage clients are an appropriate audience to consider for a Gerber Life Duet policy. They may be at an age where they are concerned about paying for expenses if they were to become chronically ill. They might not be able to afford a long-term care policy. They may have had recent experience with a family member's chronic condition. With costs for skilled care continuing to rise, Gerber Life Duet can provide affordable coverage that would help protect your clients if a chronic illness were to occur. Plus, it can give your clients the ability to ease financial burdens on their loved ones. Remember, healthcare is just one important component of your clients’ financial picture. Having life insurance protection and coverage for chronic care expenses can be even more important and impactful. Don’t miss out on this important cross-selling opportunity. Consider a Gerber Life Duet policy for your Medicare Supplement and Medicare Advantage clients today. To learn more about Gerber Life Duet, contact your General Agent. You can also visit Gerber Life’s Agent Portal (link above) to view the Gerber Life Duet consumer and agent marketing materials.

Need help with any of Gerber's products?
Call us at 1-800-823-4852 or click here to email our Brokerage Sales Support team.

John Hancock

  • Create more value for you and your clients See how using a “blending up” strategy with Accumulation IUL can create more death benefit and higher income solves for your clients — and higher targets for you.
  • Interest crediting rate changes Effective March 1, 2020, John Hancock will be changing the interest crediting rates on certain universal life, indexed universal life, long-term care products and variable life fixed accounts for new and inforce policies. Also, we will be making some changes to the indexed account cap rates of certain indexed universal life products. Click the link above for a flyer with details on the new rates for each product.
  • John Hancock Term products now available on iPipeline’s Drop Ticket! iPipeline users can now use iGO Drop Ticket to quickly and easily complete a Ticket for a John Hancock Term product (i.e., Protection Term or Vitality Term). Be sure to turn on this new feature by going into iService/iGO eApp Products/John Hancock, and add “Term Drop Ticket” — example here. And, submissions via iPipeline’s Drop Ticket are eligible for John Hancock ExpressTrack® underwriting! Click the link above for additional details about this exciting implementation.
  • Transfer-for-value & reportable policy sales . Final regulations associated with the transfer-for-value and reportable policy sale rules were issued at the end of 2019, with some significant changes that could lead to the taxation of death benefits for certain transfers. Our newly updated BYA on transfer-for-value & reportable policy sales helps you navigate these new laws.
  • Unlock everything Aspire has to offer. When it comes to type 1 or type 2 diabetes, think John Hancock Aspire! With Aspire, your clients living with diabetes can save up to 25% on premiums, may qualify for personalized diabetes support from Onduo, and can unlock all the rewards and benefits of the Vitality GO and Vitality PLUS programs. Check the Aspire box on the application to ensure your clients receive a personalized experience and have immediate access to all the benefits Aspire has to offer. Check the Aspire box on the illustration to get a custom Aspire report that explains how the program and benefits work.
  • Digital solutions to help you grow your business in 2020. The new year is the perfect time to take another look at our suite of digital solutions that can help you find new prospects, gain insights and sales strategies, and grow your business in a variety of markets. Bookmark these sites for easy access! Tools include:

Need help with any of John Hancock's products?
Call us at 1-800-823-4852 or click here to email our Brokerage Sales Support team.

Pacific Life

  • The Biggest Opportunity...Under Your Nose.. Of the $12 trillion life insurance protection gap, 1 in 2 U.S. households are existing policyowners with an average coverage gap of $225,000 per household. The greatest opportunity may be hiding in your book of business.
  • More Competitive Pricing for PL Promise Term. We’ve repriced PL Promise Term Life Insurance to help you maximize your term sales (effective December 16, 2019). See how we stack up against the competition.
  • Consistently Competitive Pricing for PL Promise Term Life Insurance. Pricing Adjustments for 2017 CSO and PBR Effective December 16, 2019. On December 16, 2019, rate adjustments for PL Promise Term,1 a product specifically designed to serve the death benefit protection needs of the broad market consumer (household incomes of $50K to $250K), go into effect to accommodate the 2017 Commissioners’ Standard Ordinary (CSO) Mortality Table. With this transition, PL Promise Term will also change to Principle-Based Reserving (PBR). Our commitment to providing affordable life insurance coverage for everyday consumers remains strong; we aim to make the 2017 CSO transition as easy as possible.

Need help with any of Pacific Life's products?
Call us at 1-800-823-4852 or click here to email our Brokerage Sales Support team.

Principal

  • SECURE Act. The SECURE Act, signed into law on Dec. 20, 2019, provides greater opportunity for individuals and families to save for retirement. It includes significant changes that affect qualified retirement plans and IRAs, and can also create some new estate planning challenges. The good news—life insurance can be used to help meet those challenges. Use the consumer flyer linked above to help guide your conversations.
  • IRC Section 162(m) proposed regulations. The treatment of executive compensation in large companies was changed by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, which amended IRC Section 162(m). This Code section has long limited the deduction for compensation to top executives in publicly-traded companies to $1 million. However, the amendments broadened the scope and breadth of its application. The proposed regulations, in general, cover more companies, affect more forms of compensation, and have an impact on more employees.
  • Our approach to the NY cybersecurity regulation. NYDFS issued the new Section 500.11 requirement under 23 NYCRR 500, requiring those doing life insurance, annuity or individual disability insurance business in NY to indicate to carriers that appropriate data security plans are in place. The regulation allows carriers to take a risk-based criteria approach in determining which entities will need to complete the cybersecurity questionnaire. That criteria have been established and will be periodically reviewed to ensure our compliance. If you meet our criteria, we'll be in touch. Before the end of the month, you’ll hear from us. You’ll get further details and resources to help you meet the March 1 deadline and ensure minimal impact on the new business process. We’ll use the LIMRA questionnaire, a free, industry-wide option that makes the process as straightforward as possible for you. Data security is a priority for everyone. Even if you don’t fit our validation criteria, you’re still expected to comply with NY requirements. And it’s a good best practice, regardless of where you do business. There’s also a chance you’ll need to complete the questionnaire, if you meet our criteria in the future.
  • Keep offering your clients rate class upgrades through June. We’re excited to announce an extension of the single-pay (formerly called limited-pay) underwriting program through June 2020! This means you can continue to offer your clients a one-rate class improvement on single-pay sales of select universal and indexed universal life insurance policies. This is the same great program, with a couple of updates: (a) Policies must be single-pay only to qualify, and (b) A signed quotation and/or illustration with coverage to at least attained age 90 must be submitted with the application.
  • Reminder: Complete New York Reg 187 training before Feb. 1. You’ve heard about Reg 187 and the new best interest standards that will take effect for life insurance sold to customers in New York. We’re here to support you through this change—so you can continue to serve New York clients with Principal® solutions you can trust. Two requirements, and two changes to the app: Before submitting a formal application dated Feb. 1 or later, best interest training must be completed, and a proper understanding of products available in New York is required. The New York app package will also be modified to help maintain compliance while keeping the process quick and easy.
  • Transfer for value/reportable policy sale regulations: What you need to know. Regulations issued late in 2019 became necessary due to provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 governing reportable policy sales, which are designed to tax some or all of the death benefit when a life settlement or other commercial transfer of a life insurance policy has taken place. However, the regulations take a broader approach, expanding on the transfer for value rules that have been in the Internal Revenue Code for decades. The new rules will have a significant impact on certain business transfers and estate planning transactions. For general highlights, check out the links below. The regulations are complex, and you should consult them for more details. Click here for a Q&A.
  • Now available: Principal Executive VUL III. Principal Executive Variable Universal Life III (Executive VUL III) is designed specifically for the business market and can be ideal for financing deferred compensation plans, bonus plans, and more. In addition to the death benefit it provides, it can help with supplementing income, deferring or minimizing taxes, cash flow management, and liquidity needs. What makes this product a good fit for your clients? Executive VUL III is institutionally-priced and offers many business-friendly features:
    • Design flexibility that allows you to choose between higher early cash surrender values or greater long-term growth potential
    • Over 120 quality investment options from many well-known fund managers
    • Underwriting options for the busy executive including Guaranteed Issue/Simplified Issue, Principal Accelerated UnderwritingSM, and full underwriting
    • Dedicated case design and sales specialists before and during the sale—and in-house plan and policy administration services afterward

Need help with any of Principal's products?
Call us at 1-800-823-4852 or click here to email our Brokerage Sales Support team.

Protective

Need help with any of Protective's products?
Call us at 1-800-823-4852 or click here to email our Brokerage Sales Support team.

Prudential

Need help with any of Prudential's products?
Call us at 1-800-823-4852 or click here to email our Brokerage Sales Support team.

SBLI

Need help with any of SBLI's products?
Call us at 1-800-823-4852 or click here to email our Brokerage Sales Support team.

Symetra

  • Important changes to Symetra UL-G and Symetra CAUL. Symetra is repricing their Symetra UL-G and Symetra CAUL products to a reduced credited rate for in-force policies and new sales.
  • Additional death benefit coverage without full underwriting. Are your clients looking for extra life insurance protection? Through March 31, we’re offering clients the opportunity to purchase up to $1 million in additional Symetra Protector IUL coverage with limited underwriting! Our Symetra PIUL Extra Coverage Program is available for clients who have purchased up to $3 million of fully underwritten Symetra permanent life insurance within the last two years.

Need help with any of Symetra's products?
Call us at 1-800-823-4852 or click here to email our Brokerage Sales Support team.

Need help navigating the ever-increasing selection of products from these carriers? Learn how partnering with us can help you earn more, better serve your clients, and sell more life insurance online.

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