Whole Life Insurance Protection for Your Lifetime

As long as your premiums are paid, you won’t have to worry about your whole life policy expiring or being canceled. Get started with a whole life insurance quote.

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Whole Life Insurance

What Is Whole Life Insurance?

Whole life insurance is a type of permanent life insurance that's designed to last your whole life, rather than a specific term. As long as you make your premium payments on time, your policy will not expire. The premiums also remain the same throughout your life regardless of your age, health or lifestyle changes. It also builds cash value over time and may pay dividends¹.

What Are the Potential Advantages of Whole Life Insurance?

Lifetime Coverage

A key potential benefit of whole life insurance is that it has no expiration date. As long as you keep paying your premiums, your coverage will continue for your entire lifetime.

Fixed Premiums

Your whole life premium stays the same for the rest of your life so you don't have to worry about it increasing with age. Your policy may include a guaranteed death benefit that will stay the same or increase as you pay into the policy.

Cash Value

Some whole life policies build cash value, money you can withdraw or borrow from the policy while you're alive².

mother daughter working on whole life insurance quotes

What Does Whole Life Insurance Cover?

After you qualify for a policy, whole life insurance provides a death benefit when you die as long as scheduled payments are made. There may be some causes of death that are excluded and those details will be laid out in your policy. Your beneficiary can use the death benefit to cover any expense, including, but not limited to:

Final expenses: expenses to be paid after your death, including funeral, cemetery and burial costs
Mortgage payments: monthly bank payments to pay off the remaining loan on your home
Education expenses: tuition and educational costs for private schools/college for your children
Debt: payments for car loans, personal loans and credit card bills
Medical bills: health care expenses for hospitals, doctors, surgeries and procedures
Necessities: everyday living expenses like gas, groceries and utilities

What Are the Different Types of Whole Life Insurance?

There are a few different types of whole life insurance based on how you pay for the policy.

Dividend Paying Whole Life

This is the standard type of whole life insurance policy. After you sign up, the amount you owe per year (the premium) stays the same for your entire life. You'll likely make more premium payments over your lifetime than the other types of life insurance, but the amount you owe per year tends to be lower because you spread the cost over a longer period of time.

Non-Dividend Paying Whole Life

With non-dividend paying whole life insurance, you only owe premiums for a set amount of time. When you reach the end of that time frame, you won't owe anything more, but will keep your coverage for the rest of your life. Since you're making fewer payments, you'll likely need to pay more each time to get the same amount of coverage as a dividend paying policy.

Single Premium Whole Life³

With a single premium whole life insurance policy, you only make one lump sum payment for your coverage. After that, you have guaranteed insurance coverage for the rest of your life without having to make any other payments. There are three types of single premium life insurance policies available.

Simplified Issue Whole Life

This is permanent life insurance that does not require a medical exam or blood test. Just answer a few health questions.

couple drinking coffee talking about whole life insurance

Compare Types of Whole Life Insurance

Western & Southern’s whole life insurance policies can be tailored to fit your specific needs. You have the option to include supplemental add-ons, or riders, that provide you with additional protection.

Benefits	Easy Choice Life⁴	Simple Choice Whole	Superior Value Life®	Easy Choice Legacy®
Single Payment Premium Only one total payment made at the beginning of your coverage	NotChecked	NotChecked	NotChecked	Checked
Fixed Premiums Same amount owed every time your payment is due	Checked	Checked	Checked	Checked
Accelerated Death Benefit Rider Can access your life insurance benefit as a living benefit or terminal illness benefit	Checked	Checked	Checked	Checked
May Earn Dividends Potential income from company profits at recurring times throughout the year. Dividends are not guaranteed	NotChecked	Checked	NotChecked	NotChecked
Guaranteed Insurability Rider Increase your existing coverage and not be excluded for a preexisting condition	Checked	Checked	Checked	NotChecked
Simplified Issue	Checked	NotChecked	NotChecked	Checked
	Easy Choice Whole Life	Simple Choice Whole Life	Superior Value Whole Life	Easy Choice Legacy Whole Life

Need Some Help?

Purchasing whole life insurance can seem expensive and finding the right product for you can seem complicated. We're here to help make that process a little easier.

Get My Free Quote

Give us a call 866-832-7714 866-832-7714

How Much Does Whole Life Insurance Cost?

The cost depends on several factors, including:

Your age
If you have any pre-existing medical issues or other health issues
The size of the death benefit
The number of premiums payments you plan on making

Since these factors change on a case-by-case basis, the only way to know for sure how much a policy will cost for you is by meeting with a financial representative. After you formally apply and go through medical underwriting, we will give you the official cost and then you can decide whether to purchase a policy.

How Much Life Insurance Do You Need?

Life insurance can be an important element of your overall financial strategy. Answer a few questions about your life situation to estimate how much coverage you might need.

Calculate My Needs

What Is the Difference Between Whole & Term Life Insurance?

The major difference between whole and term life insurance is how long they last. Term life insurance is temporary coverage, so it only lasts for a set number of years. If you outlive this period, your coverage will end. With whole life insurance, you're covered for your entire lifetime, as long as you maintain the policy, rather than a set term. Whole life insurance can build cash value over time but term life insurance does not.

Is Whole Life Insurance Right for You?

Whole life insurance has a different cost structure than term life insurance. So, think carefully about what your life insurance needs are, and consider a policy that matches your needs. In addition, the option you choose should have an adequate death benefit to help meet your coverage needs. Consider which policy will best suit your lifestyle to find the best one for your long-term objectives.

Remember: whole life insurance is a purchase that can improve over time. The longer you maintain your policy, the more you'll benefit from locking in a low premium and building cash value.

Examples of How Whole Life Insurance Coverage Works

Steve is a 61-year-old mechanic who's approaching retirement. His kids have all completed college. He had a term life insurance policy when they were younger, but that policy just lapsed. Steve replaces his old plan with a $100,000 whole life policy. He decided it would be adequate to cover his final expenses, while leaving a small inheritance for his adult children.

Susan is a 31-year-old architect. She doesn't have any children but wants them in the future. After reviewing her options, she decides to purchase a $250,000 whole life policy. She likes the idea of accumulating cash value and knows permanent life insurance is a good way to help protect the future of her family. Since she's purchasing her policy while she's young, her premium should be lower.

Frequently Asked Questions

Another difference between policies is that some whole life insurance options don't offer cash value, and only pay out a death benefit after you pass away. In exchange, these plans charge a lower monthly premium. This can make them a good option if you simply want insurance protection for your beneficiaries.

If you die, we keep your cash value balance. In exchange, we pay your beneficiaries the death benefit, which will likely be more than what you had in cash value.

One key difference between whole life insurance and other insurance plans is the length of time you are given to make payments. At some point, your policy will be paid in full — this could be in 20 years, or it might be paid off once you turn 65. If you're interested in a policy that can be paid off quickly, your monthly payments have the potential to be larger. It's ultimately a matter of preference — and your stage in life. Just keep in mind that tax limits and contractual provisions can limit the amount of premium that can be paid.

If you stop paying your premiums, we will likely first see if you have cash value in the policy. We may use this balance to keep covering your premiums until the funds run out. At this point, we may give you a grace period to make up the missed payments and keep your coverage. After that, your coverage will end. Most term products, however, offer optional riders and options that could allow you to renew or covert your policy.

We may offer a reinstatement period, where you can reapply to restart your old policy. In exchange, you'll need to catch up on the missed payments and might need to pass medical underwriting again.

Why Choose Western & Southern?

When you’re looking for whole life insurance protection, Western & Southern has a history of providing life insurance to people just like you. Our financial ratings make us one of the strongest life insurance groups, offering you the financial stability you can count on. We have knowledgeable financial representatives available to help you with your insurance needs.

Financial Strength

Longevity & Stability

Financial Ratings

IMPORTANT DISCLOSURES

¹ Dividends are not guaranteed and may change at any time.

² Loans will accrue interest. Loans and withdrawals may generate an income tax liability, reduce account value and the death benefit, and may cause the policy to lapse. The policy may be issued as a modified endowment contract (MEC) for tax purposes. Any withdrawals or surrenders could result in a taxable event. The cash value of life insurance builds over 20 years. There are other considerations the client needs to understand before taking a loan or withdrawal. The client should consider what is best for his or her situation.

³ The policy may be issued as a Modified Endowment Contract (MEC) for tax purposes. Any withdrawals or surrenders could result in a taxable event. Distributions are taxable to the extent that there is gain in the contract. A 10% penalty applies for distributions prior to age 59 ½ with certain exceptions. In order for policies funded by an exchange to be issued as a non-MEC, the entire single premium must be in the form of a 1035 Exchange and the existing policy must not be a MEC.

⁴ Easy Choice Life 20 and Easy Choice Life 100 policy series ICC21 2102-322 and Easy Choice Life 100 Graded Death Benefit policy series ICC21 2107-327 each have a maximum face amount of $49.999. If you don’t qualify for Easy Choice Life 20 or Easy Choice Life 100 due to underwriting requirements, you may qualify for Easy Choice Life 100 Graded Death Benefit or another product.

Simplified Issue Single Premium Whole Life insurance policy series ICC24 2401-329 issued by The Western and Southern Life Insurance Company.

Whole Life Insurance Policy Series ICC21 2103-110, ICC21 2102-322, ICC21 2102-322, & ICC21 2107-327 issued by The Western and Southern Life Insurance Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, which operates in DC and all states except AK, ME, MA, and NY.

These policies and benefits may not be available in all states, and benefits may vary by state.

Payment of benefits under the life insurance policy is the obligation of, and is guaranteed by, the issuing company. Guarantees are based on the claims-paying ability of the issuer. Products are backed by the full financial strength of the issuing company.

Life insurance policies contain certain exclusions, limitations, reductions of benefits and terms for keeping them in force. Please contact a financial representative for complete details.

Life insurance products are not bank products, are not a deposit, are not insured by the FDIC, nor any other federal entity, have no bank guarantee, and may lose value.

Whole Life Insurance Protection for Your Lifetime

What Is Whole Life Insurance?