MetLife Continues Direct Push with New Over-45 Product

Continuing a push toward making life insurance products more accessible to middle-market consumers, MetLife has introduced the Final Expense Whole Life Insurance product, underwritten without a medical exam and through its Consumer Direct Channel.

Available to adults age 45 to 75 in coverage amounts from $2,500 to $50,000, the product is meant for the more than 45% of seniors who have less than $10,000 in assets at the end of their lifetimes, leaving their survivors burdened since a similar amount have no life insurance at all. By selling through the direct channel, no medial underwriting is required, making the coverage available even if someone has previously been turned down for medical reasons.

“Everyone should have access to life insurance that is simple and affordable, but we know that many people perceive barriers that can make the coverage they want seem out of reach,” said Lewis Goldman, vice president, MetLife, in a statement. “Our Final Expense Whole Life Insurance product is easy to obtain, to qualify for, and to afford. It addresses uncertainties about qualifying for coverage, affordability, and how to get started with the process.”

The launch comes a few months after MetLife launched a Simplified Issue Term product, which is also a phone-based application aimed at middle-market consumers who generally lack life insurance coverage.

[Why Overstock.com opened an insurance agency]

Nathan Golia is senior editor of Insurance & Technology. He joined the publication in 2010 as associate editor and covers all aspects of the nexus between insurance and information technology, including mobility, distribution, core systems, customer interaction, and risk ... View Full Bio