Ladder offers term life insurance policies only. Term life insurance is worth considering if you want the most affordable type of life insurance to cover a specific length of time, such as your working years or the span of a mortgage.
With level term life insurance you can lock in rates for a specific period, such as 10 or 20 years. Your premium won’t change during this time. After that, you can renew a Ladder life insurance policy for only five more years.
Ladder describes itself as “100% digital” for policies of $3 million or less. You can complete the application and lock in your policy online. However, a life insurance medical exam might be part of the process if you want a policy with a larger death benefit (up to $8 million).
The company offers policies issued by:
- Fidelity Security Life Insurance Co.
- Allianz Life Insurance Co. of New York
- Allianz Life Insurance Co. of North America
Related: Types of life insurance
Ladder’s term life insurance
Ladder offers policies with terms of 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 years for people ages 20 to 60. You can only purchase a term that, in addition to your age, does not exceed 70. For example, if you are 50, you cannot purchase a term policy for more than 20 years.
Ladder term life insurance comes with a twist. The company’s name—Ladder—refers to the fact that you have the option of “laddering” your policy by increasing or reducing coverage if your needs change over time.
For example, a couple with their first child may want to increase coverage levels. Conversely, once the children are grown, a couple might not need as much protection.
“Laddering” is free, and policyholders can make these changes as often as they like.
Aside from the bonus of being able to adjust your coverage amount up or down, Ladder life insurance is barebones. You won’t have any options for riders, such as an accelerated death benefit. This feature would let you access your own death benefit if you become terminally ill and is readily available from other life insurance companies.
Clinton Mora is a reporter for Trending Insurance News. He has previously worked for the Forbes. As a contributor to Trending Insurance News, Clinton covers emerging a wide range of property and casualty insurance related stories.