Oxford Life Insurance Review

Pros Explained 

• No medical exams required: None of Oxford Life’s three plans require a medical exam, saving you time when getting a policy.
• Single premium policies: Oxford Life offers life insurance policies that feature just a single premium instead of multiple premiums that can last for years. 
• Medicare Supplement coverage available: In addition to life insurance and annuities, Oxford Life has additional products that include Medicare Supplement coverage.
• Excellent third-party ratings: Oxford Life Insurance Company receives fantastic ratings for financial strength from AM Best and customer satisfaction from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.

Cons Explained 

• No term life: Oxford Life Insurance Company only offers whole life and final expense insurance. There are not any term life insurance products commonly seen with other insurance providers. 
• Not available in New York or Vermont: While many companies don’t sell in New York, Oxford Life adds Vermont to the list, limiting its reach.
• Maximum $500,000 coverage: Only the Prosperity Select offers $500,000 in coverage, with the other two plans maxing out at just $30,000 in coverage.
• Riders limited by state: Most of the riders and additional benefits available from Oxford Life are limited to certain states. 

Available Plans

There are three plans available for Oxford Life Insurance: the Oxford Life Prosperity Select, Oxford Life Assurance, and Oxford Life Assurance One. They are each final expense policies with differing features.

Oxford Life Prosperity Select

Oxford Life Prosperity Select provides whole life insurance coverage with just a single payment. Policies are available for individuals between the ages of 55 and 80, and you can choose from coverage that ranges between $30,000 and $500,000 with no medical exam required. There is the added guarantee that coverage will never decrease after that initial single premium. Once you pay that premium, your policy begins to generate cash value that accumulates over time. Considered a Modified Endowment Contract (MEC), this policy’s benefit is free from federal income tax with an added liquidity feature in case you need emergency access to cash.

Oxford Life Assurance

Oxford Life Assurance is a type of final expense life insurance that is available to individuals between the ages of 50 and 80 years old, but the amount of coverage you can buy depends on your age at the time of issue.

Coverage never decreases once you purchase your policy, and your policy will not be canceled as long as your premiums remain paid. Death benefits are also federal income tax-free. 

Before you can purchase a policy, there is a medical questionnaire that you will have to complete, but there is no medical exam required, simplifying the process. Approval is immediate and made during your point-of-sale interview. 

Oxford Life Assurance One

Assurance One blends the single premium feature of the Prosperity Select plan with the final expense benefits of the Assurance policy. This is a policy available to individuals ages 55 to 80 with available coverage ranging from $5,000 to $30,000 that never ends unless you cancel it. There is the same federal income tax-free benefit as the other two policies; however, with Assurance One, you can choose from either a single or joint payout option. 

However, the maximum death benefit for your policy depends on several specific factors, such as the issue age, gender, and tobacco class. A medical questionnaire is required to purchase, but there is no requirement for a medical exam. Immediate approval is made on the spot during your point-of-sale interview.

Available Riders

Oxford Life also offers riders, which are additional types of coverage that you can purchase a la carte to round out your policy.

Accelerated benefits for Oxford Life Insurance plans include the option of five additional riders.

Chronic Illness Benefit

This benefit equals the lesser of either $2,000 or 1% of your policy to be paid out if the policyholder is unable to perform at least two activities of daily living or if the individual requires extended supervision to ensure physical safety. This rider is not available in California or Florida.

Common Carrier Rider

This rider applies if there is an accidental death while the policyholder is a fare-paying passenger on a common carrier conveyance such as airlines or water taxis.

Home Health Care Benefit

Policyholders can receive the lesser of $2,000 or 1% of their policy in a monthly benefit if they are diagnosed with a chronic illness and receive home health care for a minimum of 90 consecutive days. This benefit is only available in Delaware, North Dakota, and Washington, D.C.  

Nursing Home Benefit

This monthly benefit is for those policyholders who will remain in a nursing home for the rest of their lives, with an amount that is determined by the number of years the policy is active. It is not a benefit that is available in California or Florida. Additionally, Arkansas, Arizona, Delaware, North Dakota, and Washington D.C. are all states that require the 90-day period to be completed within a nursing facility to be eligible for the benefit.

Terminal Illness Rider

For those with a terminal illness, you can receive up to 100% of your death benefit when you have a life expectancy of less than 12 months. However, this rider is not available to California policyholders. 

The riders available to you depend on the plan that you choose and also where you live, with options varying by state. 

In 2019, Oxford Life also made available two new benefits for its policyholders: the ChooseHealthy and Individual Vision Plans from VSP. With these add-ons, you can receive additional discounts on certain health services, memberships, and products at no additional cost to you.

Customer Service

Policyholders at Oxford Life Insurance Company offer several ways to reach customer support. Phone and online chat support are available Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Central Standard Time. Both email and an online contact form are available if you want to leave a request for when customer service reopens.

Complaint Index 

One way to judge a company’s customer satisfaction is by looking to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). The NAIC tracks the number of customer complaints made against a company each year and assigns an average score. 

With a baseline score of 1.00, Oxford Life Insurance Company scores well below that with a total NAIC score of 0.14 for 2021. It is an improvement over the last two years when the average score was 0.08 in 2020 and 0.50 in 2019, demonstrating that Oxford Life is committed to ongoing improvement in customer satisfaction.

Third-Party Ratings

Another important item of consideration is a company’s financial strength ratings.

Respected third-party ratings provider AM Best assesses a company’s financial health to help consumers determine how stable a company may be. This is important because a financially stable company is one that often pays claims quickly and efficiently at a time when you need it most. Oxford Life Insurance Company receives an overall rating of A (Excellent), signifying sound financial health and strong claims reliability. 

Cancellation Policy

Oxford’s life insurance policies never cancel unless you fail to pay your premiums. However, if you decide to cancel your policy yourself, you will need to contact Oxford Life Insurance Company directly. There is a Life Insurance Surrender/Cancellation Form that is provided online to begin the process. If your policy was issued in or you live in a community property state, you will be required to obtain spousal consent if you are married. This is required for the states Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, New Mexico, Nevada, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin.

Before you purchase a policy from Oxford Life Insurance Company, take the time to read the terms and conditions surrounding your policy so you are sure that the requirements work for your needs, including any particular language involving policy cancellation. 

Price

Pricing for a life insurance policy from Oxford Life depends on the policy you choose and whether you elect to add any additional benefits or riders to your policy. There are also several rate factors that impact the price of your life insurance policy, including your issue age, where you live, tobacco use, and medical history. Gender is another factor that can affect pricing, but most providers tend to base prices on birth biology instead of current gender identity. When you sign up for your plan, you can ask your agent for further details.

Once you purchase your policy, paying your premium is simple with several convenient payment options. You can choose from annual, semi-annual, quarterly, and monthly options. You also have the option to sync your premium draft dates with your Social Security payment dates for extra convenience.

Competition 

To understand how Oxford Life Insurance Company measures up against the competition, we measured the provider against one of the best life insurance companies for 2021, New York Life. New York Life is significantly larger than Oxford Life as the fifth-largest provider with more options for coverage and higher annual dividends. However, Oxford Life offers additional wellness incentives where New York Life offers none and receives lower scores for complaints via the NAIC.

Overall, New York Life offers greater coverage with better scores for financial reliability and larger market share.

Our Methodology: How We Review Life Insurance Carriers

At Investopedia, our editorial team uses our proprietary review methodology to provide the most current and accurate portrayal of today’s leading life insurance carriers, meticulously researching and analyzing the latest data, rates, and rankings. There are several factors that we consider in our analysis, including available policies, pricing, riders, eligibility requirements, customer service, and support options. We also look to third-party rankings from industry leaders such as the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and AM Best.