No one wants to face the reality that they might die before they think they should. Unfortunately, unexpected deaths happen. Car accidents, freak illnesses, and other events can result in us leaving our loved ones behind.
If this happened to you or your spouse, would the surviving person be able to financially support your family without any issues? Chances are, the answer is no. If that’s the case, you should seriously consider buying life insurance.
Haven Life is one company that sells life insurance online. Some of their policies can be issued quickly and don’t even require a medical exam.
Here’s what you need to know about them before you get a quote or purchase life insurance.
Haven Life provides online term life insurance policies up to $3 million with a medical exam. Haven Life makes buying life insurance online simple, and rates are competitive, starting around $15 a month for a $250,000 policy.
There's also a no medical exam option, Haven Simple, offering polices of up to $1 million that start around $25 a month for a $250,000 policy. (Sample policy prices are based upon a 35-year female and will vary based upon age and health).
- Easy to buy
- "Future-proof": Option to decrease coverage later
- No medical exam option
- No medical exam premiums are higher
What Makes Haven Life Unique?
Haven Life offers term life insurance quotes online. In a nice twist, Haven Life is commission-free. There are no fees and no up-selling for a no-hassle experience.
You can find out immediately if you’re approved for coverage, which doesn’t always happen with other life insurance companies. That said, some of their policies do require medical exams which can delay the approval process.
Haven Life is backed by and wholly owned by life insurance giant MassMutual. MassMutual has an A++ A.M. Best rating for financial stability, which should give you peace of mind that should your policy need to be paid out, there’s a good chance that would happen.
How Does Haven Life Work?
Life insurance is a contract with a company. The contract says you’ll pay monthly premiums to the life insurance company. If you follow the rules of the policy and die before the policy expires, the life insurance company will pay your beneficiary the value of your policy when you die.
In particular, Haven Life offers insurance policies with terms of 10, 15, 20, 25, or 30 years. You can buy as little as $250,000 to as much as $3,000,000 in coverage if you’re approved for a policy, as long as you’re under age 60. If you’re 60 to 64 years old, you can still apply for coverage but the maximum amount of coverage is limited to $1,000,000.
You apply for the policy online, but you can also call their customer service phone number if you need help. If you decide to purchase their InstantTerm product, your full coverage can begin immediately. If you decide to apply for a policy that requires a medical exam, you usually receive an offer for life insurance within seven to 10 days after you complete your medical exam.
How Much Does Haven Life Insurance Cost?
The cost of life insurance depends on your specific situation. Gender, age, weight, height, and lifestyle factors such as whether you smoke can have a huge impact on your rates.
Even after you enter these factors, other variables such as the length of the policy and the amount of coverage you desire can result in a wide range of fees.
Haven Life gives a handful of examples of monthly premiums for different life insurance scenarios. Here are some rate examples to help you understand the varying costs.
- 35-year-old, female, 20 year term, $500,000 coverage – $17.50/mo.
- 35-year-old, male, 20 year term, $500,000 coverage – $20.72/mo.
- 45-year-old, female, 20 year term, $1,000,000 coverage – $66.67.
- 45-year-old, male, 20 year term, $1,000,000 coverage – $80.00.
Haven Life isn’t for everyone, though. Here’s who Haven life won’t work for:
- Those 65 or older.
- Those under 20.
- Those who aren’t U.S. residents.
- Those who are in the military or are in the process of enlisting.
- Those who intend to use the policy for business purposes.
- Those whole plan to use the policy to replace another policy.
- Those with certain health concerns, such as diabetes.
Features of Haven Life
Haven Life does a few things that make them stand out versus other life insurance companies. Here are the highlights.
They Only Offer Term Life Insurance
Unlike other life insurance websites that may be looking to earn a higher commission, Haven Life only offers term life insurance (vs permanent life insurance).
Term life insurance is often the right choice for most families and is usually the most affordable life insurance option, as well. Eliminating the confusion of other types of insurance makes Haven Life easier to navigate.
They Allow You To Apply Online
While many life insurance websites allow you to start getting a quote online, you usually end up having to fax in paperwork or complete paperwork offline to finish your application.
Other than the potential medical exam, Haven Life’s process is completely online.
Not All Policies Require a Medical Exam
Haven Life offers some policies, called Haven Simple, that don’t require a medical exam. Coverage can be issued immediately. This is limited to people under age 59 and to people applying for up to $1,000,000 in coverage.
My Experience Getting a Quote Through Haven Life
My experience getting a quote through Haven Life wasn’t problem-free. However, I don’t expect you’ll run into the same issue I did. Here’s how applying works.
To get started, visit Haven Life’s website and click “Apply Now” on the right side of the page.
Next, Haven Life prepares you for what you’ll need. In particular, you need:
- Your driver’s license number and expiration date.
- Social Security Number.
- Current height and weight.
- Personal and family medical history.
Once you have this information ready, click “Let’s begin”
Next, Haven Life checks to make sure you’re eligible for their life insurance. You need to:
- Be living in the United States.
- Be 20 to 64 years old.
- Not active military or in the process of enlisting.
- Not intending to use the policy for business purposes.
- Not planning to use the policy to replace another policy.
If this is true, select your state from the drop-down box and click “Continue”.
Next, Haven Life asks you to answer some questions to determine the policy you want to apply for. Complete each question then click “Calculate”.
After you click calculate, an estimated rate will be shown below the calculate button. If you’re happy with this rate, click “Continue”.
Next, you have to create an account by providing an email address, creating a password, and agreeing to their terms of use. Click “Create account” when done.
At this point, the Haven Life website started having issues and wouldn’t let me continue beyond creating an account.
I reached out to customer service via their live chat feature but they didn’t have an immediate solution to my problem. They stated they’d follow up by email once they received a reply from their tech team.
After a few hours, I gained access to my account to figure out the next steps. After logging in, I was brought to the following lengthy application form.
In a nice twist, the application is all on one page so you can see how much information you’ll have to fill out. They ask for the following:
- Your reasons for getting the policy.
- Your name.
- Your email.
- Your gender.
- Your height.
- Your weight.
- Your date of birth.
- Your citizenship status.
- Your address.
- Your phone number.
- Your Social Security Number.
- Where you were born.
- Employment information.
- Income information.
- Net worth information.
- Background questions.
- Family history questions.
- Personal history questions.
- Questions about existing policies.
- Your beneficiary information.
- How you’ll pay for your policy.
- Acknowledgment that you’ve read important forms.
Once you’re done, you’ll click “Get my decision” at the end of the application. Next, you’ll select coverage. Finally, you’ll confirm and finish the application for life insurance coverage.
Customer Service
If you need to contact customer service as I did, you have a few options.
You can chat with a live agent on their website. You can also email them at help@havenlife.com or call 1-855-744-2836 to chat with a representative on the phone.
Paying
The only way to make payments on your life insurance policy is through a pre-authorized checking account. Payments will be automatically drafted from your bank account, but reminders are sent before charges are made.
Pros & cons
Pros
- Strong term life insurance — Term life insurance is usually the most cost effective form of life insurance for most people.
- You can apply and get a decision online — Not all life insurance websites allow you to get a decision on your life insurance policy online.
- Salespeople don’t earn commissions — If you do talk to a salesperson, they won’t receive commissions. This helps you get unbiased advice that isn’t based on how much money the salesperson is making.
Cons
- You only get a single quote from a single company — Since you only get one quote, you’d have to fill out additional applications on other websites to compare Haven Life’s premiums with other insurance companies.
- Other types of life insurance aren’t available — Even though term life usually is the best option in most cases, you won’t be able to compare other options that may fit your unique situation without getting a quote elsewhere.
- May have to submit to a medical exam — Many policies do require a medical exam which can slow down the process and could change your rate or result in your policy being declined based on the outcome.
Competitors
Haven Life isn’t the only life insurance company to consider. Here are a few others.
| Haven | Policygenius | Bestow | Fabric by Gerber Life | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Online application? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Policy options | Term life insurance | Varies by insurer | Term life insurance | Term life insurance |
| Medical exam required? | Not typically | Varies by insurer | No | For coverage less than $1.5 million, not typically |
Policygenius
Policygenius allows you to get multiple life insurance quotes with just one application.
The policy you end up buying isn’t offered by Policygenius, though. Instead, it’s through one of the many life insurance companies Policygenius aggregates quotes from. Policygenius offers quotes on many types of life insurance, not just term life insurance.
Read our full Policygenius review.
Bestow
Bestow is an insurance provider offering term life insurance starting at $11 a month, with no medical exam required to apply. Receive an instant decision and a free quote after filling out the short online application.
- No medical exam or bloodwork
- Easy application process
- Lot of policy options
- Lower approval odds
- May have higher prices
Bestow is an online company that only offers term-life policies. They stick with just one type of policy in order to make the process simpler for you. Some folks only need term-life insurance anyway. Bestow’s application takes just a few minutes and requires no medical exam.
What’s especially nice about Bestow is that they won’t try to upsell you on products you don’t want because their customer service agents are not commission-based.
Get a life insurance quote with Bestow or read our full Bestow review.
Fabric by Gerber Life
Fabric by Gerber Life was launched by parents for parents to help set up life insurance you need now that there is another member of your family to think about. Quotes are available after taking a 10-minute questionnaire on a sleek and easy-to-use website.
- Easy-to-complete online
- High coverage
- Sub-standard rates
- Not available nationwide
Fabric by Gerber Life is a life insurance provider, but it’s more than that too. This company offers affordable and customizable insurance policies as well as financial tools to help you organize your spending and investments, plan for the future, and even create a will.
Fabric by Gerber Life could be a good choice for you if want ongoing support protecting your family and finances after choosing a life insurance policy. Life insurance plans start at $7.86 a month depending on your term length and coverage, with a minimum of $100,000 and a maximum of $5 million. Term lengths are available between 10 and 30 years.
Get a life insurance quote with Fabric by Gerber Life or read our full Fabric by Gerber Life review.
Summary
Don’t leave your family unprotected. Haven Life offers a quick and easy life insurance application to get an estimated price. If the estimate looks reasonable, the application process to get a more accurate quote isn’t difficult as long as you don’t run into any technical problems.