Gerber vs Globe Life Insurance

Two of the biggest names in children's life insurance are Gerber Life and Globe Life. Geber has been selling insurance policies for children since 1967. They offer the  Gerber Life Grow-up policy for children under 14 and the  Gerber Life Young Adult Policy for teenagers between 15 and 17. The Grow Up Plan offers several popular benefits including an automatic doubling of coverage to $100,000 when a child turns 18 if a policy was originally purchased at $50,000.

Globe Life has been in business since 1900 and offers the Globe Life Young American Plan for youth under the age of 25. Since their plan extends up to age 25, Globe Life is an appealing option for parents or grandparents looking to secure plans for older teenagers or college students.  Globe life is one of the only companies that write children's life insurance policies for this age group.

Other life insurance products available from each company are listed below.

Additional Gerber Life Insurance products:

• Gerber Term Life Insurance
• Gerber Life Whole Life insurance
• Gerber Life Guaranteed
• Gerber Life College Plan
• Accident Protection Insurance

Additional Globe Life Insurance Products:

• Affordable Life Insurance
• Term Life Insurance
• Whole Life Insurance
• Senior Life Insurance
• Family Life Insurance
• No Medical Exam Term
• Burial and Funeral Insurance
• Life Insurance for Veterans
• Final Expense Insurance
• Young Family Life Insurance

Are their child life insurance plans a good option?

Child life insurance plans can be a good option for some families, but they're not right for every family and every situation. One of the primary advantages of any child life policy is that is you're purchasing it for someone who is very young and, hopefully, very healthy.  Buying a policy for a child allows a parent or grandparent to lock in a very low rate that a child will be able to keep for the rest of their lives.

The other advantage of child life policies is that they build cash value. Over the years, the cash value will collect interest and build up. You can borrow against the value of the cash value account component of a whole life insurance policy at any time. This makes a child life insurance plan both a life insurance plan and savings account all in one policy.

All child life insurance plans will transfer to the child once that child is either 18 or 21; the exact transfer age depends on company policy. At that point, the child will take over premium payments. They'll also be able to borrow against the cash value of the account and make any changes to the policy that they need to. Some parents and grandparents consider this a valuable gift.

However, there are also disadvantages to child life insurance policies. For many families, a child life insurance policy simply isn't the best use of money. Instead of a child life insurance policy, families can choose to open a college savings account or other high-interest savings account.  These accounts have much better interest rates than the cash value accounts that go along with child life insurance policies and can help families save significantly more money.

Families can still get life insurance coverage for their children by adding child riders to either or both parents' term life insurance policy. This is often much less expensive than taking out a separate child life insurance policy. Plus, riders allow you to cover multiple children all under the same rider at no extra cost.

If you are considering a child life insurance plan, there are advantages and disadvantages to both the Gerber Life plan and the Globe Life plan.

Advantages of Gerber Life child life insurance include:

• You can get up to $50,000 in coverage
• Coverage automatically doubles at age 18
• Coverage will last for the rest of your child's life
• The policy will build cash value
• No medical exam is required
• There is a 30-day money-back guarantee

Disadvantages of Gerber Life child life insurance include:

• Coverage can be expensive
• Grow Up Plan is only available until children are 14
• Money might be better spent elsewhere

Advantages of Globe Life child life insurance include:

• You can get up to $30,000 in coverage
• Coverage will last for the rest of your child's life
• The policy will build cash value
• No medical exam is required
• There is a 30-day money-back guarantee
• Your first month can cost as little as $1.00
• You can purchase a policy until your child is 25

Disadvantages of Globe Life child insurance include:

• Coverage can be expensive
• Policy amounts are low
• Money might be better spent elsewhere

How do their policies for adults compare?

Both Gerber Life and Globe Life also offer several types of life insurance plans for adults. You can read details about their most popular offerings below.

Gerber Life insurance plans for adults:

• Term life—  Gerber Life offers term policies of between $100,000 and $300,000 with term lengths of between 10 and 30 years.  You'll only need to take a medical exam for a Gerber term life policy if you are over 50.  Rates are locked in when you buy your policy and will not increase.
• Whole life— Whole life policies are also offered in policies amounts between $100,000 and $300,000. Applicants will only need to take a medical exam if they are over 50.

Globe Life insurance plans for adults:

• Term life— Globe Life offers term policies of between $5,000 and $300,000 in coverage with terms lengths of between 10 and 20 years. Premiums for these policies increase every five years and rates vary by state.
• Whole life— Global Life offers whole life policies of between $5,000 and $500,000 in coverage with locked-in premiums that will remain the same throughout your life. Whole life policies from Globe build cash value you can borrow against.
• No medical exam term— Globe Life offers term policies without a medical exam. You can get up to $300,000 in coverage and decisions are often reached in minutes.

Gerber vs Globe Buying Process Compared

Gerber Life and Globe Life both offer child life insurance without a medical exam.  You can buy coverage quickly and policies will be active immediately after purchase. You can get started with either company by filling out a quick online form and getting a quote. From there, steps are slightly different depending on which company you're working with.

Gerber Life:

• If you like the quote received from Gerber, you can apply online right away. The application is brief and will ask you a few simple questions such as the child's age and general health information.
• Geber says that over 75 percent of applications will be approved within seconds of submitting an application.
• You can make your first payment immediately by credit card, debit card, or by linking a checking or savings account. You can choose to set up automatic payments for a 10 percent discount.
• You can also choose to call Gerber to get a quote over the phone or to apply with an agent. Gerber Life sales can be reached by calling 800-704-3331

Globe Life:

• An agent will contact you once you submit your Globe Life quote form. They'll ask you a few more questions about the child including basic health information.
• A decision can often be reached within minutes.
• You can make your first payment right away and will be able to set up your online account the same day your policy is approved.
• You can also start by calling877-577-3860 to reach Globe Life customer service.

Complaint data

Complaints data for life insurance companies are tracked by The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). The NAIC averages the complaints it tracks to give insurance companies a yearly score called a complaint index. The standard or average score on the NAIC complaint index is 1.0. Any company with a score lower than 1.0 has received fewer complaints than average and any company with a score that is higher than 1.0 has received more complaints than average. 

Geber Life currently has an NAIC complaint index of .81. This means they receive fewer complaints than the industry standard. Conversely, Globe Life currently has an NAIC complaint index of 1.2. This means customers have complained slightly more about Globe life.

Gerber vs Globe: Financial ratings

Life insurance companies are rated by financial rating institutions on their ability to meet their financial obligations now and on how likely it is they will be able to continue meeting those obligations in the future. These ratings indicate how financially strong a company is and are a good indicator of its reliability.

Both Gerber Life and Globe Life are generally ranked well by financial rating companies. You can see recent ratings for both companies below.

Globe Life financial ratings:

• A.M. Best— A
• S&P Global— A+
• Moody's— Tier A1

Gerber Life financial ratings:

• A.M. Best— A
• S&P Global— N/A
• Moody's— N/A