Life Insurance Ratings

One of the most important considerations for choosing a life insurance policy is the company’s rating. Even though price may be your top priority, making your selection solely on the lowest cost may not necessarily make it the best choice. There are a variety of reliable rating systems available online, but making sense of the ratings may require a bit of decoding.

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LIFE INSURANCE RATINGS OVERVIEW

Rating agencies assess the financial “health” of life insurance companies to arrive at a score. There are a number of top ratings agencies, and each has a slightly different system. According to Kiplinger’s Personal Finance web article “Rating the Company,” they suggest that you “limit yourself to insurers that rate an A++ or A+ from A.M. Best, a B or above from Weiss, or at least an AA from Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s or Duff & Phelps.” The following provides an overview of the rating system for a sampling of agencies:

A. M. BEST

A++, A+ Superior 
A, A- Excellent 
B++, B+ Very Good 
B, B- Fair 
C++, C+ Marginal 
C, C- Weak 
D Poor 
E Under regulatory supervision
F In liquidation 
S Rating suspended 

STANDARD & POOR’S

A++, A+ Superior 
A, A- Excellent 
B++, B+ Very Good 
B, B- Fair 
C++, C+ Marginal 
C, C- Weak 
D Poor 
E Under regulatory supervision 
F In liquidation 
S Rating suspended

MOODY’S

Aaa Exceptional
Aa1, Aa2, Aa3 Excellent
A1, A2, A3 Good
Baa1, Baa2, Baa3 Adequate
Ba1, Ba2, Ba3 Questionable
B1, B2, B3 Poor
Caa1, Caa2, Caa3 Very Poor
Ca Extremely Poor
C Lowest