Gerber Life offers a suite of high-quality, no-exam life insurance products, including guaranteed acceptance, term life, whole life, children’s coverage, and accidental death coverage. It’s especially nice that all of their policies offer quick approvals, many of which can be bought online without speaking to an agent. Ultimately, if you need life insurance, Gerber Life is worthy of serious consideration.
- All policies under $100,000 don’t require a medical exam or health records.
- Convenient online portal for policyholders to manage their coverage.
- Very competitive pricing for their accidental death and whole life insurance.
- Guaranteed acceptance coverage is significantly more expensive than that of most other providers.
- Gerber Grow Up Plan is nearly double the cost compared to other children’s life insurance companies.
- Many customers have reported that contacting Gerber Life via phone can be challenging.
Types of Gerber Life Insurance Policies
Gerber’s Life offers multiple types of whole life insurance (for adults and kids) and term life insurance for adults. Universal life insurance is the only type of coverage they don’t offer.
Guaranteed acceptance
The guaranteed issue life insurance policy from Gerber does not require answering any health questions, and there is no medical exam. Because you’re guaranteed approval, Gerber will only refund your premiums for any non-accidental death during the first 24 months. It’s available to seniors aged 50-80 with coverage ranging from $5,000 to $25,000.
Learn more about Gerber guaranteed life insurance
Whole life insurance
Gerber’s whole life insurance offers lifelong coverage with a fixed rate and builds cash value for future growth. You must answer health questions to qualify, but in most cases, you don’t need to take a medical exam. There is no waiting period before coverage begins, and anyone aged 18-80 can purchase coverage ranging from $50,000 to $1,000,000.
Term life insurance
Gerber term life insurance is available in terms of 10, 20, or 30 years. The term lengths available to you depend on your age. For example, if you’re 70 years old, you can only purchase a 10-year term. The premiums are fixed for the life of the policy, and once it terminates, you’re no longer insured and don’t get any money back.
It’s available to adults 18-70 with coverage ranging from $100,000 to $2,000,000. They don’t require a medical exam to qualify, but you do have to answer health questions. If approved, you’re fully covered the day the policy starts.
Additionally, it is convertible, allowing you to switch the policy from term life to whole life. Please note that converting to whole life will result in a considerable price increase.
Accidental death
Gerber Life’s accidental death insurance will pay out a death benefit only if you die from an accident or sustain a serious, disabling injury. Among all providers offering accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D) coverage, Gerber is consistently among the most affordable.
There are no health or lifestyle questions to answer because you’re guaranteed approval. It’s available to adults aged 18-69 with coverage starting at $50,000, up to a maximum of $500,000.
Grow Up Plan
The Gerber Grow Up Plan is a children’s whole life insurance for minors aged from 14 days to 14 years old. You can buy $10,000-$50,000 in all states. It builds cash value, which can be withdrawn and used for college expenses or any other purpose. One very unique aspect of the Gerber Grow Up plan is that the death benefit doubles once the child turns 18.
Furthermore, even though the coverage doubles, the premium stays the same. When the insured children turn 21, they automatically become the policy owner. The policy automatically comes with a guaranteed insurability provision, which grants the child the right to purchase additional coverage later in life without undergoing underwriting.
The ability to add coverage is triggered by various life events, such as marriage, buying a home, or having a child. In total, they can add up to five times the base amount of the original policy. Additionally, there is a payment protection rider that waives premiums until the child’s 21st birthday in the event the policy owner becomes totally disabled or dies.
Being a type of whole life insurance, the rates remain the same, and the policy lasts indefinitely.
Learn more about Gerber Grow Up Plan
Young adult life insurance
Gerber’s young adult life insurance policy is identical to the Grow Up Plan, except that it is available to minors aged 15-17, is not available in New York, and requires more than two health questions to be answered.
Other than that, it’s exactly the same.
College Plan
The Gerber College Plan is an endowment life insurance policy that builds cash value at a guaranteed rate of return. You can select the coverage amount ($10,000-$150,000) and the duration of your premium payments (10-20 years).
If the child dies while the policy is in force, Gerber will pay out the death benefit. If the child is still living after reaching the end of the payment period, Gerber will pay out the guaranteed payout benefit amount.
Contrary to traditional 529 college savings plans, the Gerber College plan pays out money that can be used for anything (not just college costs).
How Much Does Gerber Life Insurance Cost?
The cost of most Gerber Life insurance products is based on your exact age, gender, state of residence, health history, type of policy, and how much coverage you choose. Below are some sample prices.
Gerber Life Insurance Policy Riders
Gerber Life does not offer nearly as many life insurance riders as other companies. However, the ones they do offer are quite valuable.
- Guaranteed insurability: Guarantees the insured the right to buy additional coverage in the future.
- Payment protection: Waives premiums for a period of time if the policy owner dies or becomes disabled.
- Accelerated death benefit: Allows the policy owner to access up to 50% of the death benefit if the insured is diagnosed with a life expectancy of 12 months or less.
- Children’s coverage: Provides life insurance coverage on a child’s life until they become an adult.
- Spousal coverage: Provides life insurance coverage for a spouse of the primary insured. The secondary insured must medically qualify for this rider to be approved.
Gerber Life Insurance Customer Satisfaction & Complaints
According to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners complaint index, Gerber Life in 2024 had a lower-than-expected number of consumer complaints. In years past, they were higher than average, so it is clear that they have improved in the area of customer service.
Sadly, they lack BBB accreditation, but have an A- rating, which is a good score. Most of the consumer feedback on Reddit is about the Grow Up Plan, which is overwhelmingly negative. There is not much discussion about their other products or customer service in general.
How To Apply For Gerber Life Insurance Products
You can apply for all types of Gerber Life insurance directly on the company website or by working with one of their licensed agents. Regardless of whether you purchase directly from them or through an agent, the products (including their cost) are identical.
Expect to provide all your personal information, such as name, DOB, address, SSN, payment information, and names of beneficiaries. Furthermore, most products require you to answer health and lifestyle questions, but some don’t. Once approved, Gerber will mail the policy directly to you, which should arrive within 2-3 weeks.
How Does The Claims Process Work For Gerber Life Insurance Plans?
To file a life insurance claim with Gerber Life, you must call them at 1-800-628-0560. They do not have an option to start the process online.
They will require a death certificate to confirm that the insured has passed away. In addition, the beneficiaries will need to sign a beneficiary statement. For most claims, once they have those documents, they can proceed with paying out the death benefit.
Gerber Life Insurance Vs Its Competitors
- $10K Policy Cost$41.01/month*
- New Applicant Ages45-85
- Death Benefit Options$2,000-$50,000
- 2-Year Waiting PeriodNo
- $10K Policy Cost$51.10/month*
- New Applicant Ages18-85
- Death Benefit Options$5,000-$100,000
- 2-Year Waiting PeriodNo
- $10K Policy Cost$47.00/month*
- New Applicant Ages50-80
- Death Benefit Options$5,000-$50,000
- 2-Year Waiting PeriodNo
Frequently Asked Questions
The Gerber Life family plan term life policy is a standard term life policy that insures one primary adult. In addition, you can opt to add on a spousal rider that would provide term life coverage for your spouse. However, the other insured must also qualify for the insurance in the same way the primary insured does.
The Gerber Life family plan whole life policy is a normal whole life insurance policy that covers one primary adult. Furthermore, you can add a spousal rider that provides whole life coverage for your spouse. Keep in mind that the other insured must also qualify for the insurance in the same way the primary insured does.
The Gerber Grow Up Plan is not a good investment if you’re buying the coverage solely for its cash value growth, which can be used in the future for college or other significant expenses. It’s a good and competitively priced children’s life insurance policy, but it performs very poorly as an investment. If your objective is to accrue funds to help your children as an adult, you should instead seek out traditional investment products such as index or mutual funds.
You can cancel any insurance that Gerber Life offers (this is true for all companies and all types of insurance). If you have a life insurance product with cash value, Gerber Life will refund this money to you as the net surrender value. However, if you have a non-cash value life insurance policy, such as term life insurance, then no money would be refunded.
Our Insurance Review Methodology
Every company we review has an overall score that illustrates how well it stands out in the market relative to its competitors. These scores are not subjective. Instead, we utilize a defined 5-star scoring system that applies a weighted average of particular factors, all of which are outlined below and on our review methodology page.
Coverage
Strength
Complaint Index
We measure the price of a company’s most popular they promote relative to its competitors. The closeness of their cost to other companies determines the final score. Read a full breakdown of the price of coverage factor on our review methodology page.
Coverage
Coverage
Strength
Complaint Index
This factor assesses whether a company offers immediate coverage and, if so, how difficult it is to qualify for it. Read a full breakdown of the no waiting period coverage factor on our review methodology page.
Strength
Coverage
Strength
Complaint Index
A company’s financial strength is based on its rating with A.M. Best. Read a full breakdown of the financial strength factor on our review methodology page.
Complaint Index
Coverage
Strength
Complaint Index
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ complaint index measures an insurer’s frequency of consumer complaints compared to the rest of the market. The score the insurer receives is based on how it stacks up to the median score of other insurers. Read a full breakdown of the NAIC complaint index factor on our review methodology page.
Why trust Choice Mutual?
When we review products, our findings are unbiased and free of any influence from partnerships or methods of compensation. All findings, good or bad, are solely the derivative of our objective analysis of any given product or company.
As noted on our review methodology page, our researchers evaluate the financial stability of the insurer, policy costs, product limitations, state availability, customer satisfaction, waiting periods (if applicable), and other relevant factors. We aggregate all this cumulative data to develop objective overall scores based on pre-defined weighted factors.
In addition, a qualified expert who is well-qualified to speak on the matter will provide opinion-based feedback about the company or product being reviewed.
For over a decade, Choice Mutual has been an insurance agency specializing in final expense life insurance. Our expertise in this type of insurance is well-documented in numerous authoritative publications, some of which are listed below:
Choice Mutual’s mission is to provide consumers with unbiased expert commentary and explanations of the topics being discussed. We want our readers to be armed with information and tools that cannot be found anywhere else on the internet, so they can truly make an informed decision.
All content on this website is written by Anthony Martin, who is a licensed life insurance agent with over a decade of expertise in this industry and has been quoted as an expert source hundreds of times by many reputable news outlets.
Per our editorial guidelines, we have never, and will never, use artificial intelligence to create our content. Every word printed on this website is produced and curated 100% by human beings who have firsthand experience with the subject matter.
- Nationally licensed life insurance agent with over 16 years of experience.
- Personal annual production that puts him in the top .001% out of all life insurance agents in the nation.
Anthony Martin is a nationally licensed insurance expert with over 16 years of experience and has personally served over 10,000 clients with their life insurance needs. He frequently authors entrepreneurial and life insurance content for Forbes, Inc.com, Newsweek, Kiplinger, and Entreprenuer.com. Anthony has been consulted as an expert life insurance source for dozens of high-profile websites such as Forbes, Bankrate, Reuters, Fox Business, CNBC, Investopedia, Insurance.com, Yahoo Finance, and many more.
- Nationally licensed life insurance agent with over 20 years of experience
- Best selling Amazon author.
Jeff Root is a nationally licensed life insurance expert with over 20 years of experience. He has personally helped over 3000 clients with their life insurance needs. Jeff is a best-selling Amazon author and the managing partner of a highly successful insurance brokerage that manages over 2,500 licensed insurance agents across the USA. He has been a featured life insurance source for prestigious websites such as Forbes, Bloomberg, MarketWatch, Nerdwallet, and many more.
- Nationally licensed life insurance agent with over 15 years of experience
- Best selling Amazon author of five insurance sales books.
David Duford is a nationally licensed insurance expert with over 15 years of experience. He has personally helped more than 15,000 clients buy life insurance. David has been featured as an expert source for highly authoritative publications such as A.M. Best and Insurancenewsnet. He also runs one of the largest Youtube channels to help aspiring insurance agents serve their clients better.
- Nationally licensed life insurance agent with over 20 years of experience
- Best selling Amazon author.
Jeff Root is a nationally licensed life insurance expert with over 20 years of experience. He has personally helped over 3000 clients with their life insurance needs. Jeff is a best-selling Amazon author and the managing partner of a highly successful insurance brokerage that manages over 2,500 licensed insurance agents across the USA. He has been a featured life insurance source for prestigious websites such as Forbes, Bloomberg, MarketWatch, Nerdwallet, and many more.
- Nationally licensed life insurance agent with over 15 years of experience
- Best selling Amazon author of five insurance sales books.
David Duford is a nationally licensed insurance expert with over 15 years of experience. He has personally helped more than 15,000 clients buy life insurance. David has been featured as an expert source for highly authoritative publications such as A.M. Best and Insurancenewsnet. He also runs one of the largest Youtube channels to help aspiring insurance agents serve their clients better.
Choice Mutual often cites third-party websites to provide context and verification for specific claims made in our work. We only link to authoritative websites that provide accurate information. You can learn more about our editorial standards, which guide our mission of delivering factual and impartial content.
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BBB. https://www.bbb.org/us/mi/fremont/profile/life-insurance/gerber-life-insurance-company-0372-15002380
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Trustpilot. https://www.trustpilot.com/review/www.gerberlife.com
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Yelp. https://www.yelp.com/biz/gerber-life-insurance-company-fremont
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BBB Score & Accreditation. https://www.bbb.org/us/mi/fremont/profile/life-insurance/gerber-life-insurance-company-0372-15002380
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Gerber Life Insurance website quote calculator. https://www.gerberlife.com/gl/portal/guide-products/family-plan
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Gerber Life Insurance website quote calculator. https://www.gerberlife.com/gl/portal/guide-products/family-plan
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Gerber Life Insurance website quote calculator. https://www.gerberlife.com/child-life-insurance/grow-up-plan
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National Association of Insurance Commissioners complaint index. https://content.naic.org/cis_refined_results.htm?TABLEAU=CIS_COMPLAINTS&COCODE=70939&REALM=PROD&COCODE=70939&REALM=PROD
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A- rating. https://www.bbb.org/us/mi/fremont/profile/life-insurance/gerber-life-insurance-company-0372-15002380
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on Reddit. https://www.reddit.com/r/LifeInsurance/comments/1g9kpx0/whats_the_deal_with_gerber_life_insurance/
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company website. https://www.gerberlife.com/
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claim with Gerber Life. https://www.gerberlife.com/customer-service/contact-gerber-life/file-claim
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How we review & rate insurance companies. /life-insurance-review-methodology/
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A.M. Best. https://ratings.ambest.com/CompanyProfile.aspx?BL=0&ambnum=7299&AltNum=14937299&AltSrc=3
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Google. https://www.google.com/maps/place/Gerber+Life+Insurance+Company/@39.5600093,-89.7140572,5z/data=!4m10!1m2!2m1!1sgerber+life+insurance+company+reviews+on+google!3m6!1s0x89c29159fd7cddd7:0xddb42c90d8523fdf!8m2!3d40.9862896!4d-73.7425592!15sCi9nZXJiZXIgbGlmZSBpbnN1cmFuY2UgY29tcGFueSByZXZpZXdzIG9uIGdvb2dsZSIFOAGIAQGSARVsaWZlX2luc3VyYW5jZV9hZ2VuY3mqAZkBCg0vZy8xMWg2eXJ6ajZtCgkvbS8wMjF3eTQKCC9tLzAzeGtzCgovbS8wNGN4ZzljEAEqISIdZ2VyYmVyIGxpZmUgaW5zdXJhbmNlIGNvbXBhbnkoADIfEAEiGwHku0YiS2xniuNSK5WxBx86KtjfgQKIwaFOeDIhEAIiHWdlcmJlciBsaWZlIGluc3VyYW5jZSBjb21wYW554AEA!16s%2Fg%2F124ykpqcc?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI1MTEwNC4xIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D