Allianz Life Accumulator™ Review
Established over 115 years ago, Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America has grown its footprint to over 85 million clients worldwide. It is currently ranked in the top 50 life insurance companies in the world. Here is our Allianz life insurance review.
As far as their financial products are concerned, Allianz has grown to take the number three spot for money management and ranks number two in diversified insurance products. Allianz offers several indexed universal life insurance policies and fixed-indexed annuities. Allianz is recognized worldwide as a premier insurance and financial product provider.
As you read our article, remember that we can help you get started with your own Allianz IUL or annuity policy.
Allianz offers one of the best indexed universal life insurance products available today. The Allianz Life Accumulator™ is designed to provide death benefit protection and the potential to build tax-deferred accumulation value. Let’s get right to it. Our review will cover policy features, riders, pros and cons, and, of course, expenses.
Allianz Life Insurance Company Ratings
Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America | |
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Comdex Score: | 94 |
A.M. Best Rating: | A+ (Superior) |
Standard and Poors: | AA (Very Strong) |
Year Established: | 1896 |
Top Products: | Life Pro+ IUL |
Allianz Life 5701 Golden Hills Drive Minneapolis, MN 55416 | Website and phone: www.allianzlife.com 800-950-5872 |
Allianz Life Accumulator™ Flexibility
The Allianz Life Accumulator™ provides death benefit protection, tax-deferred accumulation, and flexible premiums that adapt to your changing needs. This makes it suitable for various financial strategies, from implementing retirement income to business planning and estate planning.
Access to Cash Value
Allianz Life Accumulator™ policyholders have several options for accessing the policy’s cash value. There are indexed and fixed-interest loans available, as well as partial withdrawals without incurring surrender charges.
The Chronic Illness Accelerated Death Benefit Rider also allows you access to cash. In the event of an insured’s chronic illness, the owner of the policy can access a portion of the policy’s death benefit. There is no additional cost for this rider unless it is used.
Allianz Life Underwriting
Allianz Life policies are available to ages 0 to 80. They offer a risk-class upgrade underwriting program that automatically upgrades your rate class from standard to preferred plus nontobacco. If you are a tobacco user and receive standard tobacco, you will be upgraded to preferred tobacco.
There is also a table upgrade that places table-rated cases up to table 2 to standard.
Allianz Index Allocations Available
The Allianz Life Accumulator™ offers many index allocation options from which to choose. The insurer tracks these index options, and then, according to the crediting method, if there is indexed interest due to you, it is credited to your policy’s cash account on your policy anniversary. The accounts you can choose to allocate your funds are as follows:
Index Allocations | Multiplier Bonus / Charge |
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Select Index Allocations – 1% Asset Charge | |
Bloomberg US Dynamic Balance III ER Index (Participation Rate) | 180% Participation Rate |
PIMCO Tactical Balanced ER Index (Participation Rate) | 180% Participation Rate |
Blended Futures Index (Participation Rate) | 115% Participation Rate |
S&P 500® Futures Index ER (Participation Rate) | 75% Participation Rate |
Bonused Index Allocations | |
Bloomberg US Dynamic Balance III ER Index (Participation Rate) | 190% Participation Rate |
PIMCO Tactical Balanced ER Index (Participation Rate) | 185% Participation Rate |
Blended Futures Index (Participation Rate) | 120% Participation Rate |
S&P 500® Futures Index ER (Participation Rate) | 80% Participation Rate |
Classic Index Allocations | |
Bloomberg US Dynamic Balance III ER Index (Participation Rate) | 195% Participation Rate |
PIMCO Tactical Balanced ER Index (Participation Rate) | 190% Participation Rate |
Blended Futures Index (Participation Rate) | 120% Participation Rate |
S&P 500® Futures Index ER (Participation Rate) | 80% Participation Rate |
Standard Allocations – No Bonus, No Additional Charge | |
S&P 500® Index (Annual Point-to-Point, Cap) | 12.50% Cap |
S&P 500® Index (Monthly Sum, Cap) | 3.80% Cap |
S&P 500® Index (Trigger Method) | 8.25% Trigger Interest Rate |
Fixed Allocation | |
Fixed Allocation | No Bonus, No Additional Charge |
Policyholders also have the option to allocate all or a portion of their cash value to a fixed interest allocation, which is currently credited at the rate of 5.30%. The policy also provides the flexibility for you to change your allocations each policy year and choose whether or not to participate in bonused index allocation, classic, or standard index allocation options.
Allianz Index Lock Feature
One very important feature of the Allianz Life Accumulator™ is the ability to lock in your return before the end of your index period. This could be useful when you have hit your index cap for the year. Assuming you hit your index cap midway through the year, you could lock in your rate and eliminate the risk of the market erasing your gains for the policy year.
Allianz Rate Lock
You can manually lock in your rate by logging into your Allianz portal. You can view the current year-to-date interest rate that will be credited to your policy. If you are satisfied with that rate, you can lock it in. Assume that we have illustrated your rate to be 6%, and the current rate is showing 8%, and we are only halfway into your policy year. You may want to lock it in now.
Allianz Auto Lock
You can also log in to your Allianz Life portal and choose the auto-lock feature. The auto-lock feature lets you set it to the rate you want to lock in. Your policy will automatically lock once the rate is met. Assume again we have illustrated your policy to credit 6% for the year. You can set up auto-lock to lock in your rate without having to log in and do it yourself.
Many of our clients choose Allianz Life simply for this ability to lock in a mid-year rate.
The example below shows how index lock can help enhance your policy performance.
Life Accumulator™ Policy Riders
Many policy riders are available, and some are automatically included with the Allianz Life Accumulator™:
- Loan Protection Rider – This rider offers protection from a policy lapse that could result from an unpaid policy loan. This important rider can be triggered if you are between 75 and 120 years old.
- Premium Deposit Fund Rider: – This rider allows clients to make a lump-sum payment into a side account that will earn interest, which is then used to transfer annual premiums into the life insurance policy automatically.
- Waiver of New Charges Benefit – This rider allows the insurance company to waive surrender and expense charges and the Enhanced Liquidity Rider charges for any increased coverages in policy years eleven and later.
- Supplemental Term Rider – The insured may add a term rider to their policy, increasing the total death benefit. This term rider is convertible into the base coverage before ten years or age 75, whichever comes first.
- Child Term Rider – Allows insured to add term insurance protection for all children at least 15 days old to age 21. This rider is fully convertible to an Allianz IUL policy for the insured child.
- Waiver of Specified Premium Rider – If the insured is disabled for six months before turning age 65, Allianz will credit the policy in the amount the insured has specified. This amount can be as low as $25 per month and as high as $150,000 per policy year.
- Enhanced Liquidity Rider – This rider waives all surrender charges beginning the first day of coverage. This rider is typically used when using premium finance to pay the premiums on your policy.
Death Benefit Options
- Level Option – With the level option, the death benefit will remain at a level throughout the policy’s life.
- Increasing Option – When this option is chosen, the death benefit equals the base amount of coverage plus the accumulated cash value.
- Return of Premium – With the return of premium option, the death benefit equals a specified amount plus the sum of the payments that have been paid into the policy.
Allianz Life Accumulator™ Pros and Cons
Let’s wrap up our Allianz life insurance review. In general, we feel Allianz offers many advantages over other IUL companies.
Let’s start with the pros:
- The easy application process is done online through Apply Now. Uses electronic signatures.
- Accelerated Underwriting: Ages 25-65 may qualify for up to $3 Million without an exam.
- Low policy fees.
- Fixed variable loan interest rate or no-cost wash loans.
- May be used for premium finance.
- Index Rate Lock (exclusive to Allianz).
- No-cost Chronic and Terminal illness benefits.
Now the Cons:
- It doesn’t offer a stand-alone term product.
- No coverage for Critical illness.
- No longer offers the survivorship IUL (joint policy).
- Policy costs are not waived during a chronic illness claim (this is minor but needed to be noted).
- If coverage has been recently applied for at another company, it does not qualify for accelerated underwriting.
Frequently Asked Questions about Allianz Life Accumulator™
What is the Allianz Life Accumulator™?
The Allianz Life Accumulator™ is an indexed universal life insurance policy that provides both death benefit protection and the potential for tax-deferred accumulation. It allows policyholders to allocate premiums to various index options, offering the opportunity to grow their policy’s cash value based on the performance of selected market indexes.
How does the Index Lock feature work?
The Index Lock feature allows you to lock in an index value during the crediting period, ensuring a positive index credit at the end of the period as long as the index change is positive. This feature helps protect your policy’s accumulation value from market volatility and ensures that you benefit from gains during favorable market conditions.
What are the benefits of the Allianz Life Accumulator™ over other life insurance products?
The Allianz Life Accumulator™ stands out for its flexibility, offering multiple index allocation options, the Index Lock feature, and a range of customizable policy riders. These features allow policyholders to tailor the policy to their specific financial goals, whether for retirement planning, estate planning, or providing financial security for loved ones.
Can I access the cash value in my Allianz Life Accumulator™ policy?
Yes, policyholders can access the cash value accumulated in their Allianz Life Accumulator™ policy through policy loans and withdrawals. The policy offers both indexed and fixed-interest loan options, and withdrawals can be made without incurring surrender charges. However, accessing the cash value will reduce the policy’s death benefit and could have other implications, such as tax consequences.
What riders are available with the Allianz Life Accumulator™?
The Allianz Life Accumulator™ offers a variety of policy riders to enhance coverage, including the Loan Protection Rider, Premium Deposit Fund Rider, Waiver of New Charges Benefit, Supplemental Term Rider, Child Term Rider, Waiver of Specified Premium Rider, and Enhanced Liquidity Rider. These riders allow you to customize your policy to meet your specific needs and goals.