Policy Genius Review

At this point in the PolicyGenius review, you’re probably saying ‘well, how is this any different to any of the other price comparison sites’ and this would be a fair point. However, we believe they’re different for two key reasons;

#1 - First, we know that many of the price comparison sites actually work directly for insurance companies. With this in mind, these companies have a “tendency” to make the products of their partners seem more attractive even if the policy itself is not the best suited one for your individual need.

With PolicyGenius, they are seemingly impartial and have one main goal; to find the best insurance for your needs. Although limited by the carriers they represent (in our humble opinion), Policy Genius strives to place you with the best company and policy based on their pool of options.

Although there are other sites that are also impartial, we like PolicyGenius because of the technology employed and many features offered, which leads nicely into the second difference.

#2 - Rather than concentrating solely on providing you with a few good quotes, you can tell PolicyGenius is a group full of people passionate about what they do and this really shines through with the amount of features the company’s site offers.

As a prime example, PolicyGenius’s Insurance Checkup is a superb tool that allows you to enter personal details and answer numerous questions. Once finished, it’ll provide you with advice as to what you should and shouldn't be looking for just like you might get with an agent, except you don’t have to talk with anyone.

Once the initial results are in, you can get in touch with professionals and create a to-do list while trusting the automated advice.

Overall, there’s a feeling to the website that they’re only in their job to help people like us and this makes us feel welcome. Rather than feeling as though we’re doing the website a favor (which is something you get with other sites), you feel welcome and they provide genuinely useful advice after computing your personal circumstances.

Since the website revolves around the quoting process, we should probably address just how simple or difficult the task is. In truth, we were surprised because we managed to get quotes to show after just a couple of minutes. Compared to other sites of this nature, they seem to have streamlined the process and it all begins by choosing the type of insurance you need.

From here, you’ll be asked a series of questions regarding your personal information; if you’ve already used the Insurance Checkup tool, all your details will be saved and sent across so you don’t have to enter them a second time.

After this, the questions move on to what you need in terms of coverage. If you aren't completely sure, PolicyGenius breaks it down nicely for those who haven't bought insurance before.

Within a few minutes, you’ll be looking at a screen recommending the perfect policy based on your answers to the questions. From here, you can match these up to real-life policies and we thought this was fantastic because it suits both beginners and experts.

With the basic information considered, what about the main benefits and drawbacks of the website? Of course, not every service can cater to the need of every individual in the U.S. so we will provide things to consider. First though, we have the benefits!

With some websites, it all looks a little hectic which brings on the headache and the feeling that we would rather be doing anything else, even work, than looking for insurance. However, we didn't get this feeling with PolicyGenius and this comes from the simple layout of the website.

Not only does it look clean, it interacts well and everything seems to make sense with the positioning; you don’t have to go off hunting for certain features.

For the most part, you're allowed to enjoy (perhaps not the word but you certainly don’t have to ‘endure’ the process) spending time on the site. After entering your details, you can take your time without being pushed one way or the other.

This being said, there is always support available whenever required and this is a big draw for PolicyGenius. For example, on the website, you’ll find options from live chat, email, and even a contact form which simplifies the process and ensures your message is seen by the right people.

PolicyGenius works with industry experts. When you work with this company, you have access to licensed advisors and underwriters whether you’re on the East or West coast.

Finally, why contact each and every insurance company individually when you can instantly get the ball rolling with over 25? Since PolicyGenius only works with the best insurance companies around, you can be certain that every option is probably a good one.

With this in mind, you only have to worry about the policy itself. As you can see on the website, every single option has a superb rating from A.M. Best as well as the Better Business Bureau (BBB).

For life insurance, you can browse quotes from 12 companies (in 2020): AIG, Banner Life, Brighthouse, John Hancock, Liberty Mutual, Lincoln Financial, Mutual of Omaha, Pacific Life, Principal Financial, Protective, Prudential, SBLI,and Transamerica.

As we said, no service could ever make 300+ million people happy so what should you look out for and are you going to come across any problems? The following would be some cons to working exclusively with PolicyGenius. 

From what we can find, PolicyGenius does not offer any permanent life insurance policy options. If you are looking for coverage other than level term life insurance you may want to search elsewhere.

Due to PolicyGenius’s lack of policy options, it is also limited in its life insurance rider options. Some term companies offer living benefits, but for those of you who are looking for life insurance with long term care, you will probably have to look elsewhere.

As we’ve just seen, PolicyGenius has access to some of the biggest names in the US insurance market but this can sometimes come at a cost because they don’t work with the smaller niche carriers that could actually offer the best rates for your age, health, etc.

Just because the big carriers have been able to get their name out into the world and have experienced some success as a result, this doesn’t mean they always have the best policy for every given situation.

With insurance, it’s a very personal experience. While one policy might be perfect for your friend, the very same policy might be a nightmare for yourself because we all have different needs both now and looking ahead.

Additionally, each insurance company will assess your age, health, and lifestyle in different ways so it might be worth comparing PolicyGenius results with some smaller carriers too.

Ultimately, this all comes down to the lack of personal help you receive through PolicyGenius. Yes, the technology and software behind PolicyGenius is…well, genius. In truth, we should perhaps insert a caveat to this because it’s genius for those who can be considered a ‘standard’ case for insurance. If we use life insurance as an example, you will benefit from PolicyGenius if you’re healthy and have a positive lifestyle.

But what if you are considered a high risk or have a pre-existing condition? You may find that your needs are better served elsewhere.

Further, suppose you have health issues and want life insurance as collateral for an SBA Loan. With the lack of flexibility technology can offer, you may be better served by working with an agent who could consider your special circumstances clearly before suggesting something that might not be the best choice.

In certain situations, agents will come in handy and this is just a fact of the matter. Whether it’s a health condition, an issue with your vehicle, or special circumstances with your pet, you may need the personal touch to consider ‘out of the box’ solutions.

If you are looking for a policy to help you with business succession planning, then putting together a buy sell agreement funded with life insurance is a great option. However, due to the complexity involved in such an undertaking, PolicyGenius is probably not going to be your best option.

Another similar scenario would be key person insurance. With key person insurance you want to cover a specific key employee with the right coverage so that if that employee dies or is disabled your company will receive the necessary cash injection to be able to find a replacement. Once again, PolicyGenius is probably not going to be the best route to take.

When putting together a solid estate planning strategy, many people find the use of life insurance with estate planning to be essential in order to provide the estate with money necessary to pay estate taxes. Additionally, using an irrevocable life insurance trust may also help preserve your estate so you can maximize your beneficiaries inheritance.

All things considered, PolicyGenius certainly goes above and beyond the call of duty when it comes to helping consumers. With all the amazing features and access to some of the biggest names in the insurance world, it’s fair to say they can help the vast majority of people.

With this being said, the most important factor to consider with insurance is your personal circumstances. If you try PolicyGenius and the website can’t factor in an illness or special circumstances you might be better served elsewhere.

If all you're looking for is a simple term life insurance policy, being able to take advantage of an automated system is great. However, if you’re looking to secure a policy to secure an SBA loan, fulfill a divorce decree, or find coverage with a pre-exisitng medical condition, it's important to explore all of your options and find an agent that you can rely on.

Does PolicyGenius have agents you can rely on?  Sure they do! 

But what's the harm in giving us a call after you've had an opportunity to speak with PolicyGenius? If you're not impressed by us, at least now you have the added confidence that PolicyGenius is the right company for you!

If interested, feel free to visit our Life Insurance Quotes page where we allow you to compare both "exam" and "no exam" life insurance options.  You might be surprised by what you learn!