Life Insurance Customer Satisfaction Varies Widely Based on Carrier and Distribution Channel: J.D. Power

Mutual of Omaha Ranks Highest in Individual Life Insurance Satisfaction

Troy, MI (Oct. 16, 2025) – Overall customer satisfaction with individual life insurance providers remains steady this year, but that apparent stability masks significant year-over-year swings in customer experience across individual brands. According to the J.D. Power 2025 U.S. Individual Life Insurance Study,^SM the customer satisfaction gap between the highest-performing and the lowest-performing life insurance providers is 118 points (on a 1,000-point scale), and 70% of insurers have experienced double-digit increases or decreases in customer satisfaction scores year over year. Much of that volatility can be attributed to differences in relationship management strategies and how life insurance policies are purchased.

“Customer satisfaction with individual life insurance providers is not just about the product; it’s also about the customer experience, and those experiences can vary dramatically both at a brand and a relationship level,” said Craig Martin, executive director, global insurance intelligence at J.D. Power. “When J.D. Power analyzes the data, findings show there are significant gaps between customer expectations and reality, particularly when life insurance is purchased and serviced through local agents or financial advisors. The customer experience gets a bit more predictable and standardized when working through centralized, direct-to-customer channels, but still can have challenges. Regardless of the relationship dynamics, life insurers have a lot of opportunities to enhance the customer experience in ways that build greater trust and engagement that will help grow the business and the bottom line.”

Following are some key findings of the 2025 studies:

• Overall satisfaction scores higher among those buying direct from carriers: The average overall satisfaction score among life insurance customers buying their policies directly from a carrier is 696, which is 57 points higher than among those who purchase through an agent, broker, agency or financial advisor. Centralized policies delivered directly to customers through a carrier call center, website or app outperform a range of key customer satisfaction metrics, including digital channels, problem resolution and overall value for price paid.

• Disengaged or transactional interactions become the norm for agents and advisors: More than half (58%) of life insurance relationships with the agents or advisors who sold them their policy are classified as either disengaged (43%)—meaning they have had no agent or advisor interaction for more than 3 years—or transactional (15%), meaning they have had some interaction but best practices of an effective relationship are not being met. Only 19% of customers describe their relationship as trusted, characterized by regular communication and adherence to best practices. When agents and advisors deliver this top-tier service, overall customer satisfaction rises to 795—253 points higher than among customers whose agents do not follow best practices.

• Regular, personalized communication builds strong customer experiences: Overall customer satisfaction scores are 50 points higher when customers recall receiving communication from their life insurance provider in the past 12 months versus when no such communication is recalled in the past year. The communications topics that drive the biggest increases in customer satisfaction are those that are personal and demonstrate an understanding of the relationship rather than more generic information. Product offers and outreach that focus on more basic account details do not have as much of a positive effect on customer satisfaction.

Study Rankings

Mutual of Omaha ranks highest among individual life insurance providers, with a score of 707. State Farm (697) ranks second and Nationwide (695) ranks third.

The U.S. Individual Life Insurance Study measures the experiences of customers of the largest individual life insurance companies in the United States across eight core dimensions (in order of importance): trust; value for price; ease of doing business; people; product offerings; ability to get service; problem resolution; and digital channels. The 2025 study is based on responses from 5,065 individual life insurance customers and was fielded from August 2024 through July 2025.

View the customer satisfaction index ranking charts in J.D. Power’s press release.

For more information, refer to the J.D. Power 2025 Insurance Digital Experience Study.

About J.D. Power

J.D. Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services, and data and analytics. A pioneer in the use of big data, artificial intelligence (AI) and algorithmic modeling capabilities to understand consumer behavior, J.D. Power has been delivering incisive industry intelligence on customer interactions with brands and products for more than 55 years. The world’s leading businesses across major industries rely on J.D. Power to guide their customer-facing strategies.

J.D. Power is headquartered in Troy, Mich., and has offices in North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific. To learn more about the company’s business offerings, visit JDPower.com/business. The J.D. Power auto shopping tool can be found at JDPower.com.

SOURCE: J.D. Power

Tags: carriers, J.D. Power, Life Insurance, rankings, satisfaction