Universal life is the policy type most often reviewed in the life settlement market, and the reason is mechanical. A universal life certificate is a bucket. Premiums and interest go in, and monthly charges come out. Those monthly charges, the cost of insurance, rise as the insured ages. Left alone long enough, they can outrun the account value and force a certificate that was meant to be permanent into a lapse.
Foresters currently offers SMART Universal Life in the United States, underwritten by The Independent Order of Foresters, a fraternal benefit society founded in 1874 and based in Toronto, Ontario. This page explains how to read your annual statement, why the in-force illustration is the one document that settles the question, and who services your contract in 2026. Pine Lake Life Solutions is not affiliated with Foresters and does not purchase policies.
In This Article
- How a Universal Life Certificate Quietly Fails
- Reading the Annual Statement: Where the Charges Show Up
- The In-Force Illustration Is the Deciding Document
- Ownership History: Foresters, FLIAC and Nassau
- Fraternal Status, Ratings and Guaranty Association Coverage
- Changing Ownership and Weighing the Alternatives
- Frequently Asked Questions
How a Universal Life Certificate Quietly Fails
The failure mode is slow and largely invisible from the outside. Each month the carrier deducts a cost of insurance charge plus administrative and rider charges from the account value. In the early years those deductions are small relative to the account and the certificate looks healthy. As the insured moves through the seventies and eighties, the per-thousand cost of insurance rate climbs steeply.
If the certificate was funded on an optimistic interest assumption, or if the owner reduced or skipped premiums during a tight stretch, or if a loan was taken and never repaid, the account value stops absorbing those deductions. At that point the carrier issues a demand for additional premium to keep the coverage in force, often for a sum far larger than the owner has ever paid in a single year. Owners frequently learn this in their late seventies, decades after the certificate was purchased and long after they assumed it was settled.
Reading the Annual Statement: Where the Charges Show Up
The annual statement is where the evidence sits, and most owners have never read it closely. Look for four things in sequence.
- Account value at the start and end of the period. If it fell while you paid premiums, the deductions exceeded your contributions plus interest.
- Total cost of insurance deducted for the year. Compare this figure to the same line three and five years ago to see the trajectory.
- Surrender value versus account value. The gap is any remaining surrender charge.
- Any outstanding loan and its accrued interest. Loan interest compounds against the same account value the charges draw on.
Foresters describes the interest credited on a universal life account as being applied at a current rate with a minimum guaranteed in the contract. A guaranteed floor protects the crediting rate; it does not protect you from rising insurance charges.
The In-Force Illustration Is the Deciding Document
The annual statement tells you where the certificate stands today. The in-force illustration tells you where it is going, and no responsible review proceeds without one. Request it in writing from the servicing carrier and ask specifically for the version run at current charges and the current crediting rate, not at the original assumptions.
Ask for three scenarios in the same request. First, the premium required to carry the certificate to maturity. Second, the premium required to carry it to a specific age such as 90 or 95. Third, how long the certificate stays in force if you pay nothing more starting today. That third number is the one that reframes most decisions, because it converts an abstract worry into a date.
Illustrations take time to produce, and a certificate close to lapsing does not wait. Order the illustration before you begin any comparison of options.
| Document to request | What it answers |
|---|---|
| Current annual statement | Account value, year’s cost of insurance, surrender value, loan balance |
| In-force illustration at current charges | Premium needed to carry the certificate to maturity |
| In-force illustration to age 90 or 95 | Premium needed for a defined horizon rather than maturity |
| Zero-premium in-force illustration | The date coverage ends if you pay nothing further |
| Certificate face page | Issuing company, face amount, issue date |
| Transfer of Ownership Form | The carrier’s current ownership-change requirements |
Ownership History: Foresters, FLIAC and Nassau
Foresters spent 2019 and 2020 divesting nearly everything that was not core insurance. Macquarie Group acquired roughly $12.3 billion in assets tied to the First Investors business in April 2019, Fiera Capital purchased Foresters Asset Management in Canada in May 2019, and the United States broker-dealer went to Cetera Financial Group.
The relevant transaction for universal life owners was announced October 17, 2019: Foresters agreed to sell Foresters Financial Holding Company, Inc. and its subsidiary Foresters Life Insurance and Annuity Company, or FLIAC, to Nassau Financial Group. FLIAC had roughly 112,000 policyholders and about $2.5 billion in assets. Nassau completed the acquisition on July 1, 2020.
Check the issuing company on your certificate face page before requesting anything. Contracts underwritten by The Independent Order of Foresters are serviced at 800-828-1540 or service@foresters.com. FLIAC contracts are administered within Nassau, which uses its own change of ownership paperwork.
Fraternal Status, Ratings and Guaranty Association Coverage
Foresters reports an AM Best financial strength rating of A (Excellent) with a stable outlook, affirmed October 10, 2025, and states it has held that level for 25 consecutive years. DBRS Morningstar confirmed an A financial strength rating on July 3, 2025. Foresters reports total assets of $14.3 billion, surplus of $1.7 billion and a risk-based capital ratio of 623 percent.
Separately, and independent of any society’s finances, fraternal benefit society certificates are generally excluded from state life and health insurance guaranty association coverage, and some states require a notice on the certificate saying so. For a universal life owner deciding whether to continue funding a contract for another twenty years, that structural point belongs in the analysis alongside the ratings. Your state insurance department can confirm how fraternal certificates are treated where you live.
Changing Ownership and Weighing the Alternatives
A settlement concludes with an absolute assignment of the contract. Foresters publishes a fillable Transfer of Ownership Form in its United States customer care forms library and distinguishes an absolute assignment, which transfers ownership rights and control over beneficiary designations to a third party, from a collateral assignment, which conditionally names a lender as beneficiary to secure a loan.
Before going down that road, price the alternatives the carrier already offers. A reduction in face amount lowers the monthly cost of insurance and can extend the certificate’s life for less than you expect. Dropping riders you no longer need has the same effect. Repaying an outstanding loan stops one drain immediately. Some owners find a hardship or premium relief arrangement is available on request.
Pine Lake Life Solutions offers a free, no-obligation policy review to help you interpret the illustration and the statement. Pine Lake does not purchase policies, is not affiliated with or endorsed by Foresters, and does not give legal, tax or investment advice. Eligibility and value vary and cannot be guaranteed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is universal life the policy type most often reviewed for a settlement?
Because it can fail while the owner believes it is permanent. Monthly cost of insurance charges rise with the insured’s age and are deducted from the account value. When those deductions outpace premiums and interest, the account drains and the carrier demands a large additional payment. That moment forces a decision, and it usually arrives when the insured is old enough for the settlement market to take an interest.
What exactly should I ask Foresters for?
Ask in writing for a current in-force illustration run at current charges and the current crediting rate, in three versions: the premium to carry the certificate to maturity, the premium to carry it to age 90 or 95, and how long it lasts with no further premium. Also request the current annual statement. Foresters United States service is at 800-828-1540.
Does the guaranteed minimum interest rate protect my certificate from lapsing?
No. A guaranteed minimum crediting rate sets a floor under the interest applied to the account value. It does nothing to limit the cost of insurance and other monthly charges deducted from that same account. A certificate earning its guaranteed minimum can still lapse if the deductions grow faster than the credits, which is the common pattern at advanced ages.
Is my universal life certificate serviced by Foresters or by Nassau?
Check the issuing company on the face page. Contracts issued by The Independent Order of Foresters remain with Foresters. Contracts issued by Foresters Life Insurance and Annuity Company, or FLIAC, transferred to Nassau Financial Group when that acquisition completed on July 1, 2020. Sending forms to the wrong company delays a process that is often already time-sensitive.
Can Pine Lake buy my Foresters universal life certificate?
No. Pine Lake Life Solutions does not purchase life insurance policies and has no affiliation with Foresters or The Independent Order of Foresters. Pine Lake provides education and a free, no-obligation policy review so you can understand what your in-force illustration is telling you. Nothing here is legal, tax or investment advice, and no value or eligibility is guaranteed.
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Related Reading
- Sell My Foresters Whole Life Policy
- Sell My Foresters Term Policy
- How To Read In Force Illustration
- How Long Policy Survive Without Premiums
- Carrier Hardship Programs
- How Life Settlement Value Is Calculated
- Sell My John Hancock Universal Life Policy
Pine Lake Life Solutions does not purchase life insurance policies and does not provide legal, tax, or investment advice. Information provided is for educational purposes only. Eligibility for any option, including life settlements, is not guaranteed and depends on individual circumstances, policy terms, underwriting, and market conditions. Consult independent legal, tax, or financial professionals before making decisions regarding a life insurance policy.