A burial-size policy has no secondary market — face amounts of $5,000 to $25,000 sit far below the roughly $100,000 floor institutional buyers apply, because the cost of underwriting a case does not shrink with the death benefit. But with National Life Group there is a prior question that changes what you are even looking at, and it is worth answering before you accept any conclusion about the policy.
National Life Group is a marketing name, not a single insurer. Behind it sit two separate companies domiciled in two different states, and the company that issued your contract determines which regulator supervises it, which state guaranty association would stand behind it, and where your correspondence has to go.
There is a second surprise that comes up often with this organization. National Life Group’s product identity is built around indexed universal life and indexed annuities, distributed heavily through the school-employee and 403(b) market rather than through burial-insurance channels. A contract someone describes as a small burial policy is frequently something else entirely — and if it is a small indexed universal life policy, it behaves nothing like burial insurance and needs a different kind of attention.
In This Article
- Two companies, two states: which one issued your policy
- What a ‘National Life Group burial policy’ usually turns out to be
- If it is a small indexed universal life policy, treat it differently
- Why burial-size coverage has no settlement market
- What to request, and what the contract may already provide
- Rule out a pre-need funeral contract
- Frequently Asked Questions
Two companies, two states: which one issued your policy
National Life Insurance Company was chartered by an act of the Vermont legislature in 1848 and is headquartered in Montpelier, Vermont. Its domiciliary regulator is the Vermont Department of Financial Regulation, the agency that supervises insurance, banking and securities in that state.
Life Insurance Company of the Southwest, commonly abbreviated LSW, is domiciled in Texas with offices in Addison, and is supervised by the Texas Department of Insurance. It joined the National Life organization in the 1990s and became the group’s principal writer of indexed products. In 1998 the organization reorganized into a mutual holding company structure, which is the form it operates under today.
Look at page one of the policy and at your most recent premium notice for the issuing company’s full legal name. If it says Life Insurance Company of the Southwest, that is a Texas insurer regardless of any Vermont branding on the envelope. If it says National Life Insurance Company, it is a Vermont insurer.
Two practical consequences. Correspondence and any verification of coverage request must name the correct issuing company. And guaranty association coverage — the state-funded backstop that applies if an insurer fails — follows your state of residence, but the insurer’s licensing status in your state is what triggers it, so knowing the issuing entity is the starting point for any question about protection.
What a ‘National Life Group burial policy’ usually turns out to be
As of 2026 we could not confirm a dedicated final expense or burial product line marketed under the National Life Group name. That is a statement about what is verifiable, not proof that no small-face contract exists — organizations open and close blocks constantly, and channel-specific products often never appear in public material.
What the group is known for is indexed universal life and fixed indexed annuities, with a large distribution presence in the public school and 403(b) market. So a small contract in that family is most likely one of three things:
- A small permanent whole life or universal life policy bought decades ago as general protection and later thought of as burial money.
- A modest indexed universal life policy sold alongside a retirement product, often with a face amount in the low six figures rather than the low five figures.
- A policy from a different carrier entirely, mistaken for National Life because of a similar name — there are several insurers with "National" in the title, and confusion is common.
Resolve it by reading the product name and issue date on page one. That single line changes everything below, because a graded-benefit burial policy, a participating whole life contract and an indexed universal life policy behave differently at every decision point.
If it is a small indexed universal life policy, treat it differently
This matters because an indexed contract can fail in a way a burial policy never does. Each month the insurer deducts a cost of insurance charge computed on the net amount at risk at a rate keyed to the insured’s attained age — a rate that roughly doubles every seven to nine years in later life. The account value is supposed to grow enough to absorb that, and it grows through index credits limited by a declared cap and a participation rate, with a floor of usually 0%.
Three drags apply. Index crediting normally excludes dividends, which removes roughly two percentage points a year from a headline S&P 500 return before any cap applies. The declared cap is not guaranteed; the contract states a much lower guaranteed minimum cap that the insurer may move toward. And the 0% floor protects the credit, not the account value — in a flat or down year you are credited nothing while charges still come out. Background in indexed universal life explained and cost of insurance explained.
The practical instruction: if your statement shows index accounts with segment dates, a cap and a floor, request an in-force illustration at guaranteed assumptions — minimum crediting, maximum charges — and find the policy year in which the account value reaches zero at your current premium. If that year arrives before the insured’s mid-eighties, the policy is on a path to lapse and the family should know now rather than at the lapse notice. A burial policy with a fixed premium and a guaranteed cash value table does not carry that risk.
| Issuing company | Domicile | Domiciliary regulator | Where to direct requests |
|---|---|---|---|
| National Life Insurance Company | Vermont (Montpelier) | Vermont Department of Financial Regulation | Name this entity on all correspondence |
| Life Insurance Company of the Southwest | Texas (Addison offices) | Texas Department of Insurance | Name this entity on all correspondence |
| Any other insurer | Varies | That state’s insurance department | Confirm the name on page one of the policy |
| Your state of residence | – | Your state insurance department | Where consumer complaints are filed |
Why burial-size coverage has no settlement market
Institutional buyers carry a largely fixed cost per file: medical records from every treating provider, one or two independent life expectancy reports, verification of coverage from the carrier, legal and compliance review under the seller’s state settlement statute, escrow, and premium servicing for years afterward. Those costs run into the thousands regardless of face amount.
The thresholds that result: above roughly $100,000 of net death benefit the standard market engages; between $50,000 and $100,000 a narrower group will look, generally only where life expectancy is short; below $50,000 treat it as no market; below $25,000 there is none. Detail in minimum policy size for a life settlement and can a final expense policy be sold.
This is also where the identification question pays off. If the contract turns out to be a $250,000 indexed universal life policy rather than a $15,000 burial policy, and the insured is roughly 70 or older or meaningfully impaired, it may be a genuine candidate — the opposite conclusion from the one you started with. That is a real and common outcome, and it is why reading the declarations page comes first.
What to request, and what the contract may already provide
Ask the issuing company in writing for a values statement showing: current account value or cash value, cash surrender value, cost basis, any loan balance with accrued interest, all available nonforfeiture options, every rider attached, and modified endowment contract status. On a flexible-premium contract, add an in-force illustration at both current and guaranteed assumptions plus a solve for the premium required to reach age 100 at guaranteed assumptions.
Then work through four items in order. Reduced paid-up insurance converts existing cash value into a smaller, fully paid-up death benefit with no further premiums, permanently — usually the best answer when a premium has become unaffordable; see how it works. Extended term insurance keeps the full face amount for a limited number of years instead, better when health is poor and the horizon short. An accelerated death benefit or chronic illness rider pays part of the benefit early on certification of a qualifying condition, directly to the family with no third party — see what these riders do. And cash surrender value should always be requested with the cost basis, since only gain over basis is taxable.
Whatever you do, do not simply stop paying. A missed premium starts the grace period and lapse returns nothing at all, which is the one outcome with no upside — see what to do when a policy is lapsing.
Rule out a pre-need funeral contract
A meaningful share of what families call burial policies are not policies they control. In a pre-need funeral arrangement, the purchaser contracted with a specific funeral home for named goods and services, and a small life insurance policy funds it. The policy is typically assigned to the funeral home or to a trust, and the assignment is frequently irrevocable — particularly when the arrangement was structured so the value would not be a countable asset for Medicaid eligibility.
These cannot be sold. The family is not the beneficiary, and under an irrevocable assignment it may not have power to change that. Pre-need arrangements are governed by their own body of state law and are often administered by a state funeral or cemetery board in addition to the insurance department.
Identify one by looking for an assignment form, a funeral home named as beneficiary or assignee, an itemized goods-and-services statement, or the word "irrevocable" anywhere in the file. If any of those appear, speak with the funeral home and — where Medicaid eligibility was part of the plan — an elder law attorney before changing anything. Unwinding an irrevocable assignment can create an eligibility problem far larger than the policy is worth.
Pine Lake Life Solutions does not purchase policies and is not licensed in every state. A free policy review will identify the issuing company, read the contract, tell you which options are genuinely available, and give you an honest answer about the secondary market. For term coverage, which follows a completely different analysis, see our National Life Group term guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is National Life Group a single insurance company?
No. It is a marketing name covering National Life Insurance Company, chartered by the Vermont legislature in 1848 and headquartered in Montpelier, and Life Insurance Company of the Southwest, a Texas-domiciled insurer with offices in Addison. The organization reorganized into a mutual holding company structure in 1998. Your policy was issued by one of the two, and page one of the contract identifies which.
Does National Life Group sell burial or final expense insurance?
As of 2026 we could not confirm a dedicated final expense or burial product line under that name. The organization’s identity is built around indexed universal life and fixed indexed annuities, with substantial distribution in the school-employee and 403(b) market. Read the product name and issue date on page one of your contract rather than relying on how the policy was described.
My policy has index accounts and a cap. Is that burial insurance?
No. Index accounts with segment dates, a cap, a participation rate and a floor indicate indexed universal life, which has a flexible premium and a cost of insurance charge that climbs with attained age. It can lapse if credits fall short of what was illustrated. Request an in-force illustration at guaranteed assumptions to see the year the account value would reach zero.
Which regulator handles a complaint about my policy?
File with the insurance department of the state where you live, which has jurisdiction over how a licensed insurer treats its residents. The domiciliary regulator – Vermont’s Department of Financial Regulation for National Life Insurance Company, or the Texas Department of Insurance for Life Insurance Company of the Southwest – handles solvency and company-level supervision. Both routes are free and neither requires an attorney.
Is a $20,000 policy ever sellable?
Realistically no. Institutional buyers generally work upward from about $100,000 of net death benefit, because the cost of underwriting a file is fixed regardless of size. A narrower group considers $50,000 to $100,000 when life expectancy is short. At $20,000 the better paths are reduced paid-up election, an accelerated death benefit rider if a qualifying diagnosis exists, or cash surrender value.
What if my policy turns out to be larger than I thought?
Then the conclusion can reverse. A $250,000 indexed universal life contract on an insured who is roughly 70 or older, or younger with a serious impairment, may be a genuine secondary-market candidate. That is exactly why reading the declarations page comes before accepting any conclusion about whether a policy is sellable, including a conclusion reached from a general article.
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Related Reading
- Can I Sell A Final Expense Policy
- Minimum Policy Size For A Life Settlement
- What Is Indexed Universal Life
- What Is Cost Of Insurance
- What Is Reduced Paid Up Insurance
- What Is An Accelerated Death Benefit Rider
- Policy Lapsing What To Do
- Sell My National Life Group Term 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.