Universal life is the policy type most frequently sold in the life settlement market, and Ohio National universal life owners face an extra wrinkle before they can even start: the carrier operates under a different name than the one printed on their contract. The company that issued the policy is now called AuguStar, following a corporate reorganization and rebrand, and the illustration you need to make any sensible decision has to be requested from that company under that name.
Once you get past the letterhead, the analysis is the same one every universal life owner faces. A universal life policy is an account with monthly charges deducted against it, and those charges rise with the insured’s age. When they outrun what the account can support, the policy lapses regardless of how faithfully premiums were paid for thirty years. This page covers how to find out where your policy actually stands, what document to order, how a buyer would value it, and where the deadlines sit. Pine Lake Life Solutions provides education and a free policy review. We do not buy policies, we are not affiliated with Ohio National or AuguStar, and this is not legal, tax, or investment advice.
In This Article
- First, Confirm Who Your Carrier Is Today
- Why Universal Life Dominates the Secondary Market
- The Cost-of-Insurance Spiral in Plain Terms
- What to Request from AuguStar, in Writing
- What a Buyer Pays For, and What It Ignores
- Ownership Change: the 90-Day Rule and Other Timing Traps
- Deciding Without Pressure
- Frequently Asked Questions
First, Confirm Who Your Carrier Is Today
Ohio National went through two structural events in short order. On March 31, 2022, Ohio National Mutual Holdings completed a sponsored demutualization, converting to a stock company renamed Ohio National Holdings, Inc. and becoming an independently managed subsidiary of Constellation Insurance, which is backed by Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and CDPQ. Total consideration was approximately $1 billion, including a commitment to contribute $500 million of capital into Ohio National Life Insurance Company over four years.
Then, effective October 2, 2023, The Ohio National Life Insurance Company legally changed its name to AuguStar Life Insurance Company, and Ohio National Life Assurance Corporation became AuguStar Life Assurance Corporation. Constellation had announced the repositioning on July 17, 2023.
Your contract obligations did not move to a different insurer. The entities simply renamed. What changed is where you call and where you send forms. AuguStar publishes a life and disability income service line at 800-366-6654, open 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern, Monday through Friday, with mail directed to P.O. Box 237, Cincinnati, OH 45201-0237 and servicing forms available after logging in at augustarfinancial.com.
Why Universal Life Dominates the Secondary Market
Every life settlement is a purchase of the gap between what a policy is worth to its current owner and what it is worth to a buyer holding it to maturity. Universal life produces the widest gap of any policy type.
The reason is that universal life often has a small or zero cash surrender value at precisely the age when the death benefit is most valuable to an institutional buyer. The owner’s alternative to selling is therefore weak: surrender for almost nothing, or lapse for nothing at all. On a mature whole life policy, by contrast, a large guaranteed surrender value sets a high floor that any offer must clear, which is why whole life settlements are far less common.
Universal life also carries flexible premium, so a buyer can fund it at the minimum required rather than the billed amount, which improves its economics and the price it can justify offering.
The Cost-of-Insurance Spiral in Plain Terms
Each month the carrier deducts a cost-of-insurance charge plus administrative expenses from the account value. The cost of insurance is applied to the net amount at risk, which is the death benefit minus the account value. It rises with the insured’s attained age, gently in the fifties and sharply in the late seventies and eighties.
Here is the trap. As deductions exceed premium plus credited interest, the account value falls. As the account value falls, the net amount at risk rises. As the net amount at risk rises, the monthly charge rises. The decline accelerates rather than drifting, which is why owners describe the failure as sudden even though it was years in the making.
Older universal life was frequently illustrated at credited rates from a much higher rate era, and when actual crediting came in below those assumptions the shortfall compounded. If your premium notice has increased without any change you made, that is the carrier billing more to keep the contract from lapsing.
| Document to request | Why it matters | Ask for it from |
|---|---|---|
| In-force illustration at current charges | Shows the projected lapse year under each funding scenario | AuguStar policy service, 800-366-6654 |
| Net cash surrender value statement | Sets the floor any offer must beat | AuguStar policy service, in writing |
| Loan balance and accrued interest | Reduces both surrender and settlement proceeds | Annual statement or service request |
| Current ownership change packet | Governs how and when a transfer can be recorded | AuguStar, current form version |
| Recent medical records | Drives the buyer’s expected holding period | Treating physicians |
What to Request from AuguStar, in Writing
Do not evaluate offers before you evaluate the policy. Call the carrier and request an in-force illustration at current charges in three versions: assuming you continue the current premium, assuming you pay nothing further, and using guaranteed maximum charges with the guaranteed minimum credited rate.
The single most important output is the year the policy lapses in each version. If the no-further-premium version lapses inside two years, your decision window is short and everything else is secondary. Alongside the illustration, ask for the current net cash surrender value, any outstanding loan balance and accrued interest, and the minimum premium required to carry the policy to a stated age such as 95.
Request all of it in writing, since verbal figures are not documents and buyers require written versions anyway. Because the rebrand changed form numbers and portals, work from current AuguStar versions rather than an archived Ohio National PDF.
What a Buyer Pays For, and What It Ignores
An institutional buyer models the premium stream required to keep the policy in force against the expected timing of the death benefit, and discounts the difference to today. Three inputs dominate. The insured’s age and current medical records set the expected holding period. The required premium sets the ongoing cost. The face amount determines whether the deal is large enough to attract competing bids after transaction costs.
Carrier strength is the fourth input. On November 13, 2025, A.M. Best affirmed a Financial Strength Rating of A (Excellent) and a Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of a+ for AuguStar Life Insurance Company and its subsidiary AuguStar Life Assurance Corporation, with a stable outlook, and affirmed a bbb+ (Good) Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating for parent Constellation Insurance, Inc.
What buyers ignore is what you paid in over the years. Premiums already paid are a sunk cost with no bearing on valuation, and that is the hardest part of the analysis for most owners.
Ownership Change: the 90-Day Rule and Other Timing Traps
A settlement closes when the carrier records a change of ownership. That step has its own paperwork and its own clocks. Ohio National’s Ownership Change Request form, V-4611, states that the form must be received within 90 days of the signature date, and that any additional requests submitted in conjunction with a change of ownership must be signed by the new owner and dated on or after the ownership change request. A separate 1035 Exchange and Absolute Assignment of Life Insurance Policy form, 9324-ON, exists for assignments.
Form numbers and requirements can change across a rebrand, so obtain the current packet from AuguStar rather than relying on an older copy. Ask specifically what the carrier requires for a transfer to an institutional owner and how long processing takes.
The other clock is the grace period. Once a universal life policy lapses, there is nothing to sell, and reinstatement generally requires evidence of insurability plus back premium with interest, which is exactly the hurdle a declining insured cannot clear. Starting a review six to twelve months ahead of a projected lapse preserves choices that a 31-day grace period does not.
Deciding Without Pressure
Once the documents are in hand, the comparison is straightforward. Add the remaining premium required to carry the policy to life expectancy. Set it against the death benefit, the surrender value, and any offer. If keeping the policy wins, keep it. Many reviews end that way.
Pine Lake Life Solutions does not purchase policies and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to Ohio National, AuguStar, or Constellation Insurance. We offer a free, no-obligation policy review and cannot guarantee that any policy will qualify or produce a particular amount. Confirm tax treatment with your own CPA or tax attorney before acting.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Ohio National still in business, and who services my universal life policy?
The entities still exist under new names. Effective October 2, 2023, The Ohio National Life Insurance Company became AuguStar Life Insurance Company and Ohio National Life Assurance Corporation became AuguStar Life Assurance Corporation, following the March 31, 2022 sponsored demutualization that placed the business under Constellation Insurance. Service runs through AuguStar at 800-366-6654.
Why does my universal life premium keep going up when the policy is old?
Because monthly cost-of-insurance charges are based on attained age and on the net amount at risk. As the account value falls, that net amount grows and the charge grows with it. Carriers bill a higher minimum premium to keep the policy from lapsing. An in-force illustration at current charges shows exactly how the trajectory looks.
What is the 90-day rule on an Ohio National ownership change?
Ohio National’s Ownership Change Request form V-4611 states that the form must be received within 90 days of the signature date. Additional requests submitted with a change of ownership must be signed by the new owner and dated on or after the ownership change request. Confirm the current form version with AuguStar, since numbering may have changed with the rebrand.
Does the amount I have paid in premiums affect what a buyer will offer?
No. Premiums already paid are a sunk cost and do not enter the valuation. Buyers model the future premium required to keep the policy in force against the expected timing of the death benefit. Age, current medical records, required premium, face amount, and carrier strength are what drive the number.
Will Pine Lake buy my Ohio National universal life policy?
No. Pine Lake Life Solutions does not purchase policies and is not affiliated with Ohio National, AuguStar, or Constellation Insurance. We provide education and a free, no-obligation review so you can see the projected lapse year, the surrender value, and your realistic options side by side.
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Related Reading
- Sell My Ohio National Whole Life Policy
- Sell My Ohio National Variable Universal Policy
- Sell My Ohio National Indexed Universal Policy
- How To Read In Force Illustration
- How Long Policy Survive Without Premiums
- Life Insurance Grace Period Explained
- Carrier Change Of Ownership Requirements
- How Life Settlement Value Is Calculated
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.