Is Security Benefit a Good Insurance Company

Security Benefit Life Insurance Company is a Topeka, Kansas insurer founded in 1892 — over 130 years of continuous operation — that has built its identity almost entirely around retirement savings products. The company holds AM Best A- (Excellent), S&P A-, and Fitch A- ratings simultaneously, all with stable outlooks, reflecting a strong financial position confirmed by all three major rating agencies. Total admitted assets stood at $64.63 billion as of December 31, 2025. Security Benefit operates as a not-for-share financial organization — there are no outside shareholders pressing for quarterly earnings optimization — and it is wholly owned by Eldridge Industries, a private holding company. The New York market is served through a separate affiliate, First Security Benefit Life Insurance and Annuity Company of New York. Security Benefit is perhaps best known in the advisor community for two genuinely distinctive product designs: the Total Value Annuity, a fixed indexed annuity with a no-surrender-charge option that is unusual in the FIA market, and the RateTrack® Annuity, which it markets as the industry’s first floating rate annuity. The company also has a significant presence in the 403(b) retirement plan market, making it a carrier that public school teachers, university employees, and nonprofit workers frequently encounter through their employer retirement plans. At Diversified Insurance Brokers, Jason Stolz, CLTC, CRPC, DIA, CAA, evaluates Security Benefit products against the full competitive market so clients understand exactly where the distinctive product features create genuine value — and where a different carrier structure may serve better for their specific objective.

Company Snapshot

Financial Strength: Three-Agency A- Consensus

Receiving an A- (Excellent) from AM Best is the minimum financial strength standard most independent advisors require for annuity placements. Security Benefit achieves that threshold simultaneously across AM Best, S&P, and Fitch — all three rating agencies, all at A-, all with stable outlooks. This three-agency consistency is meaningful because each agency uses different analytical frameworks, and convergence across all three provides stronger confirmation than a single-agency rating alone. AM Best’s rating reflects Security Benefit’s balance sheet strength — assessed as strong — along with strong operating performance, neutral business profile, and appropriate enterprise risk management, supported by capital contributions from parent Eldridge Industries. Total admitted assets of $64.63 billion as of year-end 2025 represent a substantial balance sheet for a not-for-share organization, confirming that the not-for-share structure has not impeded asset growth. The absence of public shareholders or quarterly earnings pressure allows Security Benefit to manage its balance sheet with a longer time horizon than a publicly traded insurer — a structural characteristic that aligns well with a carrier whose primary business involves multi-decade retirement savings commitments. For clients comparing Security Benefit’s rating profile against peers, our resources on Is Globe Life a Good Company, Is MetLife a Good Company, and Is National Western a Good Company cover other carriers in the same A-/A rating tier for direct comparison context.

The Advance Choice MYGA

The Advance Choice is Security Benefit’s MYGA — available in three, five, and seven-year guarantee periods. It provides a locked fixed interest rate for the full guarantee period with principal protection, tax-deferred growth, and standard penalty-free withdrawal provisions. The product is straightforward accumulation — a locked rate, no indexed complexity, no income riders, no fees — which is precisely what many conservative retirement savers want from a MYGA. Security Benefit pairs the Advance Choice MYGA with its RateTrack® Annuity in what it calls a laddering strategy: a MYGA at a competitive locked rate combined with the floating-rate RateTrack® to capture the benefit of both a fixed guarantee and a rising-rate adaptive structure simultaneously. For clients comparing the Advance Choice against other A-rated MYGAs, the rate competitiveness should always be evaluated on the same day across the full market — MYGA rates move continuously. Our resources on the F&G Performance Pro and GiLiCo WealthChoice cover competing accumulation and income products from other A-rated carriers for comparison. Our resource on whether annuitization satisfies RMDs covers a planning question specifically relevant to clients evaluating MYGAs inside qualified accounts — a common scenario for Security Benefit’s 403(b) market. For clients whose primary question is how much income their annuity can actually produce, our resource on how much income you can get from an annuity and how to choose the right annuity based on your retirement timeline cover the decision framework that determines which annuity type fits the specific objective.

The Total Value Annuity: No-Surrender-Charge FIA

The Total Value Annuity is Security Benefit’s most structurally distinctive product. It is a fixed indexed annuity that offers a no-surrender-charge version — meaning the policyholder can access the full account value without penalty at any time. This is genuinely unusual in the FIA market. Most fixed indexed annuities carry seven-to-ten-year surrender schedules with declining penalty percentages. Surrender charges exist to allow carriers to invest premium in longer-duration assets to support competitive crediting rates — eliminating them represents a real economic tradeoff. The no-surrender-charge Total Value Annuity allows clients who want principal protection and indexed growth potential without locking into a multi-year surrender commitment. Through optional riders, the Total Value Annuity can also provide guaranteed lifetime income or enhanced death benefits. For clients evaluating FIA options where liquidity flexibility is a primary concern alongside accumulation, the Total Value Annuity offers a design that most competitors do not match. Index crediting strategies include S&P 500 point-to-point with cap and participation rate options. Our resource on American Equity GuaranteeShield and American Equity EstateShield 10 cover FIA products with different surrender and legacy design structures for comparison context.

The Strategic Growth Annuity: 43 Crediting Strategies

The Strategic Growth Annuity and Strategic Growth Plus Annuity (bonus version) are Security Benefit’s primary accumulation FIAs, each offering 43 available interest crediting strategies — a breadth of indexed options that is among the widest available in the FIA market. Having 43 crediting strategies does not guarantee superior performance, but it does give advisors and clients a wider menu of index allocation combinations to match individual market outlook, risk tolerance, and accumulation timeline. The 0% floor applies across all strategies, so principal cannot decline from index performance regardless of which strategy is selected. The Strategic Growth Plus adds an upfront premium bonus alongside the 43 crediting options for clients who want both an immediate accumulation boost and indexed growth potential. For clients comparing the 43-strategy breadth of the Security Benefit FIAs against the more focused but differentiated iShares ETF linkage in the Sagicor Sage Accumulator, or the income rider structures available from F&G, the comparison should run across the same premium, same age, and same objective on the same day. Our resource on Guaranty Income Life Guaranty Growth Plus FIA covers another indexed accumulation product in this comparison tier.

The RateTrack® Annuity: Industry-First Floating Rate Design

The RateTrack® Annuity is Security Benefit’s most structurally innovative product — marketed as the industry’s first floating rate annuity. Rather than locking a fixed rate at purchase (as a MYGA does) or crediting based on an external index (as an FIA does), the RateTrack® sets its credited rate based on a benchmark rate that adjusts automatically over time, allowing policyholders to benefit from rising interest rate environments without surrendering and repurchasing a new contract. This structure addresses one of the most common MYGA buyer frustrations: locking a rate at purchase and then watching rates rise during the surrender period. Security Benefit specifically recommends pairing the Advance Choice MYGA with the RateTrack® as a laddering strategy — one contract delivers the certainty of a locked rate, the other adapts to the rate environment automatically. For clients who watched interest rates rise through multi-year MYGA surrender periods and wish they had had some rate sensitivity, the RateTrack® design addresses that planning need directly.

The 403(b) Market: Teachers, Nonprofits, and Education Sector Employees

Security Benefit has a significant and long-standing presence in the 403(b) qualified retirement plan market — the tax-advantaged savings vehicle used by public school teachers, university employees, hospital workers, and other nonprofit sector employees. This market is less visible to general consumers than the individual annuity channel, but it is a large and strategically important segment where Security Benefit’s brand is well-known among HR administrators, school district benefit coordinators, and educators. For teachers and education sector employees who have Security Benefit through their 403(b) and are now evaluating whether to roll over to a personal annuity at retirement, our resources on how a 403(b) works, how long a 403(b) lasts in retirement, and how to roll over a 403(b) or 401(k) into a guaranteed annuity cover the rollover mechanics, tax implications, and product selection decisions that apply at that transition. Our resource on how to transfer a deferred compensation plan to an annuity covers the related planning decision for employees with 457(b) deferred compensation alongside a 403(b). For education sector employees also evaluating disability income planning, our resources on disability income insurance for teachers and disability insurance for veterinarians cover occupational disability planning adjacent to retirement decisions in the education and professional services sectors. For employees with both a pension and a 403(b) evaluating how those income streams coordinate, our resources on how a pension works and how a solo 401(k) works cover the qualified plan mechanics most relevant to this planning intersection.

The 2019 Lawsuit: What It Is and What It Is Not

Any honest evaluation of Security Benefit must address the 2019 class-action lawsuit filed in Kansas federal court. Plaintiffs alleged that Security Benefit misled clients about the performance of its proprietary index used in certain fixed indexed annuity products — specifically that the index was designed or managed in ways that disadvantaged policyholders relative to what was disclosed at sale. The case has experienced significant delays, and a judge publicly expressed concern about the pace of progress. As of the latest available information, the case remains ongoing and has not reached a final disposition. Several points are important for context. The lawsuit involves proprietary index design on specific FIA products — it does not raise concerns about Security Benefit’s balance sheet, its MYGA products, or its ability to meet policyholder obligations generally. The financial strength ratings (AM Best A-, S&P A-, Fitch A-) have been affirmed through the pendency of this litigation without negative outlook action related to it. Proprietary index design allegations in FIA products are a recurring category of litigation across the industry — multiple carriers have faced similar claims — and outcomes have varied across cases. For clients who are currently holding a Security Benefit FIA that uses a proprietary index, understanding which index your product credits against, reviewing the original product disclosure, and speaking with a licensed independent advisor is the appropriate response. For clients evaluating new Security Benefit products, the Advance Choice MYGA and the RateTrack® Annuity do not involve proprietary index designs and are not implicated by the lawsuit. Clients interested in the Strategic Growth products should review the applicable crediting index disclosures. We are disclosing this lawsuit because honest carrier evaluation requires it — not because it changes the AM Best rating or represents an imminent threat to the company’s financial obligations. For clients evaluating group health planning alongside retirement savings decisions, our resources on group health for 70 employees, group health for 80 employees, group health for 100 employees, and group health for 250 employees cover employer benefit planning relevant to the mid-size employer and nonprofit sector where Security Benefit’s 403(b) products are commonly offered. For Medicare planning alongside 403(b) distributions, our resources on low-cost Medicare plans for retirees, how Medicare works, how to choose the best Medicare plan, and whether Medicare premiums increase cover the healthcare coverage decisions most relevant to retirement-age 403(b) holders. For Social Security claiming decisions alongside 403(b) distribution timing, our resources on the Social Security filing checklist, Social Security income limits, how delayed retirement credits boost Social Security, and how remarriage affects Social Security spousal benefits cover the claiming strategy decisions most relevant to this planning intersection. For final expense planning alongside retirement savings decisions, our resources on burial insurance versus pre-paid funeral, what burial insurance is and who needs it, and whole life burial insurance versus term cover final expense planning commonly addressed alongside annuity accumulation in this planning stage. For life insurance considerations including return of premium features and waiver of premium provisions, our resources on term life insurance with return of premium, long-term care insurance with return of premium, and what waiver of premium for life insurance is cover contract features that are relevant to the same education-sector buyers who evaluate Security Benefit annuities.