1. Businesses
  2. Protect My Employees
  3. Group benefits
  4. Group life insurance

Group life insurance

Help protect your employees and their families with Principal life insurance.

Group life insurance shows employees you value what matters most to them—their loved ones.

Many employers offering employee benefits consider group term life insurance an essential part of their benefits package. Why? It provides employees with a basic level of protection. Plus, adding voluntary term life insurance to your benefits package allows employees to purchase additional coverage for themselves and coverage for their dependents.

Principal offers flexible group term life and voluntary term life insurance to meet the needs of you and your employees.

Who pays the insurance premium?

You can choose to pay for all, part, or none of the premium with Principal life insurance. If your budget is tight, employees could pick up the entire cost of premium with voluntary term life insurance.

What is life insurance?

When employees have life insurance, it helps them financially protect their loved ones if the unthinkable should happen. Life insurance provides a payment, also known as a death benefit, to beneficiaries after the insured person’s death.

Why offer group life insurance?

No matter what stage of life your employees are in, they appreciate having life insurance to protect their loved ones. In fact, life insurance is an important part of many families’ long-term financial plan.

Plus, offering group life insurance enhances your benefits package. And great employee benefits can help you attract and keep quality employees.

How does group life insurance work?

Life insurance helps your employees put the people in their lives first. If an employee passed away, the life insurance proceeds would go to the people designated as beneficiaries. Those funds can help loved ones manage financial obligations, such as: funeral expenses, mortgage or rent, college funding, daily living expenses, and more.

Key features of Principal life insurance

When you combine group term life (employer-paid) and voluntary term life (employee-paid) coverage, you offer an even broader range of protection for employees. Best of all, your employees have guaranteed coverage—meaning they can get up to a certain amount of life insurance without answering medical questions.

Our flexible life insurance lets you customize a package just right for your company. Here are a few highlights of our coverage.

 Group term life
(employer-paid)		Voluntary term life
(employee-paid)
Employee benefitsFlat benefits, percentage of salary or combinationIncrements or percentage of salary
Coverage amountsUp to $1 million1Up to $500,000
Optional dependent coverageFlat benefits for spouse and children up to age 26Flat benefits for spouse (up to $250,000) and children up to age 26 (up to $25,000)
Continuing coverage if employment endsConversion (change coverage to individual life policy) availableConversion (change coverage to individual life policy) available

Portability (extend coverage to another group term life policy) available

Understanding group life insurance terms

Flat benefits

Coverage is a set amount. For example, a flat $20,000 is a life insurance benefit of $20,000.

Percentage of salary

Coverage is a percentage of the employee’s salary. For example, an employee has a life insurance policy that is twice (or 200%) her salary. Her salary is $50,000, which means a life insurance benefit of $100,000.

Increments

Choose from a flat dollar amount and let employees elect a benefit that fits their needs and their budget by selecting a benefit that is a multiple of that dollar amount. For example, if you select a $20,000 increment, employees could purchase $20,000; $40,000; $60,000, etc.

Accidental Death & Dismemberment (AD&D)2

It’s no surprise. People have accidents every day. And, unfortunately, some of them are severe. Adding Accidental Death & Dismemberment coverage to group term life or voluntary term life provides your employees with even greater protection. A core benefit is paid for the loss of life, hands, feet, thumb and index finger, or vision as the result of an accident.

Extra features3—at no extra cost to you

Some of our group life insurance policies give employees access to extra services.

  • Travel assistance: Helps employees ease some of the worries of traveling – whether in the U.S. or internationally.
  • Will and legal document center: Lets employees create simple legal documents online.
  • Identity theft kit: Allows employees to be proactive in protecting one of their most important assets—their identify.
  • Beneficiary support: Helps those coping with the death of a loved one.

I’m interested in Principal life insurance. What’s next?

Do you offer employee benefits through us?

Manage your benefits online.

Log in now
Need to submit a claim?
Have questions?

Get online life insurance claims help. Or call us at 800-245-1522 for help in English and 800-243-1404 for help in Spanish.

1 Varies by case size and requires underwriting approval. 

2 In some states, certain provisions listed as AD&D may be paid as a personal loss benefit. 

3 These products and services are not part of the insurance contract and may be changed or discontinued at any time. Principal is not liable for products and services provided by third parties. Not available to group policies issued in New York.

This is an overview of the benefits group life insurance provides, but there are limitations and exclusions. For cost and coverage details, contact your Principal representative. Life insurance from Principal® is issued by Principal Life Insurance Company, Des Moines, IA 50392. Oregon Policy GC 6000(06/04) and GC 6000 (VTL) (06/04).

EC4898L-01