Best for: People who need to create an estate plan

Our take: Fabric, now branded Fabric by Gerber Life since its acquisition in early 2022 by Gerber Life’s parent company Western & Southern Financial Group, makes creating an estate plan easier than its competitors. While the company predominantly offers life insurance, the Fabric app also includes services to help policyholders create estate plans. Most notably, the app allows people to create a will, a highly recommended supplement to a life insurance policy. The insurer also offers a no-medical-exam life insurance policy that’s designed specifically for seniors who are making end-of-life plans.

Fabric by Gerber Life offers term life insurance. But if you’re looking for a life insurance company that does more than just sell life policies, Fabric by Gerber Life is for you. In addition to selling life insurance, Fabric also helps you create a will and build a financial and legal plan for your family and estate — and you can even set up a 529 plan. Another note: In addition to being great for estate planning, Fabric, along with Ladder, received the top Trustpilot customer experience rating of the online life insurance companies we reviewed.

What Fabric has to say: “We offer a one-stop-shop for busy parents. That means that at the same time you’re applying for a life insurance policy, you can also create a free will, get access to college savings funds, and even manage your family’s finances on our easy-to-use mobile app” says Adam Erlebacher, CEO of Fabric by Gerber Life.

Pros:

  • Offers complimentary wills for the policyholder and their spouse
  • Provides other financial services, such as 529 plans
  • Fabric app can be used to manage financial plans, including any important financial and legal information

Cons:

  • Fabric by Gerber Life chat service does not always provide immediate assistance during normal business hours

Fabric by Gerber Life’s third-party ratings

Trustworthiness
A+
Financial Strength
A+
Customer Experience
4.8

Trustworthiness: The Better Business Bureau evaluates businesses on their behavior, trustworthiness, and performance. A business with a high ranking from the BBB can be trusted to meet its commitments. The BBB gives Fabric an A+.

Financial strength: A.M. Best evaluates a company’s financial health and its ability to meet its financial obligations. A.M. Best gives Fabric an A+.

Customer experience: Trustpilot is an online platform for individuals to provide reviews of companies and their customer experience. Trustpilot gives Fabric a rating of 4.8 out of a possible 5. Scores as of October 4, 2022.

How Fabric by Gerber Life stacks up against selected competitors

Third-party ratings Fabric Bestow Ladder Vantis Life
Trustworthiness A+ A+ A+ A+
Financial Strength A+ A+ A A+
Customer Experience 4.8 4.6 4.8 4.7

More details about Fabric by Gerber Life insurance

Policies offered:

  • Life products offered: Term life

Other coverage:

  • Fabric offers an accelerated death benefit rider for terminal illness. This allows the insured to access some of their death benefits while still living.

Rates:

  • Prices start at $7.61 a month.

Insurance partners:

  • Fabric policies are issued by Vantis Life, a Penn Mutual company.

Other details:

  • Ages and coverage limits: Ten- to 30-year term policies from $100,000 to $5 million are available.
  • Waiting period: Coverage begins as soon as you are approved and pay.
  • Medical requirements: Many who apply are able to skip the medical exam.
  • Application time: It can take just 10 minutes to apply.

 

Additional product line details: Customers purchasing Fabric by Gerber Life’s term policy can choose from 10-, 15-, 20-, 25-, and 30-year terms with coverage amounts from $100,000 to $5 million. The company uses a digital underwriting system that allows customers to get an instant decision without a medical exam.

Fabric by Gerber Life also offers a policy tailored toward senior applicants. While this policy also doesn’t require a medical exam, it is only meant for people between the age of 50 to 80 and only provides up to $25,000 in coverage. The policy can pay for anything from outstanding loans to final expenses.

How much does Fabric by Gerber Life Insurance cost?

For healthy non-smokers:

The following table shows Fabric monthly rates by age and gender for healthy non-smokers purchasing 20-year term policies.

Age Gender $500,000 in coverage $1,000,000 in coverage
25 Female $19.44 $32.35
25 Male $22.86 $39.19
35 Female $20.62 $34.90
35 Male $23.72 $40.90
45 Female $56.61 $96.82
45 Male $71.00 $125.80
55 Female $103.62 $200.50
55 Male $142.51 $278.29

How its rates stack up:

The following table shows how Fabric’s monthly rates for 35-year-olds in excellent health compares with selected competitors for $500,000 in coverage.

Gender Fabric Ladder Wyshbox Bestow
Female $20.62 $20.10 $20.03 $23.08
Male $23.72 $22.80 $28.96 $30.58

Company background: The company was founded by entrepreneurs Adam Erlebacher and Steven Surgnier. It was acquired in early 2022 by financial services firm Western & Southern Financial Group, which also owns the Gerber Life insurance brand. “In addition to being a one-stop-shop, Fabric is now Fabric by Gerber Life, which means that our customers get the digital convenience of Fabric, now partnered with a brand trusted by millions of families for more than 50 years. It’s just another way we strive to help provide our customers with peace of mind,” says Erlebacher.

Interesting tidbit: While Fabric by Gerber Life offers varied estate planning services, the company targets its policies at parents.