Fabric Review: Life Insurance Designed for Young Parents

Overall Ranking

5/5

Overview

Ease of Use

5/5

Prices

4.5/5

Customer Service

4.5/5

Mobile App

5/5

Fabric offers speedy and straightforward life insurance products and financial tools for young families. Could it be the right choice for you?

Chris Muller

Editor's Note

You can trust the integrity of our balanced, independent financial advice. We may, however, receive compensation from the issuers of some products mentioned in this article. Opinions are the author's alone. This content has not been provided by, reviewed, approved or endorsed by any advertiser, unless otherwise noted below.

Getting life insurance should be something to consider on everyone’s to-do list, but many people never take the time to sign up. However, what you may not realize is that it can be a great way to build cash value and diversify your investments. The large cash inflows make these policies an attractive option for real estate developers and firms, as well as for those interested in estate planning.

In the digital world we live in now, most prospective insurance buyers are exploring options for life insurance online. This is even more pertinent as the number of deaths due to the COVID-19 pandemic continues to rise globally. One of these digital insurance options is Fabric, a start-up life insurance firm that offers term life insurance policies.

In this Fabric review, I will go over all the details you need to know about this option for life insurance. Fabric mainly focuses on life insurance, and that’s why we’re going to make this a Fabric life insurance review specifically.

What is Fabric Insurance?

Fabric is a digital life insurance firm founded in 2015 by Steven Surgnier and Adam Erlebacher. It’s online-first, meaning that insurance applicants can apply online in ten minutes or less without a need to visit an office. They are renowned for their professional and speedy advice. Their rates are also competitive when compared to other digital insurance providers–especially those focused on life insurance.

The firm was recently in the news when it raised a Series A funding of $10 million in 2018. It had also previously raised $2.5 million in 2017. Fabric Insurance has also received an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau.

What Plans Does Fabric Offer?

Fabric offers term life insurance:

Premium is their core product and is a term life insurance product. Term life insurance is an insurance product that stays in place for a fixed period.

Fabric Insurance Features

The beauty of signing up for Fabric Insurance is consumers get the best of two worlds:

The efficiency of a light-footed tech start-up
The credibility of a reputable insurance company that has been around for centuries

They currently offer the following features for prospective applicants:

Fabric Premium

Fabric Premium offers applicants the option of getting 10, 15, or 20-year term life insurance with coverage amounts up to $5 million.

No Medical Exam

Applicants also have the option of forgoing a medical exam in some instances. Once the firm makes an offer, applicants can decide to edit their coverage amounts and length of coverage before payment.

All this can happen without the need for further underwriting. There is also no need to fill a new application. This particular feature enables applicants to decide on a premium and coverage that suits their budget and any specific requirements or needs.

Also, Fabric recently announced several new product features, including no-exam eligibility for up to $1.5M in term life insurance coverage, the addition of 25- and 30-year term length options, an increase in no exam eligibility until age 60.

Learn More: No Medical Exam Life Insurance Companies

Fast Approvals

Fabric takes full advantage of technology, using an algorithm that offers expedited underwriting services for qualified applicants. This process means you can skip the mandatory medical exams that slow down the application process by competitors and get your application approved immediately–in less than a minute but not more than ten minutes in most cases.

Fabric’s algorithm is proprietary and does the heavy lifting of qualifying applicants for the accelerated underwriting approvals. If your application fails the automated process, a human can review your application to determine if you are eligible to skip the medical exam using a carefully laid out method.

Coverage Until 85 With No New Exams

At the end of your coverage period on term life insurance, you are allowed to maintain the same policy until age 85. You can do this without the need for new medical exams. However, once you turn 85, you’ll need to go for another medical screening.

Convert to Permanent Life

Fabric’s term life policies can convert to permanent life insurance policies as long you are 65 or younger. There are no limitations or restrictive agreements on time of conversion. Also, if you’re under 65, you can switch policies. Permanent life insurance policies last for a lifetime, unlike term insurance policies that only cover a fixed period.

Grant Beneficiaries Access

To reduce any unnecessary bureaucracy whenever beneficiaries need to collect death benefits, Fabric has a feature that enables its customers to grant their beneficiaries access to their life insurance policy.

The access is granted online, and beneficiaries can log in and view the policy details. The beneficiaries can also contact Fabric’s customer service team and make a claim directly from the account dashboard.

Create a Free Will Online

In addition to life insurance, Fabric also has a tool for creating a free will online. Developed by legal experts, this tool is simple to use and understand, thus allowing you to create a will that suits your every want and need.

There are three steps to creating a free will online with Fabric:

Answer a handful of basic questions: It only takes five minutes to answer these questions, which puts you on the right path to creating a suitable will.
Make your will legally binding: All you need is a printer, two witnesses, and a few signatures. Fabric will walk you through the process.
Share your will: Through the app, you can share details of your will with the right people, such as your beneficiaries and executor.

You can also use the tool to name a guardian for any minor children. This ensures that they’re taken care of by the right person should you pass on before they reach the age of 18.

Related: Best Online Will Makers

Fabric Vault

The Fabric Vault feature enables you to store critical financial information at a secure place. You and your spouse’s trust documents, wills, and any other financial documents such as real estate investment certificates are safe with Fabric’s Vault. No matter where you are at any point in time, the information you have stored in your Vault is easily accessible. You can also share it with anyone if that’s needed.

Easy Payments

Another high point of using Fabric is the ease of payment. You can pay for your policy using your credit/debit cards. You should, however, ensure your card doesn’t expire while on file, as your policy will be canceled if the payment method fails. Ensure you update your payment method once your card expires or has an issue. This feature is rarely found in most insurance firms.

Pricing for Fabric Insurance

Your insurance rates are usually dependent on a couple of factors, including (but not limited to):

The type of life insurance you are looking to sign up for
Your age
Your health
If you are a smoker or non-smoker
If you enjoy risky hobbies

In some instances, the insurance company might make you go for a medical exam to determine your final rate. This is where Fabric’s algorithm gives them an advantage. Unlike traditional insurance companies, you can speed up your application process depending on your Fabric algorithm scores.

Fabric’s term life insurance policy uses the following factors to decide your rate:

Family history
Age
Health history
Lifestyle to decide on your rate

Depending on your score on each of these factors, you can fall within one of the following risk levels:

Ultra Select: Has great family and health history; no record of smoking within the last five years; low-risk lifestyle
Select Plus: Perfect family and health history; no record of smoking within the last three years; low-risk lifestyle
Select: Satisfactory family and health history; no record of smoking within the last two years; low-risk lifestyle
Standard: Tolerable family and health history; no record of smoking within the last year; moderate-risk lifestyle
Tobacco User: Decent family and health history; a record of smoking within the last twelve months; moderate-risk lifestyle

To get an idea of how much a term life insurance policy will cost you, you would need to get a quote from Fabric directly.

However, to give you a GENERAL idea, Fabric has provided three samples of offers made to customers looking for a 20-year term life insurance policy:

A 29-year-old female in excellent health; gets $250,000 worth of coverage; she pays $14.61 per month.
A 35-year-old male in excellent health; gets $750,000 worth of coverage; he pays $34.17 monthly.
A 42-year-old female in good health; gets $500,000 worth of coverage; she pays $41.46 monthly.

The trend is evident and logical. Younger and healthier applicants pay less in premiums. The algorithm is used to decide if an offer should be made and at what rate. Humans can also step in if the offer is refused and review the application again.

Signing up for Fabric

Signing up for a life insurance policy is fast and straightforward. You can get through the process in ten minutes or less. You can apply on the website or the Fabric mobile app (it’s on the Google Play Store and Apple Store). After answering a series of eight questions, you get your offer.

In cases where more information is required, the licensed team of professionals will reach out to you and guide you through whatever next steps are needed to get your term life insurance policy up and running.

You also have the flexibility to personalize your offer as you deem fit. You can adjust your coverage amount or length of the term. This ensures that your monthly premiums fit your budget.

Fabric Insurance Security

Fabric uses High Assurance SSL certificates and Multi-Factor Authentication to safeguard the confidential information of their clients. All documents are stored in industry-standard encrypted algorithms using key lengths of 256 bits.

They also institute regular source code audits using credible third-party security auditors. The database is also archived regularly and backed up offsite to ensure redundancy.

Fabric Insurance Mobile Support

Fabric launched a mobile app in 2019 to make it easier for applicants to access their services. The application offers their prospective and current customers the ability to apply for term life insurance on the go, create a will, and organize financial accounts or documents.

They can also coordinate with beneficiaries, financial advisers, and legal experts from the app.

Customer Service for Fabric Insurance

Fabric’s customer service team is known for its professional and speedy service. The team of agents are online all the time, and can quickly resolve most of your queries and send you on your way.

The only thing I noticed is they don’t have a phone number listed anywhere – at least I couldn’t find one. I was able to find an email address on their privacy page, but it’s clear they want you to contact them via their chatbot. Just note that you may have to wait to get a response. And honestly, I prefer to get support through chat these days.

Pros and Cons of Fabric

Medical exam not always required — Each applicant is different. Most cases, however, get an instant approval for their term life insurance application.
Online process — Customers can complete the sign-up process online. They can also pay their monthly premiums and assign claims using the website or app.
Accelerated underwriting — Most applicants get approvals within ten minutes or less. In cases where a medical exam is needed, they will often communicate a decision in five business days.
Conversions to permanent life policy — You have the option to convert your term insurance to a permanent policy.
31-Day grace period — You have 31 days to make your payment if you miss it due to a failed payment method.

No long term option — Fabric doesn't offer 30-year term policies. It is focused on parents who still have their kids at home.
Lack of flexibility — They only represent one company - Vantis Life. This means you can't compare pricing.
Age gating — It is not available to those 60 years and older.

Alternatives to Fabric Insurance

Haven Life

Haven Life is also a digital insurance firm that offers term life insurance policies. You get 90 days to finish the application process if you don’t get instant coverage.

They offer 10, 20, and 30-year terms. They, however, cater to applicants above 60 years in comparison to Fabric Insurance. Applicants aged 60 to 64 can apply for coverage capped at $1 million while applicants aged 59 and below can apply for coverage capped at $3 million.

MassMutual provides Haven Life’s term insurance policies.

Bestow

Bestow offers term life insurance without the need for a medical exam. It is available in all states except New York. Applicants can get coverage in minutes once they qualify. They offer coverage from $50,000 to $1 million for 10 and 20-year terms.

The 20-year policies are eligible for those between the ages of 21 to 45, while the 10-year policies are eligible for applicants between the ages of 21 to 55.

Ethos Life

Ethos Life claims they are built for people who have no time for the restrictive and stifling policies of the insurance sector. It is simple and affordable and can be an excellent option for a young family. Applicants can access the Ethos services online.

Most applications are granted instant approval. However, in some cases, they have to take a medical exam. They also offer 10, 15, 20, and 30-year term policies.

Who is Fabric Insurance For?

Fabric Insurance was designed for young parents with kids. It targets those who are looking to organize their financial information in a seamless, easy way without disrupting their busy schedules.

Bottom Line

While creating this Fabric insurance review, we realized that Fabric offers speedy and straightforward life insurance products and financial tools for young families. If you need simple term life insurance, get a free life insurance quote from Fabric here.