To cancel a Banner Life policy, send a signed, dated written request naming your policy number and the date you want coverage to end to the company that issued it, which is Banner Life Insurance Company in 49 states and the District of Columbia, or William Penn Life Insurance Company of New York if you bought in New York. Ask for written confirmation that the policy has terminated and billing has stopped, and keep that confirmation with your records.
Banner Life Insurance Company sells in 49 states and the District of Columbia while William Penn Life Insurance Company of New York sells exclusively in New York, and the two companies say they help protect more than 1.6 million policyholders across the United States with term life insurance.
A long level period is the thing you are actually giving up
Banner Life is a term company first. Its own product page lists lengths of 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, and 40 years, and describes the company as one of the few carriers writing terms as long as 40 years. That length is what makes this particular cancellation different. On a long dated term policy, the premium was set at the age you were when you applied and at the health class you were approved at, and the contract holds that price for decades. Someone twelve years into a 40 year policy is not paying what that coverage would cost today. They are paying a price agreed a long time ago, with most of the benefit of that agreement still in front of them. Cancelling ends the price, not only the coverage, and reapplying does not undo it, because a new application is priced on your age and health now, and fewer companies write terms that long in the first place. So before you send anything, find the term length and the effective date on your policy schedule and work out how many level years are left. If that number is large, it is the real cost of the decision, and it deserves to be said out loud before you make it.
How to cancel, step by step
- Find your policy number. It is on the policy itself and on any statement. Work from your own documents rather than from a letter you were not expecting.
- Put the request in writing. Sign and date it, name the policy number, and state the exact date you want coverage to end. A phone call alone leaves you nothing to point at later.
- Say if you are inside the free-look window. If the policy is new, your state may entitle you to a full refund. Make that request explicit rather than assuming it is applied.
- Ask for written confirmation. You want the termination date and, if there is cash value, the amount being released. Keep it.
- Stop the payment last, not first. Only once the insurer has confirmed the policy has ended. Stopping the draft first creates a lapse rather than a cancellation, which is messier and can cost you the cash value.
What to check before you send it
These are the things people most often wish they had looked at first. None of them are reasons not to cancel. They are the difference between a decision and a regret.
- How many level premium years are left. Your policy schedule shows the effective date and the term length, and Banner Life writes lengths from ten to forty years. Subtract one from the other. The years still remaining at the locked price are what the policy is worth to you, and they are the first number to have in front of you.
- Which of the two companies issued your policy. Banner Life Insurance Company writes in 49 states and the District of Columbia, and William Penn Life Insurance Company of New York writes in New York. Your policy schedule names the one you contracted with. Send the request to that company, not to a brand name printed on older marketing material.
- Whether you hold term or universal life. Banner Life sells both. A term policy generally builds no cash value. A universal life statement shows an account value and a cash surrender figure, and some universal life contracts carry a no lapse guarantee that depends on premiums being paid on schedule, so confirm which you hold before you end it.
- Whether the policy can be converted instead of cancelled. Term contracts commonly include a conversion privilege that lets you move to permanent coverage without answering new health questions, subject to deadlines written into the contract. Banner Life's own term page describes ending, extending, or converting coverage as the choices when you outlive a term. Ask the insurer what your conversion deadline is before you decide.
- Whether replacement coverage is actually in force. With term there is rarely money to recover, so the risk in cancelling is a gap. In force means more than approved: the first premium is paid, any delivery requirements are met, and you have the new policy in hand. Confirm all three before you end the old one.
- How the premium is being paid. Note the account and the draft date. Cancel with the insurer first, get the termination date confirmed in writing, then make sure no further drafts are scheduled. Stopping the payment on its own only starts a lapse.
When cancelling is the right answer
Cancelling is the right answer when the job the policy was bought to do is finished. The mortgage is paid, the children are grown and earning, or a second policy now covers the same need. It is also reasonable when you have been approved for better priced coverage and that new policy is genuinely in force. The one version we would talk you out of is ending a policy that is still years deep inside a long level period, where the price is locked and the remaining years are most of what you paid for.
Common questions
How do I cancel a Banner Life insurance policy?
Send the issuing company a signed, dated written request that includes your full name, policy number, and the date you want coverage to end, and ask for written confirmation that the policy has terminated and billing has stopped. The service address is printed on your policy documents and on your premium notices. Keep the confirmation with your records.
How do I tell how many level premium years I have left?
Look at your policy schedule, the page near the front of the contract that lists your policy number, effective date, face amount, and term length. Count forward from the effective date by the term length. Banner Life writes terms from ten to forty years, so a policy bought some time ago can still have a long stretch of level premium ahead of it. If the schedule is unclear, the insurer will confirm the term length and the date the level period ends in writing.
My policy says Legal & General America. Is that the same company?
Yes. Banner Life says that from 1981 through 2026 it formed the American arm of Legal & General Group plc, and during that period the business marketed itself in the United States as Legal & General America. In 2026 it was acquired by Meiji Yasuda Group, and the lgamerica.com address now redirects to bannerlife.com. The issuing company on your contract, and the terms you agreed to, did not change.
I live in New York. Who do I send my request to?
New York policies in this family are issued by William Penn Life Insurance Company of New York, which sells only in New York. Banner Life Insurance Company sells in the other 49 states and the District of Columbia. Check the company name on your policy schedule and address your written request to the one that appears there.
I cannot find the agent who sold me the policy. Does that stop me cancelling?
No. The person who wrote your policy may have retired, moved, or changed agencies in the years since, and that has no effect on your contract. The insurer administers the policy and processes the cancellation, so your written request goes to the issuing company directly, at the service address on your policy documents.
Will I get any money back if I cancel a Banner Life term policy?
Usually not, and that is normal rather than a problem. Term coverage generally builds no cash value, so there is nothing accumulating to return beyond any unearned premium. If you hold universal life instead, your statement shows a cash surrender value, and any amount above the total premiums you paid can be taxable. If the policy is new and you are inside your state free-look window, you are generally entitled to your premium back.
Should I convert my term policy instead of cancelling it?
It is worth asking before you decide. A conversion privilege lets you exchange term coverage for a permanent policy using the health class you were originally approved at, with no new medical questions, and Banner Life describes converting as one of the choices when you outlive a term. Conversion privileges expire on dates set in the contract, so ask the insurer what your deadline is and what a converted premium would look like. If the answer does not suit you, cancelling is still there.
Will my coverage end the day I ask to cancel?
Not usually. Most life insurers end coverage on the next premium due date or on the date they process a signed request, whichever the contract specifies. That gap matters, because until the policy actually terminates you are still covered. Never treat a phone call as the end of it: confirm the termination date in writing and keep the confirmation.
Should I just stop paying instead of cancelling?
It is simpler than it looks to do this badly. Stopping payment starts the grace period, and if the policy has cash value the insurer may keep it in force by taking loans against that value, which can quietly drain it. A written request creates a clean, dated record of what you asked for and when. Cancelling on purpose is always tidier than lapsing by accident.
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Before you cancel, get one honest read on it.
A licensed professional will go through your Banner Life policy with you, tell you what it is worth today, what you would lose by ending it, and whether anything better is actually available at your age and health. We are independent, and a review that ends in keep what you have is a perfectly good outcome.
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This guide is general information, not legal, tax, or financial advice. Cancellation terms, refunds, and free-look windows depend on your contract and your state. Policy Review Center is a free comparison and referral service, not an insurance agency, insurer, or producer, and it connects you with independent licensed agents. Carrier names are used for reference only and do not imply any endorsement or affiliation.