To cancel Foresters Financial life insurance, send a signed, dated written request naming your certificate or policy number and the date you want coverage to end, then get written confirmation that it has terminated. Foresters Financial is a trade name used by two different companies, The Independent Order of Foresters, a fraternal benefit society, and its subsidiary Foresters Life Insurance Company, and only the fraternal side carries membership benefits, so check your own paperwork to see which one covers you.
Foresters Financial is the trade name of The Independent Order of Foresters, a fraternal benefit society founded in 1874 and headquartered in Toronto, Canada, which also owns a US subsidiary called Foresters Life Insurance Company.
Not everything called Foresters is a fraternal certificate
Foresters Financial is a trade name for The Independent Order of Foresters, a fraternal benefit society, but it is not the only entity selling coverage under the Foresters name. In 2012 Foresters rebranded a subsidiary, formerly Unity Life of Canada, as Foresters Life Insurance Company, and that company issues ordinary policies rather than fraternal certificates. Whether cancelling costs you membership depends on which one covers you. If your contract calls you a member and references a certificate number, you are insured through the fraternal society, and cancelling ends the membership along with the coverage: benefits like scholarships and legal help through LawAssure go with it. If your paperwork instead calls it a policy through Foresters Life Insurance Company, there is no membership to lose, because that entity does not operate as a fraternal. Either way, Foresters states plainly that its member benefits are non-contractual and can be changed or cancelled at any time without notice, so treat them as a bonus, not as a reason on their own to keep coverage you do not need. Check the paperwork before you assume which situation applies to you.
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.
- Which entity actually issued your coverage. Look for the word certificate and a reference to membership, which means The Independent Order of Foresters covers you, or the word policy with no membership language, which means Foresters Life Insurance Company does. The paperwork settles it, not the letterhead on a recent notice.
- What your membership currently includes. If you do hold a fraternal certificate, ask what your membership includes today, such as scholarships, member discounts, or legal help through LawAssure. Foresters states these benefits are non-contractual and can be changed or cancelled at any time, so confirm what applies now rather than what you were told years ago.
- Which product you hold. Foresters sells simplified issue final expense whole life, standard participating whole life, and a term product that pays a death benefit only for an accidental death. Each behaves differently at cancellation, so confirm which one is on your schedule page.
- Any cash value on a whole life certificate or policy. A whole life contract may have accumulated cash surrender value. Your current statement shows the figure, and surrendering releases it while ending the coverage permanently.
- Whether your health has changed since you applied. Much of what Foresters sells to individuals is simplified issue, approved on health questions rather than a medical exam. That can be easier to qualify for than a fully underwritten replacement today, so confirm you can still get similar coverage before you give this one up.
When cancelling is the right answer
If the coverage was bought for a need that has since passed, if you are holding overlapping final expense coverage from more than one carrier, or if the premium is a genuine strain on a fixed income, cancelling is a reasonable decision. Losing access to scholarships or legal assistance you were never using should not be the deciding factor either way.
Common questions
How do I cancel a Foresters Financial life insurance certificate or policy?
Send a signed, dated written request that includes your name, your certificate or policy number, and the date you want coverage to end, and ask for written confirmation that it has terminated. Foresters describes returning the contract package or sending a signed cancellation request in its own customer care materials, and contact details are printed on your certificate, policy, and statements.
Is Foresters Financial the same as The Independent Order of Foresters?
Foresters Financial is the trade name used by The Independent Order of Foresters, a fraternal benefit society. The organization also owns Foresters Life Insurance Company, a subsidiary that issues ordinary policies rather than fraternal certificates. Which one you are insured through determines whether membership benefits are part of what you are cancelling.
Do I lose my member benefits if I cancel?
Only if you hold a certificate through the fraternal side, The Independent Order of Foresters. If so, benefits such as scholarships, member discounts, and legal help through LawAssure end with the certificate. Foresters also states these benefits are non-contractual and can be changed or cancelled at any time, so confirm what currently applies before you decide.
Will I get money back when I cancel?
It depends on what you hold. Foresters term coverage generally has no cash value to return beyond unearned premium. A whole life certificate or policy, including PlanRight final expense coverage, may have accumulated cash surrender value, shown on your current statement, and any amount above what you paid in can be taxable.
What if my policy only covers accidental death?
Foresters has sold term coverage that pays a death benefit only if the death is accidental, rather than for any cause. If that is what you hold, confirm it directly from your policy schedule before cancelling, since it changes what you are giving up and what would need to be replaced.
Is Foresters Financial a US company?
No. Foresters Financial traces back to 1874 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada, though it has long sold life insurance to individuals in the United States alongside Canada and the United Kingdom. That does not change how a US policyholder cancels: the request still goes to Foresters in writing, using the contact details on your own documents.
Free · No obligation
Before you cancel, get one honest read on it.
A licensed professional will go through your Foresters Financial 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.
Mon-Sat · 10am-9pm
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.