Transamerica burial insurance
Transamerica is where a lot of applications go after a stricter carrier has said no. Its health questions are genuinely more forgiving, and it will write cases that Mutual of Omaha will not look at.
Rating read from AM Best on September 2026. AM Best calls A excellent: a strong ability to meet obligations to policyholders. How we check ratings.
The verdict
A strong choice for anyone with a health history that has caused trouble elsewhere. Not usually the cheapest for a perfectly healthy applicant, which is the trade: you are paying a little more for a carrier that will actually take you.
What is good and what is not
In its favour
- Accepts a broader range of health histories than most A rated carriers
- Issue ages run from birth to 85, wider than almost anything else on the market
- Immediate full benefit available on the top tier
- Long established name with a large in force block
Against it
- Rarely the lowest price for a clean, healthy applicant
- The tier you are offered can shift on underwriting, so the quoted price is not always the issued price
- Customer service on an in force policy is a call centre rather than your agent
How it treats your health
Transamerica is one of the more accommodating A rated carriers in this market. Well controlled diabetes, treated blood pressure, a distant cancer history, and several conditions that trigger an automatic decline elsewhere can still be written here, sometimes at full benefit and sometimes at a graded tier. It remains a real underwriter, so active treatment for a serious condition, oxygen dependence and dementia still stop an application.
What it actually sells
A simplified issue whole life policy for final expense, offered in an immediate benefit tier and lower tiers for applicants who answer yes to some health questions. The face amounts sold are typically between $1,000 and $50,000, which covers everything from a cremation to a full burial with the cemetery included.
The waiting period
The immediate tier pays in full from day one. The lower tiers carry a graded or modified structure over the first two years. Because Transamerica takes applicants other carriers reject, a higher share of its policies land on a graded tier, so it is particularly important here to have the offer read back to you before you sign.
This is the single most misunderstood thing in this market, and it is where most people get sold the wrong policy. Our full explanation is in burial insurance with no waiting period.
What moves the price
Age, sex, tobacco, face amount, state, and which underwriting tier the answers put you in. The tier is the biggest single factor at this carrier, and it is decided after the application rather than at quote.
Why there is no price on this page
We hold no rate tables, so any premium printed here would be invented. On a licensed site that is a compliance problem rather than a helpful touch. The honest number comes from running your age, state, health answers and coverage amount against the 25+ companies the agency can write, which takes a few minutes.
See what Transamerica would actually cost you
Six questions, about a minute. We run them across every company we can write, including this one, and come back with real prices. A typical burial runs $15,395 once the cemetery is included, so that is the number worth covering.
Get my quotes (786) 818-0383Talk to one of our licensed agents
Questions people ask about Transamerica
Does Transamerica accept people other companies decline?
Often, yes. It is one of the reasons we hold the appointment. A decline elsewhere is not a decline here, and it is worth having the questions asked again rather than assuming the answer.
Does Transamerica burial insurance pay from day one?
On the immediate benefit tier, yes. On the graded tiers there is a reduced benefit in the first two years for natural death. Ask which one you have been offered.
Compare it against the rest
One carrier is never the answer for everybody, because they disagree about health. The full scorecard shows every company we can write, with the verified AM Best grade and the date we read it.