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Transamerica Long-Term Care Insurance

4.5 Stars (56 Reviews)
Most Reviewed
Brands that earn the Most Reviewed badge have received the most customer reviews in their category on Retirement Living over the last 12 months.
Updated: January 20, 2023
By: Jonathan Trout
Jonathan Trout
Content Manager
Jonathan is a former product and content manager for Retirement Living. His background spans sales/marketing, finance, and telecommunications. Jonathan’s expertise in consumer wellness and research-backed data stories helped educate seniors on financial planning, retirement, and community resources. Jonathan graduated from Oklahoma State University with a B.S. in Environmental Sociology.
Content Manager
Edited By: Lauren Hamer
Lauren Hamer
Editor
Lauren is the editor for Retirement Living focused on discussing current senior-related issues, including retirement planning, consumer protection, and health and wellness. With six years of finance and career journalism experience, Lauren has edited personal finance content for Credible, Angi, Slickdeals, Jobs for the Future, and more.
Editor

Since 1987, Transamerica Long-term Care has helped build more secure futures for more than 571,000 individuals paying in excess of $5.7 billion in claims as of December 2018.

Editorial Breakdown

Product Options 4.8 Stars
Availability 4.5 Stars
Policy Features 4.5 Stars
Customer Service 4 Stars

Overall Rating 4.3 Stars

Bottom Line

Transamerica offers multiple long-term care insurance policies to help you cover expenses like nursing home care, hospital bills, in-home care and more. It has paid nearly $2.5 billion in claims to date.

Transamerica Long-Term Care Insurance Review

Transamerica opened in 1904 as a small bank, then grew to make financial services available to anyone as the Bank of America. A little over two decades later, the company ventured into the insurance industry so customers could handle their banking and insurance conveniently in one place. The Bank Holding Company Act of 1956 required Transamerica to choose to offer banking or insurance services, and the company opted to remain in the insurance field with long-term care insurance as one of many financial protection products.

Today, Transamerica is a leader in the insurance industry and ranks among the top 10 long-term care insurance companies with nearly 300,000 policies in force. Transamerica’s TransCare III Long-Term Care insurance offers many benefits and rider options, explained below. The company also sells life insurance, mutual funds, annuities and other retirement savings solutions.

Transamerica Life Insurance Company earned impressive marks for long-term financial stability from AM Best, Fitch, Moody’s and S&P Global. Transamerica’s parent company, Aegon, is also highly rated for financial stability.

Transamerica offers coverage regardless of age. TransCare III Long-term Care insurance helps to protect your finances from life’s unexpected circumstances and the high costs of long-term care services.

Pros

  • Wide selection of riders to customize your long-term care policy
  • Sign up for coverage as early as age 18 or as late as age 79
  • Plans don’t lapse due to age or health changes
  • 3-year automatic rate guarantee

Cons

  • No online quotes on website

Transamerica TransCare III Long-Term Care Standard Benefits

Long-term care insurance plans typically have maximum daily benefits (MDB), elimination periods (EP) and policy maximums. The MDB caps the amount paid out each day, and the EP is a waiting period between when you become ill or injured and when the insurance starts paying benefits. Policy maximums define the amount of time over which benefits are paid or limit the total dollar amount in benefits over the life of the policy. MDB, EP and policy maximums vary depending on the coverage you decide to buy. Some of the benefits with all TransCare III Long-Term Care insurance policies are subject to these limitations, which is standard practice.

TransCare III Long-Term Care policies include these basic care benefits:

  • Long-Term Care Facility: pays for each day of nursing home care or another qualifying facility.
  • LTC Facility Bed Reservation: pays when the insured is absent for any reason except discharge from a long-term care facility. Reserves a room up to 60 days per year.
  • Home Care/Adult Day Care (HC/ADC): pays for care in the insured’s home or at an adult day care.

Some TransCare III Long-Term Care standard benefits protect you from premium costs, like the ability to reduce benefits or the benefit period if premiums rise substantially. Another notable feature is should you die before turning 67 years old, your beneficiary receives a payment in the amount of all premiums paid minus the value of claims paid out.

Building a Transamerica TransCare III Long-term Care Policy

A snapshot of Transamerica’s TransCare III policy features include:

  • Issue Ages: 19-79
  • MDB: $50-$500 except for Vermont ($75-$500), Wisconsin ($60-$500) and Massachusetts ($50-$500 unless you’re a Mass Health participant, in which case it is $125-$500).
  • Maximum Amount (Pool of Money): $18,250-$1,095,000 for all states except the Pool of Money in Maryland, Massachusetts, and Oregon is between $36,500 and $1,095,000; in Vermont $27,375 and $1,095,000; and in Wisconsin $21,900 and $1,095,000.
  • Payment Method: Lifetime
Transamerica TransCare III Standard Benefits
Out-of-Pocket expenses paid unless otherwise noted
Benefit Description
Cash Benefit Pays cash each month equal to 10 times the MDB in place of all other benefits, except Optional Care Coordination
Accident Benefit Pays up two times the MDB for qualified long-term care services if you are injured before your sixty-seventh birthday. No combining with some other benefits
Respite Care Benefit Pays for temporary stays in a long-term care facility, community-based program like adult day care, or in-home care, up to 30 days per year
Remain at Home Benefit Reimburses costs for home modifications, volunteer caregiver training, therapeutic devices or technology, or a medical alert system. Lifetime maximum equal to 60 times the MDB
Alternate Plan of Care Benefit Gives Transamerica the discretion to consider new, alternative long-term care services not covered when policy is issued
Waiver of Premium Benefit Monthly premiums waived once LTC facility, Accident Benefit, HC & ADC, Cash Benefit or Hospice Care benefits begin
Hospice Care Benefit Pays out of pocket expenses for each day of care from a hospice care provider, up to 180 days

Transamerica Long-Term Care Insurance Optional Riders

TransCare III Long-Term Care offers several benefit riders you can add to your policy to receive a customized long-term care insurance plan.

  • Nonforfeiture Benefit: Allows the insurance plan to continue on a limited basis if you stop paying premiums. The policy must be in effect for a minimum of three years to use the Nonforfeiture Benefit Rider.

  • Return of Premium Upon Death: This rider must be continuously in force from its effective date. The policy beneficiary receives a payment when you die amounting to the sum of all premiums paid minus payments you waived and benefits paid out.

  • Monthly Benefit: This rider pays monthly instead of daily benefits.

  • Shared Care: Couples with identical Transamerica long-term care insurance policies can share benefits if one exhausts their benefits.

  • Full Restoration of Benefits: This one-use rider restores benefits when claims are paid in full unless the insured is chronically ill and hasn’t received qualified long-term care services for 180 consecutive days.

  • Joint Waiver of Premium: Couples who hold identical long-term care policies with Transamerica can waive premiums during the same months.

  • Elimination Period Credit: This rider can lessen or satisfy your elimination period with credit for days you received the HC or ADC Benefit.

Transamerica Long-Term Care Payment Options

Transamerica offers several payment options on TransCare III Long-Term Care plans. You can opt to pay annually, twice yearly, quarterly or each month. Your premium payment method must be approved during the underwriting process before your application gets approved.

Transamerica logo

Source: Transamerica

Transamerica Complaints

The Better Business Bureau gives Transamerica a “B”. Many reviews sites rate Transamerica long-term care insurance well. We saw ratings of 9 out of 10 stars with one site rating Transamerica the “Best for Affordable Policies.” The company has a 1.6 out of 5 stars on ConsumerAffairs.com based on 64 reviews. The majority of the complaints seem to revolve around being denied coverage and policyholders who felt it took too long for the insurance to pay out. TheBalance lists Transamerica among the top four long-term care insurance companies, citing affordable benefits starting as low as $18,000 and no waiting period for home health benefits when provided by an approved agency.

Transamerica Q&A

  • How do I purchase long-term care insurance from Transamerica?
    You can talk to an independent insurance agent about a TransCare III Long-Term Care policy or call Transamerica at the number on the website to ask questions and apply.

  • Does Transamerica offer any discounts on long-term care insurance?
    The discounts Transamerica offers can lower your long-term care insurance premiums substantially. Transamerica offers a couples discount of up to 30 percent if spouses or partners apply together and are both approved for TransCare III Long-Term Care. You may qualify for a 15 percent discount if you are part of a couple and only you apply for a policy. If you’re in good health and satisfy specific health-related underwriting criteria, you may be eligible for up to a 10 percent discount.

  • Why should I consider TransCare III Long-Term Care insurance when I have Medicare?
    Transamerica long-term care insurance is designed specifically to protect you financially from the costs Medicare doesn’t pay for when it comes to long-term care. Even Medicare Supplement insurance does not cover many long-term care expenses.

  • If my spouse and I get the shared care rider on a Transamerica long-term care policy, what happens to the benefits when one of us dies?
    If one TransCare III Long-Term Care policyholder with the shared care rider dies, the remaining pool of money transfers to the survivor with no further premium payments on the rider.

  • When would I receive benefits from Transamerica long-term care insurance?
    There are two ways policyholders qualify for TransCare III Long-Term Care benefits:

    1. You need considerable supervision to protect you from threats to your health and safety due to a severe cognitive impairment.

    1. You need substantial assistance performing at least two of the six Activities of Daily Living (bathing, continence, dressing, eating, toileting, and transferring to and from the bed) for at least 90 days due to a loss of functional capacity.

Conclusion

According to the Administration on Aging, 69 percent of all seniors will need on average three years of long-term care at some point in their life. With long-term care costs currently ranging from $20 an hour for homemaker services to $7,698 per month for a private room in a nursing home, the expenses add up quickly and could wipe out retirement savings altogether. TransCare III Long-Term Care insurance from Transamerica can help you plan for retirement years with confidence while removing financial stress from your loved ones.


56 Transamerica Reviews

Write Review
1 Star

March 05 2023 7:39PM

Just like most reviewers we are having the same problems. They ask for a doctor's letter stating hours per day needed. Sent it twice in last six months. They still have not responded beyond saying they would look into it.

Will be contacting the State insurance administration for help. At 80 it is difficult to have to deal with this along with my wife's condition. Maybe a class action lawsuit would help.

Myron T.
Brookeville, MD
1 Star

December 13 2022 7:48PM

There is not enough room on this forum to outline the absolute failure of this company to provide ANY information or assistance. The worst. I will be giving my detailed review of this company though a lawyer and the media. I see they are no longer taking new clients for long term care as of March 31, 2022. Thank Goodness.

Eugenia E.
Richmond, KY
1 Star

December 01 2022 2:49PM

Do not use this company. Their premiums go up every year. When it comes time for you to enter a assisted living, they will not pay your policy. They tell you more information is needed. Then they tell you the eligibility specialist have to decide on it. It just keeps looping around. It is very frustrating to not get any answers.

Denise D.
ROGERS, AR
1 Star

October 20 2022 10:33AM

Both of my parents have been paying into Transamerica LTHC for many, many years. They were so pleased that we would not need to care for them in their older years because they purchased this policy.

My mother has started the process for collecting on this policy for my Dad, but has giving up due to the difficult process. We have now joined forced to navigate the process to open a claim for my father who is 92 and needs full time care.

We have spent many hours in hold only to re-explain our situation and ask for help proceeding with the processes. Different people give you different answers to the same question. Some have emailed forms while most say they don’t mail.

All have requested we FAX forms which is most difficult for us. All other financial transactions we are involved in do a document-sign, forms and banking online. It is clear that the policy collecting rules are set up to make it impossible to collect.

The time cards are confusing to caregivers, elderly, and all the family. They are set up to be rejected. We have contacted to CA State insurance commission and we are next going to a private elder law attorney which will ultimately insure the insurance company pays due funds, penalties and legal costs.

We are hopeful it doesn’t come to this. It has been over 120 days when my mother tried to begin this process and 90 days since we have begun this tedious experience. It is clearly insurance fraud and elder abuse. It is so exhausting you want to give up. Nice job TransAmerica!

Stacey E.
La Selva Beach, CA
1 Star

June 06 2022 2:32AM

Where to begin with this sham of a company?! No words!!! Since a hospital discharge at the end of March 2022 my Dad has needed total care. He has a terminal illness certification from hospice.

My sister and I have jumped in to help, staying a week at a time to help Dad and our ailing mom too. They are ages 87 and 88. We each leave jobs and families, travelling from 2 hours away. We have been actively working on this claim through TA, ever since Dad's hospital discharge.

Hours and hours on the phone. Everything from "missing" paperwork to added at last minute documents requested, everything TA does is designed to make you throw up your hands and quit! Elderly people could NEVER navigate this sham!

After paying premiums for two policies for 19 years each, my needy parents won't see any help (or even a determination) unless a law suit intervenes! I am certain!! I have NEVER IN ALL MY ADULT LIFE GONE THROUGH THE HELL OF A TRAP THAT TRANSAMERICA HAS SET FOR POOR, HONEST, PREMIUM-PAYING AMERICANS!!!

This sham insurance area needs a 60 Minutes or AARP investigation!!!! Don't buy their product!! It is air....Let's copy these reviews and send them to Transamerica's Board of Directors! I am motivated!

Lori M.
Bel Air, MD
1 Star

March 24 2022 9:12PM

As with many of the reviews, I have had the same experiences as they have. We have been waiting for 3 months to get approval for payments. This is after the elimination period. I spend hours on the phone every week and constantly getting the run around.

I would never recommend Transamerica to anyone, and I hope their day will come when the government investigates them for fraud.

Steve R.
Cherokee, IA
1 Star

January 21 2022 6:37PM

READ THE POLICY front and back and understand it, they are designed NOT to be used. I have been trying to help a gentleman use his policy for personal care/errands a few days a week. He has been paying a high premium for years and has never tried to use it until now.

After being on hold close to an hour several times we were able to talk with a live person. The 90 day elimination period includes only service days, not the days in between, So if he only needs help 2 days a week, he will be waiting 45 weeks to be eligible for reimbursement moving forward.

Beyond that, the company has a $108 daily limit which would cover an average of 3 hours of home health aide type service a day, which is fine except the documentation the want to reimburse the claim will make it where the services need to be provided as certified with nurse and MD involved which is going to cost a heck of a lot more. These policies are junk, please read them well.

Nicole T.
Edgewood, KY
1 Star

January 19 2022 5:10PM

This company has terrible customer service. You can never talk to anyone and if you do get someone they tell you it is the wrong department and they give me the phone number I just called to call. I am on hold forever 40 mins, 50 mins and when I ask for a call back I never get a call back.

I was locked out of my checking acct. because I was scammed and since then I have been trying to get in touch with them to make my payment and change my bank but I never get in touch with anyone that can help me. I don't know what to do.

Valerie H.
Litchfield, NH
1 Star

January 02 2022 9:32PM

Very poor response. Been paying premium for years. Now is needed and just like a jerk insurance company does not want to pay. Cannot get a hold of people to talk to about what is needed. Called told will phone back and never do just shows how much they care about clients just sent the premium.

Please. This is what the person needs now and no the health is not going to get better. It might be nice if they took care of people who have been with them a long time.

I enjoy getting letters saying this or that is included and it is not, still waiting for the two additions the letter said were included. Not a trustworthy company to deal with. No help in getting answers to questions.

Janet L.
Port Hadlock-Irondale, WA
1 Star

January 02 2022 9:15PM

Just like a insurance co does not want to pay. Ask for a contact person or department name number and cannot get it. Get different answers from whoever you get in call center round about one saying submit things for the claim.

Ask what do you what me to submit. Response was, "What you think will help your claim." Not much help for me when trying to work through this. Another one saying, "Look at your policy and make sure all the requirements are met."

Letters saying denied saying included with letter is a list of approved places still waiting on list. Same letter said sign and return this form in the return addressed envelope. Still waiting on that shows how much they want to help or care about clients. Very poor.

C B.
Port Hadlock, WA