SBE Files Lawsuit against Transamerica for Premium Increases on Universal Life Insurance Policies

Transamerica is accused of improperly imposing massive premium increases on long-time and elderly policyholders

May 20, 2016 – Los Angeles, CA – Attorneys from Shernoff Bidart Echeverria LLP are involved in a class action lawsuit against Transamerica claiming the insurance company committed bad faith and breach of contract by massively increasing premiums on long-time life insurance policyholders, many of whom are elderly.

Transamerica Life Insurance Company is a global life insurer best known for a large, iconic skyscraper in San Francisco which bears the same name. In August of 2015, Transamerica suddenly, and without prior notice, announced massive premium increases in universal life insurance policies sold by the company over the previous 30 years. The move was so egregious that customers who purchased life insurance policies three decades ago were stuck with huge increases in monthly premium charges that are deducted from policyholders’ accumulated balances.

Two of the named plaintiffs in this class action, Mary and Gordon Feller said “This policy was a key element in our retirement plan. We had expected that the value of the policy would fund many years of retirement. We are now struggling to keep up with the payments, in spite of many tens of thousands of dollars paid to Transamerica since 1989.”

The case is Feller et al v. Transamerica Life Insurance Co. in United States District Court for the Central District of California.