Colonial Penn Life Insurance Company

Colonial Penn Life Insurance Company, often known simply as Colonial Penn, is an American life insurance company based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded by philanthropist and AARP co-founder Leonard Davis and is owned by CNO Financial Group. Originally, Colonial Penn focused on people over 65, which became the origins of insurance provided through the American Association of Retired Persons, now known as AARP. Now, the company has a marketing campaign aimed at people between the age of 50 and 85, specializing in “guaranteed acceptance whole life insurance” to help their families cover funeral costs after the individual dies. The company’s name comes from the state it was founded (Pennsylvania), which was part of colonial America, hence the name “Colonial Penn”. The company was acquired by FPL Group in 1985, sold to Leucadia National in 1991, bought by Conseco in 1997, and renamed Conseco Direct Life in 1998. In 2001, Conseco reverted to the Colonial Penn name, which remains a subsidiary of the renamed CNO Financial Group with Bankers Life and the Washington National Insurance Company.