KANSAS CITY, Mo. , June 24, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Kansas City Life Insurance Company ("KCL") announced today that it has entered an agreement intended to settle all claims asserted against it in previously-disclosed class action litigation related to the cost of insurance rates used in certain universal life and variable universal life policies.

Under the terms of the proposed nationwide Settlement Agreement, which is subject to both preliminary and final court approval, KCL has agreed to pay $45.0 million to address the claims of approximately 88,000 policyholders. 

The proposed settlement would resolve all current and potential claims related to the cost of insurance rates used by KCL in administering the following universal life and variable universal life policies: Better Life Plan, Better Life Plan Qualified, LifeTrack, AGP, MGP, PGP, Chapter One, Classic, Century II, Rightrack (89), Performer (88), Performer (91), Prime Performer, Competitor (88), Competitor (91), Executive (88), Executive (91), Protector 50, LewerMax, Ultra 20 (93), Competitor II, Executive II, Performer II, and Ultra 20 (96) policies (the "Class Policies") that were issued and administered by KCL and that were active on or after January 1, 2002.

The proposed settlement would also resolve the claims asserted in the following ongoing cases: van Zanten and Vittetoe v. KCL, 4:25-cv-00095-BP, US District Court for the Western District of Missouri; van Zanten v. KCL, 4:25-cv-00179-DGK, US District Court for the Western District of Missouri; Sheldon v. KCL, 1916-CV26689, 16^thCircuit Court, Jackson County Missouri ("Sheldon"); Fine v. KCL, 2:22-cv-02071-MWC-PD, US District Court for the Central District of California; and McMillan v. KCL, 1:22-cv-01100-BAH, US District Court for the District of Maryland (collectively, the "Cost of Insurance Class Action Litigation"). In addition, the settlement will address the claims of any other policyholder owning a Class Policy that is not a part of the existing or prior litigation. Members of the Karr v. KCL, 1916-CV26645, 16^thCircuit Court, Jackson County Missouri ("Karr") and Meek v. KCL, 4:19-cv-00472-BP, US District Court for the Western District of Missouri ("Meek") litigation, whose policies were in force on or after February 1, 2021, are also included in the proposed Settlement.

Settlement proceedings related to the Sheldon litigation matter will be held before the 16th Circuit Court, Jackson County Missouri. Settlement proceedings related to all other claims will be held before the United Stated District Court for the Western District of Missouri. The settlement agreement is conditional upon approval of the settlement by each of the Courts. Dates have not yet been set for settlement approval hearings. There can be no assurance that the Settlement Agreement will be approved by the relevant courts.

In entering the Settlement Agreement, the Company does not admit to any liability or wrongdoing of any sort with regard to any of the claims or allegations in the current actions or in any future actions, and notes that it will continue to vigorously defend any and all actions if the Settlement Agreement is not approved by the Courts.

Walter E. "Web" Bixby, President, Chief Executive Officer and Vice Chairman of the Board of KCL, stated: "We believe the settlement is the right course of action to remove future uncertainty and ongoing legal expense, serving the best interests of the policyholders, company, and shareholders, and will allow us to focus on moving forward to better serve our policyholders and the life insurance marketplace."

Kansas City Life Insurance Company

Kansas City Life Insurance Company (OTCQX: KCLI) was established in 1895 and is based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Company's primary business is providing financial protection through the sale of life insurance and annuities. The Company operates in 49 states and the District of Columbia. For more information, please visit www.kclife.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes "forward-looking statements," which are statements, other than statements of historical facts, regarding the Company's plans, financial position and business strategy, and include statements regarding the Company's expected future earnings, capital position and dividend payments. In addition, forward-looking statements generally can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "expect," "intend," "estimate," "anticipate," "plan," "foresee," "believe" or "continue" or the negatives of these terms or variations of them or similar terminology. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, the Company can give no assurance that these expectations will prove to have been correct. All such forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated by the relevant forward-looking statement. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company's expectations include those identified in its filings with the OTC. The forward-looking statements included herein are made only as of the date of this press release, and the Company does not undertake any obligation to release publicly any revisions to such forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as required by law.

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SOURCE Kansas City Life Insurance Company