Complaint Review: Athene Annuity and Life Company

For years I paid monthly life insurance premiums electronically, where Athene simply requested and obtained premium payment directly from my bank.  In December of 2016 they stopped taking premium payments, with no notice to me.  I contacted them and askled why they hadn't taken payment and was advised they were "converting" my policy and others to a new system and it would take a while.  I heard nothing for 6 months and contacted them, but received the same story.  This happened several more times, each time with the same response.  I should add that it is EXTREMELY difficult to get through to anyone on their customer service line in order to get any type of explanation.

Finally, this month - 15 months after they last debited my bank account- I was advised by Athene that they would be drafting my bank account in about 2 months for the entire 17 months of premium in a lump sum, but would give me 10 days notice before actually doing so.

Fortunately I do not have a large life insurance policy so the lump-sum premium payment, while significant for a retiree, can be managed over time.  I can't help but be concerned for people who had larger life insurance policies with much larger premiums, and who now must pay 17 months of those premiums in a lump sum.  I can't conceive of a life insurance company taking 17 months to convert policies to a new system AND not collect premiums for that same period.  

I wondered if this was an effort to encourage people to simply drop their insurance policies rather than pay 17 months of premium in a lump sum.  The policy seems attractive in terms of increasing value and my worry was whether it was too expensive for Athene to allow it to continue in force.  I therefore also worry about their financial stability.

After this experience I would not recommend this company, especially in terms of service and in terms of possible financial issues.  Will it still be around when it is time for a payout?