A subsidiary of the Northbrook, Ill.-based Allstate Insurance Company, Allstate Life was established right after World War II, when the explosive growth in the number of married couples having children created a demand for financial protection for the nation’s families. The company’s initial foray into life insurance came on September 3, 1957, when it sold #000001, a mortgage cancellation policy, to a married couple—The Huddlestun’s of West Liberty, Illinois.

By 1963, Allstate Life already had $1 billion of insurance in force, signifying a faster growth rate than many of its life insurance rivals. Expansion continued, and in 1983 Allstate Life introduced a new flexible type of life insurance called "Universal Life" which, in addition to future protection, presented policyholders with opportunities for both savings and investment. The desire to grow and innovate continued, and in 2000 Allstate Life became Allstate Financial. The change reflected an expansion to include not only life insurance, but savings and investment products as well. Remaining at the forefront of innovation in the life insurance industry, Allstate today offers a variety of permanent and term life insurance policies, as well as a program that couples life insurance with critical illness/severe accident benefits in one affordable package.