Life insurance is a great financial tool that assures your family’s financial well-being when you are no longer around. But, you may think you aren’t healthy enough to get a life insurance policy. Today, we’ll see how to navigate the process of obtaining a policy, even if you have pre-existing conditions.
Table of Contents
Pre-existing conditions
Life is unpredictable, and sometimes you aren’t at your healthiest. Pre-existing conditions are those health issues you have before you get a life insurance policies. These are usually chronic illnesses like diabetes or heart disease, or they are conditions like high blood pressure or asthma. However, the conditions don’t have to be chronic. If you’ve recently had a major surgery or are recovering from cancer, that might be taken into account as well. It depends on the severity. This is measured in the underwriting process.
The process
Underwriting is what insurance companies do to determine the risk of insuring someone, and then deciding if they will accept that person and how much they need to charge. They take a look at your medical history and current health. This is done through requesting medical records. The process looks back over your life and medical history. It can seem extensive, but these are experts that have seen it all. There’s a couple of reasons why they do this. One is to see if you are healthy enough to get a life insurance policy. Another reason is to set the premium. Remember, you pay the same rate through the entire life of the policy so determining this number at the start is important.
What to expect
If you have pre-existing conditions, here is what to expect. There are different scales to the ratings called tables. Through the underwriting process you are placed into table and that determines how much the annual premium will be. For the healthiest clients, they will receive the lowest rates. For those with some health issues, it will come at a bit of a higher cost depending on the carrier.
Options
One of the most important aspects while shopping for life insurance is to speak to someone who knows what all the options are. Certain insurance carriers specialize in getting certain people coverage. There is one for high risk clients, for smokers, and many more. If you are shopping and you get a high rate, I encourage you to keep looking or seek guidance. Professionals who have helped people with similar challenges may have the answer you are looking for.
We empathize with those who have chronic conditions. The underwriting process may feel long with visits to the doctor’s office, bloodwork, and extra application forms. The premiums may be higher as well, due to the way insurance carriers determine risk. Its important to note that even through this, life insurance is a worthy investment. Especially if you have a condition such as these. I would urge you to live a healthy lifestyle to try and avoid these conditions as much as possible. Your family deserves to see you around longer.