Frequently Asked Questions About Life Insurance
1)How do I purchase a policy?
First, an application is sent for your signature. At the
same time a medical examiner contacts you to set a
convenient time at your home or office to take blood
and urine. On larger amounts or older ages, a resting
EKG or blood pressure check may be required. It is
important to give blood after a 12 hour fast so it is
better to do the exam in the morning. Once the
insurance company receives the exam results, the
application, and any additional doctors records that
the insurance company obtains at their expense, we
receive an offer. Every expense in this process is
paid for by the insurance company!
2)How long does this process take?
If no doctors records are ordered, 3 to 4 weeks( Less if
there is an urgency). If doctors records have to be
obtained, 4-7 weeks since we are dependent on the
promptness of the doctor.
3)If I apply and don't get the rate
I applied for, what happens?
The company many times will make another offer. If our
office thinks we can get a better offer from another
company, we will ship your file over there.
4)Are these stable companies?
Every company our agency uses has a strong financial
rating as determined by the various rating agencies
such as A. M. Best, Standard and Poor's and Moody's
Bond Ratings.
5)What is "Preferred Plus", "Preferred",
and "Standard"?
Insurance companies are learning more and more about
identifying their risks. Since cancer and
cardiovascular disease are the two leading causes of
death where the risk can be lessened by the
individual, companies zero in on these risks. Those
that qualify for the super preferred would be less at
risk, then the preferred, then the standard. These
companies look at height and weight, blood pressure,
cholesterol(good and bad), family history(relatives
dying before 60 of CV disease or cancer), personal
history of cancer and CV disease, and smoking history.
A more specific guide is as follows:
6)What if I don’t fit into any of
these categories?
If an individual has one or more of these risk factors,
they may still qualify for preferred or standard. If
even standard is out of the question, there are some
highly rated companies that will still take the risk.
Insurance companies fear the unknown. If they can
identify what those risk factors are, there is a
greater chance they will offer a policy. For example,
someone just finds out he has a blood pressure problem
and his doctor is trying different medications to
bring it under control. Until the blood pressure is
under control, this remains an unknown to the
insurance company. Once under control it could be a
preferred with some companies, standard to others.
7)Do most companies treat pilots the same way?
No. If a pilot has enough hours to lower the risk to
the insurance company, it is possible to get
preferred. Two of our companies with the lowest rates
will consider preferred.
8)Do insurance companies treat all
tobacco users the same?
Cigarette smokers that smoke less than a pack a day
have a chance to get a non smoker rate with one
company. Other companies treat pipe smokers, chewers,
and cigar smokers as non smokers. Still another
company gives almost all tobacco users a non smoker
rate for the first 3-4 years! This same company gives
a preferred rate if you use tobacco less than three to
four times a year. They look at the amount of nicotine
in your system.
9)What if an instant quote is not
right for me because of my special medical history?
Using the same diligence we use to find the lowest
preferred rates for our customers, we will prepare a
custom quote. Of course we need to know the medical
condition, its duration, treatment and prognosis.
10)Can I apply at my age?
Our agency works with individuals 18 to 85! A few
companies provide policies to age 85 for term, second
to die or Disclaimer insurance. Occasionally
Disclaimer is available past 85.
11)How are companies and rates selected
by our agency?
A. M. Best is the industry's most recognized insurance rating organization.
A.M. Best uses a letter grade to rate companies overall
strength and solvency. Our agency uses only insurance
companies that have at least an "A" rating
with A. M. Best. The top three ratings with A. M. Best
are:
• A++ Superior
• A+ Superior
• A Excellent
The companies rated lower than this, generally speaking,
don't have rates that are as competitive.
Caution About The Lowest Rates! Distinguish Where
You Fit Before You Pre-Apply!
Please read this section before you apply for insurance
expecting a particular rate. Almost all companies have
a super preferred, preferred, and standard rate.
Although the requirements for super preferred are
similar for the term companies with the lowest rates,
Our agency knows these differences and would like to
put you with the one with the lowest rate but also the
more feasible. Some companies only have 10-15% of
their applicants come back with the super preferred.
Others are less strict and that percentage is closer
to 50%. The following are some general guidelines for
super preferred: (unisex)
|
Height
|
Weight
|
|
Height
|
Weight
|
|
5'1"
|
160
|
|
5'11"
|
215
|
|
5'2"
|
165
|
|
6'0"
|
220
|
|
5'3"
|
170
|
|
6'1"
|
225
|
|
5'4"
|
175
|
|
6'2"
|
230
|
|
5'5"
|
180
|
|
6'3"
|
235
|
|
5'6"
|
185
|
|
6'4"
|
240
|
|
5'7"
|
190
|
|
6'5"
|
250
|
|
5'8"
|
195
|
|
6'6"
|
260
|
|
5'9"
|
200
|
|
6'7"
|
265
|
|
5'10"
|
210
|
|
|
|
•Each company is slightly different, and most allow 5lbs
leeway.
•No tobacco usage last 2 years.
•Cholesterol 180-220 (A couple of our companies
will go as high as 230 to 250).
•Blood Pressure 140/90 (untreated).
•Family history (No deaths before age 60, siblings or
parents) (sometimes one allowed) of cancer or
cardiovascular disease.
•Aviation-No super preferred.
•Avocation (hazardous) -No super preferred.
•Driving- No more than 3 moving violations in last 2
years.
•Travel- No extensive travel to underdeveloped or
politically unstable countries.
•If one or more of these variables are out of the
guidelines, it can move you from super preferred to
preferred. Even if moved to preferred these are still
very competitive rates and only 5% to 10 % higher.
Again, the preferred rates vary between companies so
it is important to try to find which company will
consider you preferred. That's where we can help! The
requirements vary between companies but here are some
general preferred guidelines:
•Height and weight is the same as super preferred but with
more leeway sometimes up to 20-25 pounds.
•Cholesterol 250 to 280.
•Blood pressure 150/90 (treated or untreated).
•Family history cannot have both parents or one parent and
one sibling die before age 60 of cancer or
cardiovascular disease.
•Aviation-Sometimes depending on situation.
•Avocation-Sometimes depending on how hazardous.
•Driving- Same as super preferred.
•Travel- Similar to super preferred but not
as strict.
•These are general guidelines and will vary more from
company to company than the requirements for super
preferred.
•If after seeing your quote, you would like to
discuss this with our office by e-mail, phone
or fax, our office will be glad to advise. Click
here.
Other factors that may or may not exclude someone from
preferred are:
•Current or history of alcohol/drug abuse.
•Rheumatoid arthritis.
•Asthma (current treatment).
•Personal history of cancer or cardiovascular
disease.
•COPD
•Crohn's disease.
•Current treatment for depression.
•Diabetes (oral diabetics can get standard rates,
others can get a slightly higher premium.
•Epilepsy
•Kidney/liver disease
•Mental illness
