Impact of your Lifestyle on your Life Insurance Rates

This is amongst the many reasons why life insurance is essential for you and your loved ones. Life and death are a phenomenon, which is not in anybody’s control. However, you can be responsible for positively influencing your span of life.

The average life expectancy of the people around the world is rising probably because of how they are becoming health-conscious day by day and also because of improvements in healthcare and technology.

People have started to make incremental changes in their lifestyle based on their health while they are still young, to make themselves better in the future. Following a healthier lifestyle not just saves your life; it also saves you from paying high life insurance premium price.

What does a life insurance provider consider healthy?

The life insurance providers decide their rates in a process known as underwriting.

Underwriting is the procedure of calculating the entire risk a person poses to the insurance provider having to make payment of the claim during the life of the insurance plan.

One of the major factors that are included in the underwriting procedure is your health.

Let us now see how your lifestyle and your health have an impact on your life insurance plan.

What are the health factors that the life insurance companies take into consideration?

There are many factors that a life insurance provider considers while deciding a person’s complete health. These insurance providers generally account for the following factors while determining the risk.

• Age
• Height-weight ratio
• Gender
• Medical history
• Family history
• Lifestyle
• Smoker or non-smoker

How does weight impact your life insurance price?

It may sound weird, but your weight plays an essential role in your life insurance because it is important for your health.

When we talk about life insurance and weight, a lot of life insurance providers consider your Body Mass Index or BMI for calculating the risk depending on the average weight on the basis of your height.

There are many people who fall under the category of obesity; however, society has noticed this and consequently, there are many people who have changed their diets according to their weight. Life insurance providers have also noticed this. They understand the implications based on your health, which can arise if a person is considered to be obese or overweight.

Heart problems, high blood pressure, and diabetes are some of the examples of health issues that could be a result of being overweight. The life insurance price for obese or overweight people is usually higher and becomes even higher with the health complications that come with their weight.

Some of the athletes have a higher Body Mass Index and hence, could be considered to be overweight or sometimes even obese when they go through a quick analysis of weight. But for those people who have good health and lifestyle, a medical test life insurance plan will be the best for them to take advantage of the cheapest insurance prices.

Life insurance without any medical test also exists; however, mostly this is for those people who have bad health or require an insurance policy as soon as possible. As a result, this type of life insurance plan involves much higher rates.

How does age impact your life insurance price?

While applying for a life insurance plan, insurance providers will make an attempt on determining your life expectancy, that is, your expected life span on the basis of the details that you have submitted to them.

The calculation of your life expectancy is done on the basis of the millions of data points, which life insurance providers are capable of comparing.

Your age has a great impact on your life insurance premium price because with an increase in your age, your chances of passing away also increase. We know it sounds sad, but it is the harsh reality of life.

Hence, we suggest you get a life insurance plan while you’re still young and in good shape. The next question that may arise in your head is that what is the best age of getting life insurance?

The best age for buying life insurance is when you are under 35. This is usually the age when people begin a family and will have other people who are dependent on their income. Life cover is best purchased when you’re at a lower risk. Moreover, locking in prices while you are young is a good way of obtaining insurance for your loved ones at an economical price.

How does gender impact your life insurance price?

Another characteristic, which life insurance providers will take care of whole quoting you an insurance price, is your gender. The insurance providers make use of statistical models for deciding how long a person would be around.

Usually, on average, women live five years longer than men do. Consequently, women are charged with a lower life insurance premium price as they are able to pay longer.

Now, men wonder how much more expensive would the insurance be for them?

Generally, men will have to bear 25-40% higher insurance prices as opposed to women for their life cover based on their age.

How does your profession impact your life insurance price?

Some of the professions make you end up at a higher risk when it comes to life insurance than others. A few jobs, which are considered to classify people in the category of high risk are the following.

• Pilots
• Astronauts
• Race car drivers
• Soldiers
• Fire-fighters
• Police officers

And more..

Your profession usually does not have an impact on your life insurance rate as much unless your work is seriously risky and dangerous. Life insurance providers may add up an additional charge to your plan, which can be changed as and when your position changes.

How does your lifestyle impact your life insurance price?

Your profession is just one part of how risky your life can be on a regular basis. Your lifestyle also assists the insurance companies in deciding your insurance rates.

Are you a person who prefers to sit on a beach and read your favourite fiction? Or, are you one of those adrenaline junkies for whom life means adventure?

The point is, that the more dangerous your lifestyle is, the higher are the chances of something going wrong. Life insurance providers can consider this to be a liability that in turn would increase your life insurance premium price. In case you live life on the edge, you will have a much greater benefit for having a life insurance plan.

How does your driving record impact your life insurance price?

You may be surprised to hear this, but your driving record may also be considered by some of the insurance providers while giving you your life insurance quotes.

The road could be a dangerous place and the more time you are on the road, the greater are the chances of you meeting with an accident. It is simply math.

Life insurance providers can go through your driving record and check your previous offenses of violated traffic rules. The last three to five years are considered the most weighed. So it can be beneficial to maintain a clean slate before buying a life insurance plan.

How does smoking impact your life insurance price?

Probably the factor, which affects the rates of your life insurance maximum apart from a critical illness, is smoking. Tobacco and smoking is a big red flag in the insurance sector due to its negative impact on your body.

Life cover rates for smokers are generally 2-5 times greater for non-smokers.

Smoking can reduce a few years of your life. It is the main cause of lung cancer and is responsible for a lot of deaths every year. An average smoker passes away 10 years earlier than an average non-smoker.

Life insurance providers see how big a risk smoking can be on your life, so they transfer their risk along to you when it comes to your insurance prices. Fortunately, there is a chance of getting rid of your smoking habit.

Click here to read more: How Smoking and drinking increase my life insurance premium price

The smokers who successfully quit can get their life insurance premium price cut down, but it still remains more expensive than non-smokers in their 1^st year of quitting (not taking any other health condition into consideration).

The people who have an insurance plan and think about quitting can get lesser rates too by taking their medical tests again for getting a reclassification in terms of their medical risk. This may also help in reducing the rates; however, not all policies offer this.

Maintaining a healthy lifestyle does not only keeps you fit and gives you a long life, but it can also help you in getting affordable life insurance.