If you think you can get a better rate due to your improved health, follow these steps!
Getting life insurance is important for anyone who has debts or dependents—however, we don’t always get life insurance at the most ideal time. There are a lot of people out there that have changed their lifestyle or healed from previous ailments since they took out a life insurance policy for themselves. For example, you may have gotten your blood pressure under control or you have quit nicotine use. This is great news for your health and for your monthly life insurance premium. If you are ready to learn how you can adjust your life insurance policy after you’ve improved your health—keep reading! This article covers everything you need to know about qualifying for a lower life insurance rate.
How Do I Know If I Qualify For A Lower Rate?
If you met any of the following criteria, you have the grounds to get a better life insurance rate
You need to prove your health has improved before you can get a lower rate.
If you have recently made some major life changes that have improved your health, then there is a chance you can renegotiate your monthly premium for life insurance. When you apply for life insurance, you are required to fill out a medical questionnaire, undergo a medical exam, release your medical records to the insurance company, and then have your application go through the underwriting process. Of course, there are options to get life insurance with no medical exam which greatly expedites the underwriting process. During the underwriting process, the insurance company evaluates your medical history and decides whether or not to offer you an insurance policy and how much it will cost.
Because the underwriting process requires your medical history, there has to be some time between your medical condition and your attempt to qualify for a lower rate. For example, if you quit smoking over the last year, you will need to prove you’ve quit all nicotine use for the past year. In most cases, you will have to prove this—and other aspects of good health—during a medical exam.
If you have recently recovered from a major illness—like cancer—then it is very likely that you will have to wait a few years before renegotiating your rate. Since some illnesses return, you will be required to provide proof that you have been cancer-free for an extended period of time.
There are always options to get life insurance with no medical exam too! These policies are much more easily accessible, but tend to cost a bit more than if you had undergone a medical exam. It is worthwhile to ask your current provider whether they advise you to get life insurance without a medical exam or to undergo the exam in an effort to lower your rate.
What Are The Steps To Getting My Insurer To Lower My Monthly Rate?
There are a few different key steps to take before the insurance company will adjust your rate
Consult with your provider at every step of the process if you have questions.
Feel like you qualify for a better rate? That’s great! The first step is to contact your insurance provider and ask about the best avenue to get your rate adjusted. The insurance company won’t contact you out of the blue and ask you about any health improvements, so you need to get the process started by yourself.
During the initial conversation with your insurance company, they will ask you some baseline questions about how your health has improved and give you the information to proceed. In this step, the insurance provider will let you know whether or not you should proceed with a rate adjustment. If they determine that your health improvement will not affect your premium, then they will advise you against trying to make an adjustment. The reason for this is that adjusting your rate can be a big hassle—medical exam included—and they don’t want you to go through all the steps with nothing to show for it.
Depending on how your health has improved, you will have to take some tests. If you have recently quit smoking, then you will likely undergo a urine test to make sure there isn’t any nicotine in your system. For any other type of condition, like high cholesterol, then you will have to undergo some blood tests.
What Are The Potential Savings From Renegotiating My Life Insurance Policy?
If you are wondering if a policy renegotiation is worth it—keep reading—you just might be surprised!
Saving even a few dollars a month will add up!
Though getting your policy reevaluated can be a hassle, for a lot of people it is more than worth it. If you quit nicotine use over the last year, there is a chance that you could lower your rate by over 50%! Each condition is different and will have different savings based on the secondary underwriting process. For the majority of people who go through policy renegotiation, they find the savings absolutely worth it.
Renegotiation vs. Purchasing A New Policy
In most cases it is better to renegotiate your current policy
Do your research to make sure you get the best deal possible on your life insurance.
One of the biggest factors that determines the cost of your life insurance is your age. When you decide to pursue policy renegotiation over just getting a brand new policy, your age is not reconsidered. This is very beneficial for many over purchasing a new policy. If you would try to purchase a new policy, your age will be reevaluated which often leads to a higher premium. During renegotiation, the age you were when you initially purchased the policy is considered—not your current age.
However, if you don’t have time to undergo the medical exam and you are in your 20s or 30s, there is a chance that getting no medical exam life insurance will financially benefit you. Plus, getting a no exam policy is by far the fastest way to get covered.
And there you have it! Everything you need to know about adjusting your life insurance policy! There are probably a lot of people out there who don’t know about policy readjustment options. For anyone out there with a chronic illness, it is important to know that you can adjust your life insurance rate when you make improvements.
