We all know that life insurance is an important part of any good financial plan. Unless you want your family to pass the hat at your funeral, you need to have life insurance in case something were to happen to you. Life happens, and death happens, and you need to be prepared.
But what do you do if you cannot get a regular life insurance policy, due to health or other issues? You may have to get high risk life insurance. The name of the type of policy explains what the insurance covers. It is for people who have a higher risk of dying than others. For example, a 50-year-old male smoker who has high blood pressure is generally going to pay more for life insurance than a 22-year-old healthy female accountant. That is because in this situation, there is much more of a chance that the man will die young than the woman will.
Here are some of the things that can cause people to have to buy high risk life insurance:
Health reasons
Blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, and cancer are just some of the health reasons somebody may be classified as needing high risk life insurance. That’s because such health issues can potentially decrease a person’s lifespan. That means that a life insurance policy will potentially pay out earlier, because of the higher chances that the person could die.
Health habits
Being overweight or obese can also put somebody in the high risk life insurance category. That is because the extra weight can lead to health issues which can cause people to die earlier.
But probably the biggest reason to put people in the high risk life insurance category is smoking. The damage that smoking can do – from lung cancer to heart disease — is arguably the single worst thing you can do to harm your health and shorten your life.
Drinking and/or doing drugs can also hurt your chances at getting a traditional life insurance policy. So can having habits like skydiving. Even a high-risk job like logging can hurt your chances at getting a regular life insurance policy. Like the issues above, these things can also contribute to a lower lifespan.
Criminal and civil record
Life insurance companies also take criminal records into account in many cases. Somebody who lives a life of crime may have a shorter lifespan due to that lifestyle. Some life insurance companies even look at people’s credit reports.