Life Insurance for Smokers
While many companies don’t provide smoker’s life insurance policies, AIG Direct may be able to help you find coverage at affordable life insurance rates for smokers. If you smoke, you may not be offered the lowest rates, in comparison to applicants who do not smoke. However, if you are shopping for life insurance for smokers, there is affordable coverage out there.
Be Honest About Your Habit
If you are a smoker, it's important that you share this information up front. Your medical exam, which is required as part of your application for term life insurance for smokers, will detect the presence of nicotine in your system as part of the life insurance nicotine test. So it's pointless to hide the fact that you smoke when applying for coverage.
It's best to be honest about your smoking habit when applying for a Term Life Insurance policy. This way, you can be guided to the options most suited to your needs and increase your likelihood of receiving coverage - at a good rate.
What about life insurance coverage for other types of nicotine or tobacco use?
Tobacco users who chew, snuff, vape, smoke cigars or pipes are still considered nicotine users by most insurance carriers. At AIG Direct, we work with you to find a carrier and policy that offers a competitive life insurance rate for your personal situation. We may be able to find you a non-smoker rate, depending on the nature of your tobacco usage.
Marijuana and Life Insurance: Does Usage Affect Coverage?
While many states are now decriminalizing or legalizing medicinal or recreational use of marijuana, life insurance carriers have been slower to revise their guidelines.
Most insurance carriers still screen for marijuana usage in their medical exams or life insurance drug test, and some will consider a marijuana user in their smoker category. Others carriers may decline coverage for any drug usage detected.
For a medical marijuana user, it's important to consider what condition the treatment is for. It may be that the underlying illness, such as cancer or Parkinson's disease, may be a bigger factor in obtaining coverage than the cannabis usage.
It's best to speak with a licensed insurance agent to understand what your options are for policy type and insurance carrier, and determine if a smoker life insurance rate will be applied.
Is it best to quit smoking before applying for life insurance?
While it may be tempting to put off your life insurance coverage until you've quite smoking, we all know how challenging that can be. Although life insurance rates for smokers are generally higher than for non-smokers, we never recommend delaying coverage. As a smoker, you are at a higher risk for many conditions, including heart disease, strokes and cancer*. Postponing your life insurance coverage, only puts you and your family at greater risk. Plus, rates typically increase as you age. So the saving that may be achieved by waiting to quit, may be offset by your increased age.
* https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/
fact_sheets/health_effects/effects_cig_smoking/index.htm