A medical exam is not needed to obtain a life insurance quote. You do not always need a medical exam even to obtain life insurance. Getting quoted a price for life insurance does not take a whole lot of personal information, but there is a lot of nuance in determining the price the insurance company will ultimately charge for coverage.
A life insurance quote will not always be accurate because the full underwriting process may uncover medical concerns or the person creating the quote may not accurately estimate the health condition of the person looking for insurance. Life insurance is priced based upon risk, and the life insurance company groups people into various health ratings which represent the relative risk each group may carry. Age is another contributing factor, along with the type of life insurance and the face amount of the policy. You shouldn’t fear the medical exam because an agent can quote you many different scenarios so that you understand the range of prices you may pay.
Another important consideration is that not all life insurance policies even require a medical exam for underwriting. A no-exam type of policy such as a guaranteed issue policy or a small face amount policy may take some of the anxiety out of your mind if you are worried about going through the exam. Here are the steps to take to get an accurate quote without going through a medical exam.
Table of Contents
- Contact a Knowledgeable Agent or Expert
- Be Clear on Product Type and Amount of Coverage
- Be Conservative When Quoting
- Disclose Tobacco Use
- No Exam Life Insurance
Contact a Knowledgeable Agent or Expert
You need a life insurance agent or financial advisor who knows life insurance inside and out. There are so many variations in the types of life insurance products and the way that health status affects pricing that only someone with experience and knowledge of the underwriting process should design quotes for clients. In other words, trust your agent because someone could quote a very low price that does not end up matching the policy offered after underwriting.
Be Clear on Product Type and Face Amount
Life insurance can be very confusing to newcomers because each type of life insurance is so different from the other types and the price difference is vast between permanent and term policies. Even the length of term coverage can create wild swings in price. The most common and least expensive form of life insurance is a term policy. A twenty-year term is the most common length. The amount of coverage influences price roughly proportionally as the total coverage goes up. Once you understand the type, length, and coverage amount of the policy you can start designing an accurate quote around the most likely health rating that will be given.
Be Conservative When Quoting
Keep in mind that most people are not in perfect health. If you are slightly overweight, have elevated blood pressure, cholesterol, or take medication for any health issue we can say with almost certainty that you will not be given a top rating after underwriting review. Just because you are not going through a medical exam prior to receiving a quote doesn’t mean that you can’t fairly accurately predict which risk class you will be assigned. For a review of health rating risk classes, read our article here.
That being said, most people in reasonably good health will get one of the top three risk ratings, which generally correspond with affordable insurance rates. If you are comparing quotes and would consider yourself to be in “normal” health, using a risk rating of “preferred” is a good place to start your estimate. If you have multiple health issues or a significant health concern a “standard” health rating is a conservative estimate. Keep in mind that some health concerns can even disqualify you from getting coverage altogether.
A full health exam and underwriting may uncover issues that you were previously unaware of. No one can guarantee that the health rating that is used for a quote will actually apply after your underwriting and paramedical exam. The only way to get an idea of what your rating will be is to go through a process known as a pre-screen, where some basic underwriting is done to estimate a health rating. This does not require an actual medical exam though.
Quoting for Smokers
Smokers are often worried about getting coverage. No medical exam is required to obtain a life insurance quote for smokers. This special risk classification is very common, and life insurance companies all differentiate between smokers and nonsmokers as a risk classification. If you are looking for a life insurance quote and you have used tobbaco at all in the previous year, make sure that you disclose this to the person designing the quote for you.
No Agent Meeting Needed for a Quote
You do not necessarily need to sit down with someone to get an accurate quote. Especially in the age since the COVID-19 pandemic hit, more and more business is conducted over the phone and through teleconference meetings such as zoom. The life insurance industry is no exception. You can work with someone entirely from your home to design the perfect policy for your needs and get accurate pricing.
Quotes for People With Serious Medical Issues
If you have a serious medical issue such as a past heart attack or stroke, previous cancer that you have recovered from, or a debilitating condition such as ALS, there are special types of life insurance that may be available. This is known by a few names such as substandard insurance. In some types of policies, they will still go through a full medical exam as a part of the underwriting process.
If all of the other options are exhausted, there are also policies called guarnateed issue life insurance, or no-exam life insurance. With guaranteed issue, the name implies the coverage. There are some caveats before you purchase this type of policy though. It is very expensive for the given amount of coverage. It also usually requires that the insured person lives at least two years before a death will qualify for a claim. The length of coverage may also be shorter and there will be a maximum amount of coverage that is relatively small in the life insurance world. These types of policies should only be purchased if someone has exhausted all of their other options. Keep in mind that group plans through work are a great way to obtain some affordable coverage with no underwriting!
No Medical Exam Required for Quote
The important takeaway is that to obtain a quote a medical exam will not be required. It may be required as a part of the underwriting process when you actually apply for life insurance. If you are looking for a no-exam policy type, make sure that you start with group plans at work and only resort to guaranteed issue life insurance when there are no other options available. Please contact us with any questions.
