Worried You Won’t Qualify for Life Insurance? This Company Has You Covered

Nobody’s perfect. Maybe you’re interested in getting some life insurance, but you’re worried you won’t even qualify for it because of your health.

Maybe you have diabetes or heart disease. Maybe you’re a smoker. Maybe you’re a little heavy. Maybe your family history is littered with medical landmines. Or maybe you’re… welllllll, just not as young as you used to be. That happens to all of us.

If that’s the case, how can you get life insurance without paying through the nose for it?

The short answer is to shop around. Here’s the tricky part: Life insurance companies have radically different ideas about what constitutes a health risk.

“Not all companies treat health conditions equally. Some may offer better rates for people with diabetes, while others are cheaper for baby boomers,” advises Policygenius, an online insurance marketplace. “Make sure you’re going with a company that gives you the best possible price.”

Policygenius would know. It’s a digital platform that offers you instant quotes from competing insurance providers.

Even if you’re not in picture-perfect health, you can still get life insurance, and this company can help.

First, you type in your information and answer a series of questions. Policygenius uses its algorithms and its search engines and works its magic to find your best options for you to compare side-by-side.

Specifically, you can see how much money they want to charge you.

It’s a smart way to find out what insurers like Prudential, Lincoln Financial or Transamerica really think about your particular health issues, whatever they may be.

It Doesn’t Cost as Much as You Think

Don’t be afraid. No matter what, life insurance probably isn’t as expensive as you think it is.

For instance, nearly half of millennials overestimate the cost of life insurance by about five times the actual amount, according to a 2018 study by the life insurance industry group LIMRA.

The fact is, most people who use Policygenius can get covered for less than $30 per month.

Now, if you really have health issues, you may have to pay a bit more.

Policygenius spells this out in its “Life Insurance Shopping Guide,” which it emails to you upon request. “The older, unhealthier or riskier you are to insure — for instance, if you scuba-dive — the more expensive your policy will be,” it says.

That’s why you’ll need to answer a few questions about your health and take a free medical exam. That takes about half an hour, and it can take place in your home or office, if you want.

“The healthier you are — and the less likely you are to die while the policy is active — the cheaper your life insurance will be,” Policygenius says.

Ultimately, it pays to shop around.

Mike Brassfield ([email protected]) is a senior writer at The Penny Hoarder. He likes to comparison-shop for pretty much everything.