Why are so many people hesitant about buying Life Insurance? Could it be that almost nobody likes taking a medical exam? The rub is that carriers require one before they will extend you an offer on a policy. A typical life insurance medical exam will consist of checking your basic vital signs height, weight and blood pressure. The exam usually also requires that blood and urine samples be taken and on occasion an electrocardiogram.
Whether it’s the inconvenience of scheduling the exam, or you just don’t like needles, a No Medical Exam Policy could be just what you’re looking for.
Many top carriers have added this type of insurance product to their portfolios due to the increased demand for coverage. This has moved No Medical Exam Life Insurance into the mainstream of life insurance products. As a result, the rates for No Medical Exam Policies have dropped to the point where they now only cost slightly more than traditional policies.
Nothing is more important to your family than YOU, but life insurance can help replace your financial impact, in the event of your death. Life Insurance with no Medical Exams can make this simpler than ever.
Why is the Medical Exam Important?
The price for life insurance is based on 4 major factors. These factors include age, gender, potentially dangerous activities (skydiving, scuba diving, racecar driving, etc.), and your health. The first three have simple answers, but your health is a little more problematic. The best way to get an accurate picture of your health is through a physical medical exam. Without this exam, insurers take on greater risk, as they now must rely upon less accurate information to calculate your life expectancy. Therefore, insurers typically will charge higher premiums to offset the additional risk. However, with all the data now available to the insurance companies online, this risk has been greatly reduced. And with this reduced level of risk, the rates have dropped precipitously.
No Medical Exam Life Insurance typically comes in two types: Guaranteed Issue and Simplified Issue (Quick Issue, Simple Issue). Most have flexible payment options available including monthly, quarterly, semi-annual, or annually.
Guaranteed Issue / Guaranteed Acceptance
A Guaranteed Issue life insurance policy is typically, a small Whole Life policy. This type of policy is recommended for people who can’t qualify for traditionally fully underwritten life insurance. Usually this is the result of health or lifestyle habits. Coverage is guaranteed for the life of the policy, regardless of age, health, or occupation. This can save your loved ones from having to pay for final expenses / burial services, or any other expenses, after you’re gone.
Simplified Issue / Simple Issue / Quick Issue
Simplified Issue policies can be Whole Life, Universal Life or Term Life Insurance. All three still have an approval process, but without the medical exam. Typically, a phone interview is still required. Depending on the company and the answers provided, a review of your medical records might still be necessary. The entire process is faster, since no exam is needed. Approval usually takes less than half the time of a traditional policy. Some companies can even issue these policies within a day or two, as compared with weeks for ordinary policies. The face amounts available for these plans is growing as the market evolves, and it is not uncommon to be able to issue $500,000, or even $1,000,000 policies on a simplified issue basis.
Guaranteed Issue Whole Life Insurance
Guaranteed Issue Whole life Insurance is by far the most popular form of No Medical Exam Life Insurance. Not only do these policies not require a medical exam, but they also have none of the health questions of a traditional policy. These types of policies are most often used for final expenses and are typically referred to as Final Expense policies or Burial Insurance.
Policies of this type are generally available to folks over 50 years of age, and are sold in relatively small face amounts of $10,000 to $25,000 dollars. Purchasing more than one policy can get you to $50,000 of coverage even for folks with serious medical conditions. Approval is guaranteed and fast, you will usually have protection in just a matter of days, from the time the application is submitted. These policies have fixed premiums that cannot be canceled for any reason, other than non-payment. And like typical whole life policies, they can build cash value over time. Benefits will be paid tax free to your designated beneficiary.
These types of policies cost more, but compared to having no coverage, they can be a great value for folks that cannot qualify for traditional fully underwritten coverage.
Graded Benefit
Guaranteed Issue policies of this type typically have what’s referred to as a two-year “graded” benefit. That means that during the first two years of your policy being in force if you die of health-related issues, your beneficiary will only get back your premiums, plus a small amount of interest. If you die from an accidental cause, your beneficiary will typically get the full benefit right away. After two years, the full death benefit would be paid to your beneficiaries, regardless of the cause of death.
Lifetime Protection – Matured Endowment
Guaranteed Issue policies usually mature at age 100. At this time, if the insured is still alive, the policy becomes a matured endowment and will pay out the full face value, minus any loans. Under this scenario, the death benefit would be paid to the owner of the policy, and any gains would be subject to income tax. Some insurance companies allow the insured/owner to delay receipt of the matured death benefit until their passing to avoid any taxable gain.
Simplified Issue Whole life Insurance
Simplified Issue No Medical Exam Whole Life policies provide lifelong coverage for you and your loved ones. As with a traditional Whole Life policy, a portion of your premium is set aside as savings and earns interest. This built-in saving feature is known as Cash Value and grows on a tax-deferred basis over time. Your premiums are fixed and guaranteed to remain level for life. The underwriting process is similar to a traditional policy but, without the need for a medical exam. A phone interview is required, and depending on the answers and the specific Insurance you’re applying for, medical records might still need to be ordered and reviewed.
Key features:
- No medical exam is necessary
- Policies are available to age 65
- Fixed premiums for life
- Coverage is generally limited to under $250,000
- Tax-free benefits paid to your designated beneficiary
- Policy loan options available against current cash value
Several types of riders are available for simplified issue Whole Life Policies, including Accidental Death, Waiver of Premium, and Child Term Riders. The entire approval process for individuals in good health typically can be done in about a week.
Simplified Issue Universal Life Insurance
Simplified Issue No Medical Exam Universal Life policies can also provide lifelong coverage for you and your loved ones. Over time, depending on how it is funded, it may or may not build cash value that grows on a tax-deferred basis. It has the added advantage of flexible benefits and premiums, all without the need of a medical exam. A phone interview is required, and depending on the answers, and the specific Insurance you’re applying for, medical records might still need to be ordered and reviewed.
Key features:
- No medical exam is necessary
- Policies are available to age 65
- Fixed or Flexible premiums for life
- Coverage is generally limited to under $400,000
- No lapse guarantee (if available, subject to terms and conditions)
- Tax-free benefits paid to your designated beneficiary
- Policy loan options available against current cash value
Several types of riders are available including, Accelerated Death, Accidental Death, and Child Term Riders. The entire approval process for individuals in good health typically can be done in about a week.
No Medical Exam Term Life Insurance
We offer several different options for No Medical Exam Term Life Insurance, including some Simplified Issue products. These types of term policies typically have policy lengths of 10, 15, 20, or 30 years. Like traditional Term Life insurance, coverage is intended to be temporary and comes with low fixed premiums for the length of the term. After the term is up, most companies will let you to continue your coverage, but rates will go up considerably. This could be as much as 10 to 20 times your initial premium. At this point, unless you have a serious medical condition it would be better to get a new policy than continue to make payments. Like traditionally underwritten policies, a phone interview is required, and depending on your answers, medical records might need to be reviewed.
No Medical Exam Insurance is generally only slightly more expensive than traditional Term Life Insurance.
Key features:
- No medical exam is needed
- Limited or no review of medical records
- Coverage is generally limited to under $500,000
- Fixed premiums for terms of 10, 15, 20, or 30 years
- Tax-free benefits paid to your designated beneficiary
Several types of riders are typically available including, Accelerated Death, Accidental Death, Waiver of Premium, and a Child Term Rider. The entire approval process is faster than a traditionally underwritten policy, but it still takes about a week to complete.
Is No Medical Exam Life Insurance Right for You?
You’ll get more coverage for less money with a traditional term or permanent policy, and that’s the recommendation that we generally make to our customers. However, a Simplified Issue Life Insurance policy may be a good option for you if:
- You don’t qualify for a traditional life insurance product
- If you just want to get the basic coverage you need, simply, and quickly
- If you don’t want to go through a medical exam, or you just don’t have the time for one
Insurance Premiums
An Insurance Premium is the amount of money you pay for your insurance coverage / policy. The amount of this premium is based on several factors, including whether the policy is permanent or temporary, and then next face value, length of coverage, age, and your rate class. All but your Rate Class, you can choose or are fixed (age) when you apply for life insurance. Rate Class, however, is a function of several factors including weight, gender, current, and past health conditions, and family history. Simply put, the better your health, the better your rate class, and the lower your premiums. There are however a few other factors that can have a negative effect on your rate class, Including:
- Smoking
- Alcohol or Substance abuse
- Your occupation
- Your hobbies (risky ones)
- Driving record
- Criminal record
- Planned travel outside of the U.S.
Now call us at 800-442-9899 and speak to a real person (yes, we’re old school). You have enough to think about, so we’ve taken the stress out of shopping for life insurance.
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