Tiffany Raiford
Life insurance is a must. If something happens to you, you want your family taken care of. Whether you are the primary source of financial earning for your family or you are a stay-at-home mom who saves the family money by eliminating the need to pay for childcare throughout the day, you need life insurance to protect your family in the worst case scenario. I’m a mother. I have four small kids and a husband I would lay down my life for, and I cannot bear to think of leaving them behind if something happens. They need me, and I need them. However, I have a nice life insurance policy because if something does happen to me, I want to be sure they are properly cared for and that they are able to at least eliminate a bit of the stress that might plague them in addition to my absence.
It’s an ugly conversation, but it’s one that we need to have. There is one thing that you should know about your life insurance policy, however; it might be more expensive for you than it is for anyone else. It’s sad, but true. There are people who will not receive life insurance benefits at the same low cost as many others based on a few factors. These factors are important to those who want to become insured, and you need to know ahead of time what it is that might affect your rates. There are some things on this list you cannot control or change, but there are other things you can change now and lower your life insurance rates over time. Learn them and save yourself some money.
Your driving record
Were you ever arrested and charged with a DUI? If you’ve ever been pulled over for driving under the influence, you’ll pay more for life insurance than someone who has not been pulled over for the same. If you have more than one DUI on your record, you will probably find it nearly impossible to find coverage for life insurance. Companies look at it as though you are not responsible enough to care for yourself when driving, and it puts you at a much higher risk of being involved in a fatal car accident. This means your life is in danger more than most other people, and life insurance companies will not do business with you.
Now, you might find a company that’s willing to work with you if your DUI convictions were a long time ago. For example, if you are in your 60s now and you had a DUI when you were 19 and in college but a clean driving record ever since, you might have a better chance of finding coverage. You will still pay more, but you’ll have a life insurance policy.
Your overall health
You know how life insurance companies show up to perform a physical and a test to see where you are and how health you are? This is to see how health you are; they want to know if you’re unhealthy and have a greater risk of dying and forcing them to pay out money to your family. If you are a smoker, if you are overweight, if you have health issues and if you aren’t taking care of yourself, your rates might be significantly higher than if you quit smoking, lose weight and begin a healthier lifestyle.
Your hobbies
What you do for fun might make your life insurance that much more expensive. For example, life insurance companies will not provide you with a low cost policy if you enjoy doing things that are putting your life at risk more so than anyone else. If you like to jump out of an airplane for fun, if you like to race cars or you like to ride motorcycles, you might pay a lot more for your life insurance policy than someone else might pay for the same policy. Some of the most dangerous hobbies that will cost you include the following:
- Flying planes
- Hot air balloons
- Paragliding
- Hang gliding
- Climbing
- Diving
- Many more
Your past health
It’s a huge relief to so many men and women that most insurance companies are now willing to sell policies to those who have survived cancer. In the past, many companies wouldn’t even touch you if you were a previous cancer patient and current survivor. The rates are higher for cancer survivors, and sometimes you cannot get a policy until a certain number of years have passed. It depends on your age, the type of cancer you were diagnosed with and the stage your cancer was found and treated. It’s all dependent on many factors, but these are just a few of the most prevalent ones.
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