Many life insurance companies offer policies that don’t require a medical exam. When someone applies for a Life Insurance Policy in Hendersonville NC, the form includes several questions. The answers may result in a denial of coverage or a higher premium. Applicants may be tempted to lie about something, such as the unhealthy habit of smoking. Lying on the application, however, could have negative consequences.
Questions
The application for a Life Insurance Policy in Hendersonville NC typically asks about nicotine intake. That might be regular smoking of cigarettes or cigars, chewing tobacco or vaping with e-cigarettes. The company might allow for a certain amount of smoking without penalizing the applicant with higher premiums. For instance, many people enjoy smoking a cigar once a month or so.
Caution
An applicant for life insurance through an agency like Adams & Brown Insurance Agency Inc may assume there is no way for the corporation to find out that he or she is a smoker. This person pays the premium as required and expects the beneficiaries to receive the insurance money after his or her death. Yet that’s exactly when the insurance company is most likely to discover that the person was a smoker.
How does the insurer find out? One common way is when the person dies of a smoking-related illness. When the cause of death is lung cancer, esophageal cancer or COPD, this is a red flag for the insurance company. The risk of these illnesses is significantly higher for people who use nicotine products.
Considerations
In the United States, life insurance companies are required to pay full benefits after the customer has had the policy for at least two years. This is true even if the person lied about smoking. That may seem like a reasonable risk to applicants who are relatively young.
But if the person dies in a car accident or another unexpected incident, the insurer will likely require an investigation. That might include an autopsy, which would show that the person was a smoker. In addition, claims adjusters might access the Medical Information Bureau records, which are individual healthcare records that life insurance companies are allowed to view. Anyone interested in buying life insurance may visit the website to get started.
