Life Insurance for Smokers

If you are looking for life insurance for smokers…don’t think you cannot find affordable rates. Read our article to save some money on your life insurance policy.

Life Insurance for Smokers: Expert Advice on Saving Money

There are a lot of different variables that can affect the cost of a life insurance policy. Life insurance is generally priced based off of how long the insurance company expects you to live. If you are younger, for example, you will typically be able to find more affordable life insurance policies.

But in addition to your age, life insurance companies will also typically want to consider variables that are specific to your lifestyle. Because regularly smoking cigarettes is something that is proven to shorten your expected lifespan, most life insurance companies will want to know whether or not you are a smoker.

What Qualifies You As a Smoker?

As is the case with most things in life, when it comes to your status as a smoker, honesty is the best policy. Usually, when applying for a life insurance policy, the insurance company is going to ask you a wide variety of different questions.

If you smoked a long time ago or smoke very rarely (and the definition of this varies by company), then your monthly rates will likely not increase. However, if you currently smoke and choose to lie to your life insurance provider, then your policy may later be legally considered to be void.

Unfortunately, using tobacco-related substances beyond cigarettes will also usually cause your monthly premiums to go up. Cigars, electronic cigarettes, chewing tobacco, marijuana, and nicotine patches are all substances whose use may need to be disclosed to your life insurance provider.

Can People Who Smoke Still Qualify for Life Insurance?

Tens of millions of Americans are considered by the life insurance industry to be smokers. Just because you smoke, that doesn’t mean you are necessarily disqualified from purchasing a life insurance policy. Smoking is just one factor that will be considered on your application.

Most life insurance agents will be very upfront about the way in which your status as a smoker will affect your ability to qualify for life insurance. For some companies, smoking will have a very little impact on your monthly premiums. For others, the impact will be much more noticeable.

The best thing you can do as a smoker is take the time to shop around, compare multiple different life insurance policies, and then make your final decision. Life insurance for smokers is something that is certainly well within reach.

What Types of Life Insurance Policies are Best for People Who Smoke?

Just as each company will have a different policy regarding life insurance for smokers, each policy type has various pros and cons associated with it.

One of the best life insurance policies for smokers (particularly older smokers) will often be a guaranteed acceptance life insurance policy. These policies, as the name might imply, will accept just about anyone who applies for them. They typically have very few questions involved in the background check and can still be surprisingly affordable.

If you are a younger smoker, you may want to consider applying for a term life insurance policy. Contrary to universal policies, term policies last for a finite amount of time and are usually incredibly easy to afford. Even if you are a smoker, you may be able to find term life insurance policies that will cost you less than $10 per month.

If I Quit Smoking, Will My Life Insurance Rates Decrease?

First of all, let’s compare rates of a smoker vs. non-smoker for term life insurance. A 40-year-old man, in good health, who does not smoke, may pay around $52 per month for a 30-year term life insurance policy with a $500,000 death benefit. That same man, if he were a smoker, could pay as much as $250 per month for the same policy.

The good news is that even if you are a smoker in the status quo, and are eventually able to break your habit, most life insurance companies will reward you for your efforts.

If you have gone more than a year without smoking, you should contact your life insurance provider and see if they are willing to adjust your monthly premiums. Though the amount of time it takes for you to gain status as a non-smoker will depend on the specific company and policy, 12 months is a fairly common benchmark.

Life insurance is something that can provide you and your family with a wide variety of benefits. Most life insurance companies want to accept you as a client. Even if you are a smoker, there are still a lot of good policies available that can help provide you with the sort of financial security you have been looking for. By taking the time to talk to your life insurance provider, compare different policies, and understand the consequences of smoking, you will likely be able to find a policy that works well for you.

Don’t forget to check out our instant life insurance quotes for free and compare quotes from different providers. You can even speak to one of our qualified agents if you have any questions or concerns. They will be glad to help you out.

Thank you for reading our article, “Life Insurance for Smokers: Expert Advice on Saving Money”. If you have any questions, please leave a comment below.