If you’re a diabetic and you are wondering if you can get life insurance, you might be surprised by your options. Whether you have type 1 or type 2 diabetes, it is still possible to get cover when applying for a full underwritten policy.
Diabetes is more commonly diagnosed now than ever before. Life insurance companies acknowledge this and are continually reviewing their guidelines to try and accommodate the increasing number of diabetics applying for insurance.
By 2031, it is estimated that 3.3 million Australians will have type 2 diabetes
According to Exercise & Sports Science Australia, more than one in 10 Australians have diabetes or pre-diabetes, so you are not alone.
Diabetes and Life Insurance: What to Expect
When you apply for life insurance through Lifebroker, your application will be medically underwritten upfront. To simplify the insurance jargon, this basically means that when you apply for the insurance, you will be asked a series of medical questions, which will then be assessed by the underwriter. The underwriter’s job is to understand the likelihood of a claim being made, so they can offer you cover that will be available when you need it most..
If you have a pre-existing illness, such as diabetes, then statistically speaking, the risk of you making a claim will be higher, and this will be considered by the underwriter.
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By underwriting up-front, the life insurance company will know if you’re eligible for cover and may offer you tailored acceptance terms based on your medical history. You are fully informed of and can choose to accept them.
By underwriting your policy upfront you will also know exactly what you are, or are not covered for at the outset, not when you have to make a claim. If a policy is underwritten at the time of claim, it is common that compulsory exclusions could mean you have paid premiums for years only to find that you cannot claim at a time when you need it most.
What information do you need to provide?
- Current age
- Age at diagnosis
- Type 1 or Type 2
- Current height and weight
- Current list of medications including dosage
- Most recent HBA1C result
- Normal "resting" ECG and normal "stress" ECG
- Blood Pressure
- Confirmation that you have no protein in urine
Basically, by obtaining this information the underwriter is trying to determine whether you have ‘good’ to ‘excellent’ control of your diabetes.
Revised Terms
In order to be able to cover you, the insurance company may place a revised terms onto your policy — which is very normal. This can include a loading onto the policy, an exclusion, a deferral or decline, however, each insurance company has different underwriting guidelines.
We have a team dedicated to performing pre-assessments. This is an inquiry across all of the leading life insurance companies, on behalf of our clients to ensure they have a strong idea of the cover available to them from our insurance partners
So yes, it is possible to find life insurance cover if you suffer from diabetes, and we are here to help you find it. Get in touch today to learn more.