Smoking and life insurance in the UK

Smoking cigarettes is harmful to health - every healthy-minded person knows this. Although the smoke from burning cigarettes causes cancer, increases the risk of heart attack, stroke and glaucoma, about 6 million UK adults struggle with the habit. That’s a huge group of people, so inevitably, insurance companies are forced to tailor their offers to smokers as well. In this article, we take a look at how smoking cigarettes affects your insurance situation.

Who will insurance companies consider a smoker?

At the outset, let’s point out - occasional cigarette smoking at parties is treated on par with smoking two packs a day. According to insurance companies, if you have used tobacco products in the past 12 months, you are considered a smoker.

Users of e-cigarettes, pipes, cigars, hookahs and nicotine sachets are also considered smokers. In other words, anything that involves taking nicotine or inhaling smoke is considered smoking. Of course, this is a general rule, and each insurance company may regulate this issue differently - it is definitely worth checking the general terms and conditions of your policy and asking your Extend Finance advisor about this issue.

After how long in rehab will I no longer be considered a smoker?

Typically, a person who has not used tobacco products for 12 months or longer is considered a non-smoker.

Life insurance in the UK for smokers - is it possible?

Although smokers are higher-risk customers for insurance companies, they can purchaselife insurance in the UK. Unfortunately, this comes at the cost of significantly higher premiums. According to Vitality, the cost of life insurance for a 30-year-old smoker will be about a third higher than for his or her non-smoking peers. However, if you decide to buy a policy when you are 50 or older, the difference in premiums will already be about 100% or even 200%.

Source: Legal&General

How does the insurance company know that I am a smoker?

First and foremost,** as a person entering into a life insurance contract in the UK, you are required to provide truthful information when completing all documentation.** The certification of untruths may be grounds for denial of benefits. This rule also applies if you start smoking after the contract has already been concluded - its terms and conditions may oblige you to update your file, although this is not the rule.

As Legal&General points out, the insurance company may ask you to produce your past medical records. Analysts will certainly analyze your entire medical history in terms of consumption of nicotine products. Of course, traces of addiction in young people will not be discernible, but the damage to the health of a 40- or 50-year-old can already be significant and evident.

Smoking cigarettes drastically increases the risk of premature death, and you can be pretty much assured that in the event of your death, your insurer will ask to see your death certificate and any autopsy report. If tests show that your lungs were exposed to tobacco smoke on a regular basis, or nicotine is detected in your body, your family will not receive a benefit payment as long as you concealed your addiction.

How much higher are life insurance premiums paid by smokers?

According to available calculations, the differences in insurance premiums are very pronounced:

Insured’s age / Status Non-smoker Smoker 30 years £8.05 per month £12.75 per month 50 years £33.38 per month £87.19 per month We obtained the calculation from the mytribeinsurance.co.uk website. The sum insured is £150,000, the contract term is 20 years.

As we have already mentioned, the difference in insurance premiums is huge, in some cases amounting to almost 200% of the basic amount. However, it is worth noting that in determining the exact values, the insurer takes into account a whole range of factors, such as:

• The length of time you have been smoking;

• The nicotine products you use;

• How often you smoke;

• Your lifestyle;

• Your current state of health.

Smoking cigarettes always takes a toll on one’s health, but insurers are also aware that a person who occasionally uses an e-cigarette at parties is less likely to get sick than someone who smokes 2 packs of cigarettes every day.

What if I quit smoking?

Remember - it’s never too late to quit smoking cigarettes. Your decision will have a positive impact not only on your health, but also on your wallet. You won’t spend hundreds of pounds a year on stimulants, and you’ll be entitled to reduced insurance premiums.

In the vast majority of cases, you will be entitled to a recalculation of your insurance premiums after 12 months have passed since you quit nicotine completely. The insurer may demand evidence of quitting - this could be an opinion from a GP or, for example, a chest X-ray.

What can you do to pay less for life insurance if you smoke cigarettes?

Increased insurance premiums do not yet mean that you are not able to save money on your life insurance policy.

Contact a proven credit broker

Extend Finance, as a broker, does not charge any fees to its clients, and at the same time is committed to providing the maximum favorable insurance quotes. This means that by working with us, you are likely to find a cheaper product than if you were to look for it on your own.

Consider whether you can influence other insurance parameters

Smoking clearly raises insurance premiums, but if you properly use the algorithms responsible for estimating risk, you may be able to reduce costs.

Probably the easiest way to reduce premiums is to give up extreme sports and high-risk occupations, reduce the coverage period and benefit amount. Even relatively small changes can translate into more preferential terms, and we can confidently say from experience that it is better to have a £50,000 policy than none at all.

Insure yourself as early as possible

The sooner you take out a life insurance contract, the better. Considering that a 10-year delay can translate into up to double the premium, it’s not worth delaying.

Stop smoking cigarettes and take care of your health

No one likes moralizing and lecturing, but we must emphasize this - no matter from what angle you analyze cigarette smoking, you simply have to admit that it is harmful and unprofitable. Rising premiums, hundreds of pounds spent on stimulants, a much higher risk of premature death and increasing social ostracism do not translate into real benefits. Don’t wait, take care of your health today