Reader question:

How will documented drinking problems affect my  life insurance quote?

Luther

Thanks for the question, Luther.

Having a history of drinking problems will make life insurance companies freeze up around you, and it’s very possible that you won’t be able to get a life insurance quote at all. If you have only one DUI, for example, you might start out with the highest prices, and after a year of clean living work your way up to the regular pricing. But if you have any more DUIs and an un-pretty record, then you’ll have more trouble than that, and might not be able to be insured.

As for being an alcoholic, that affects your  life insurance quote in much the same way, even if you have been into a treatment center and have stayed sober for awhile. Most former alcoholics will have to stay sober for five years before they can get a standard rating, and one to two decades more if they want to do better than that.

take care,

Fashun.

Reader question:

Will I be able to get good  life insurance quotes even though I drink?

Mario

Hm, Mario…

You can still get pretty good life insurance quotes as a drinker, but it can also affect your policy for the worse. It all really depends on what kind of drinker you are. The more alcohol you consume, the more likely you are to chop years off of your life expectancy and lose money as a result.

So, how much do you drink?

• Socially.

If you just drink occasionally with friends or at special occasions, then you’re probably in the clear. And when I say “drink occasionally with friends”, I don’t mean “bather in lager every weekend with the frat boys”. Drinking socially is better, but still in moderation.

• 1-2 drinks each day.

You’re getting on the unhealthy side here, and it’s likely that you won’t be able to pay the preferred  life insurance rate. Maybe you should cut back.

• 3+ drinks a day.

Okay, now you’re getting ridicoolus. Ridicullus. Radicalisscuous. Wait, what’s going on?

Causing mental impairment, increased lack of control, liver problems, and more, heavy drinking like this will pretty much guarantee that you have to pay extra for your life insurance.

take care,

Fashun

Reader question:

I thought I was fine, but when I went in for my medical exam so that my life insurance company could give me my life insurance quotes, they told me I had high blood pressure, “hypertension”. What can I do about this?

Ashley

Good question, Ashley.

You’re part of a very large majority, Ashley. Roughly thirty three percent of all people who have high blood pressure have no idea they do, so a lot of people find a nasty surprise at their life insurance medical exam. With just this one little problem, though, you’re not likely to get such terrible  life insurance quotes. Usually, the life insurance company will just bounce you into the standard range. But the annoying part is that before you might have been a preferred customer.

The preferred life insurance quotes aren’t out of range for you just yet. Consult with your doctor and get on medication for your high blood pressure. Once you have gotten it in hand, then you may be able to call up your life insurance company and ask them for information on how to file a petition to revise your policy to the preferred rating area.

take care,

Fashun.

Reader question:

I’m taking medication to control my blood pressure levels. Will this affect my  life insurance quote?

Aspen

Thanks for asking.

You know, I’ve met people who say that the lied about the medication that they took for blood pressure on their application because they were afraid they would be charged a high life insurance quote. As far as I’ve seen, though, this fear is unfounded. Life insurance companies will raise your rates for a lot of reasons, but one of the reasons that they don’t raise them is because your blood pressure was at some distant time not the right level.

The truth is, that as long as you are doing something to keep these health problems in control, and you are succeeding, that’s usually all your life insurance company needs to hear. So don’t be afraid to disclose your medication on your form. In fact, it may even help you, especially if you are tested and found to have traces of the medication in your body, or even high blood pressure (or low blood pressure).

take care,

Fashun.

Reader question:

What level of blood pressure and cholesterol do I need to have to get cheaper  life insurance quotes, then?

Li

Good question, Li.

For your cholesterol, it breaks into two groups. If you want cheap  life insurance quotes, then in general you should have an overall cholesterol of under 200; the other part of this equation is the low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, which should be even lower, at under a hundred.

As for your blood pressure, you’re more likely to get better  life insurance quotes if you keep it around 140 over 90, you’re probably safe. Life insurance companies aren’t as strict on this as medical professionals, or at least not in my experience, so even having blood pressure out of that range will still not cause you trouble in a lot of cases.

Now, granted, all of this depends on a whole lot of other factors, such as your age and how many pounds you are, what your age is, whether you’re male or female, and so on, and so on.

take care,

Fashun.

Reader question:

How will my cholesterol, blood pressure, and so on affect my life insurance rates?

Ana

Glad you asked, Ann.

Diseases having to do with the heart and that area are near the top of the scare list for life insurance companies, and because of that they have a pretty hefty impact on your  life insurance rates. A third of the people in this country are going to have some kind of problem related to blood pressure and cholesterol, but even if you are one of them, you don’t have to panic. Sometimes, a little bit of trouble won’t get in the way of paying cheap life insurance rates.

There’s more to it, see, than just having to restrain your need for a double cheeseburger every now and then (which you should do anyway). When testing you for blood pressure and cholesterol, life insurance companies also check out:

• how old you are
• how much you weigh
• whether or not you smoke/chew tobacco
• have stress problems
• genetic history for heart disease

If you’re clear on these, then you could still get affordable  life insurance rates.

take care,

Fashun.

Reader question:

How much coverage do I need to put down for my family when looking for good life insurance rates?

Martin

Glad you asked.

When determining your  life insurance rates, you have to look at not only the possible debts you will leave behind, but also the well being of your family. It’s hard enough to lose a loved one to the other side, and even harder still when you find yourself in a whirlwind of financial ruin as a result. Any life insurance policy you purchase should be able to keep your family out of debt and enable them to continue living life at the same standards of living as before.

For this, it’s not quite as set in stone, but here is how I did it. a good place to start is to determine how much you make a year. If you make $30,000 a year, then if you die, that is how much your family is going to lose, so you need to invest in a way that will allow them an extra income benefit of $30,000 a year for around five years or so.

There are two ways you can do this. Either you can purchase a benefit that will pay your family $20,000 each year. Or, for lower  life insurance rates, you can purchase around $300,000 of insurance, and when you pass on, your family can invest that and it will generate $30k a year for them.

take care,

Fashun.

Reader question:

I need life insurance with AIDS, but I keep getting denied. What do I do?

Allen

Glad you asked.

If you need life insurance with AIDS and are having trouble getting a group policy, then there are two other types of policies you may be able to consider.

• Accidental death and dismemberment.

This scarily named policy type won’t help you if you end up dying of an HIV related complication or sickness, but it will provide benefits to your family members and debtors if you pass away due to something like an accident.

• Guaranteed policy.

These have very low benefits, usually less than $30,000, With these policies, they also tend to “grade”. This means that, within three years of purchase, if you die, then only a part of the premiums will be returned to your beneficiaries. However, after that they will receive it all.

take care,

Fashun.

Reader question:

What can my  life insurance rates do for me before I die? I am a senior and could use the money now.

Allison

Glad you asked.

Your payment of your life insurance rates for many years could benefit you later in life, even while you’re still on this earth. Many people fall on hard times by becoming sick or coming down with a disease, which, even with health insurance, makes it difficult for them to support themselves and their families. If you have a life insurance policy, though, you may be able to get accelerated death benefits in these cases.

How can you get accelerated death benefits from your life insurance rates?

• If you are diagnosed with some kind of condition or disease and given a specific amount of time to live.
• You are diagnosed with something which would give you a very short time to live if you did not undergo enormous amounts of treatment.
• You have to spend a long time in a nursing home.
• You have to spend the rest of your life in a nursing home.

Reader question:

How can I get smoker life insurance?

Daisy

Good question.

It doesn’t really make any difference whether you smoke a pack a day or one cigarette a couple of times a year. Most life insurance companies will charge you for higher priced smoker life insurance just the same.

There are even some companies who cater specifically to people who smoke. I’ve checked out the quotes to a few of these, though, and they tend to be higher. The difference is that where one company might deny you, they’ll definitely accept you…for a price.

There’s a pretty good reason why smoker life insurance is costlier than other kinds of life insurance. Almost all lung cancer cases are contributed to by smoking, and these types of cancer are also usually more deadly than things such as breast cancer, colon cancer, etc.

The good thing is that, if you try, you can get rid of the effects of smoking pretty quickly. After you’ve abstained from smoking for a day, you have less risk of heart attack. Ten years letter, 50% less risk for lung cancer. Five years after that, it’s as if you’d never picked up a cigarette at all.

take care,

Fashun.