When you apply for a life assurance policy, you select a desired and affordable sum assured. The sum assured is the amount of money payable to one or their dependants at the maturity date of the policy or on occurrence of the insured event, for example death, disability and diagnosis of a critical illness.
Depending on the amount of the sum assured, evidence of a medical examination will be required. The term ‘free cover limit’ is used by insurers to refer to the amount of the sum assured below which no medical evidence is required. In this case, only a fully-filled-out proposal form and the first premium are required to create a contract between yourself and the insurance company.
For all amounts above, it is standard practice to undergo some form of medical appraisal. People often think that this is some kind of brutal and grueling obstacle course insurance companies devise to weed out ‘undesirable’ clients. In truth, the exam you will receive is much like a standard physical at your doctor’s office, and in some cases, it may be a little less stressful.
The medical is used to find any underlying conditions that may or will shorten your life, or adversely affect your overall health. They often involve a blood test, used to check for conditions, both hereditary and acquired. Urine analysis is also applied to, among other things, detect possible illicit substances.
A physical body exam is also conducted, as is a blood pressure measurement. The results from the tests are used by an underwriter to set your insurance rating, and determine what your policy premium will be. Most likely, you will get a copy of the test results for your own records, and if there are further tests you need, a follow-up round of testing will be scheduled.
You don’t have to be an Olympic athlete, or a professional sportsman to qualify for a comprehensive life insurance policy. Therefore, the idea of being denied coverage because of your health should not prevent you from buying and benefiting from life insurance. For what it’s worth, it might just be that health check that ultimately determines your quality of life.
Worth considering, isn’t it?
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