What you need to know if you’re looking for life cover and you smoke or if you are thinking of quitting for Stoptober!

Smokers do pay more for life insurance, fact! Insurers take the risks posed by smoking seriously and if you smoke your premiums will cost more. So, kicking the habit could be an effective way to reduce the costs of your life insurance. But, if you are thinking of cutting down or quitting and improving your wealth, as well as your health, who is classed as a ‘smoker’ in the eyes of the insurer?

Are you classed as a ‘smoker’ if you just have the odd cigarette?

The classification system that insurers work to is simple: if you have used tobacco in the last twelve months, you are a smoker. It doesn’t matter (in their eyes) if you smoke twenty or more a day, if you have the odd cigarette at the weekend or if you have the occasional puff on a cigar – the insurance providers treat all equally as smokers.

This is because the people who are underwriting the policy do not take into consideration the amount smoked when quoting the cost of your premium.

How will the insurer know?

Due to the fact that premiums are higher for smokers, there could be a temptation to dismiss the fact that you smoke, when asked, to keep costs down. I know of smokers who aren’t particularly proud of their habit and keep their secret to themselves, so hiding the fact that they smoke is quite natural. However, insurance providers have ways of finding out whether applicants are trying to hide the truth from them. Plus if the worst did happen, medical records are likely to show whether the policy holder was a smoker or not and the last thing anyone would want is for their loved ones to miss out on a pay-out because they were not completely truthful when taking out their policy.

There is good news however, if you are thinking of quitting this Stoptober and you manage to quit for at least 12-18 months, your premiums when you take out a policy will be cheaper. If you already have life insurance and you were a smoker when you first took out your policy, it’s definitely worth speaking to us when you have quit so we can see if your insurer will offer you a reduced rate policy due to your success.

As with all types of insurance policy, it is advisable to inform your broker or insurer directly of any changes to any of your circumstances – smoking related or otherwise – because if your circumstances change so may your policy needs or premiums.

Louise Colley, Head of Protection for Aviva, says; “It’s encouraging to see our statistics showing people are giving up. We want to encourage people to think about the effect of smoking, not only on themselves but also on the people they care about.

"Smoking is a danger to people’s health, that’s why it costs less for non-smokers to buy life insurance and critical illness policies… quitting smoking is a crucial step for people to protect themselves”

In the UK, from the 1^st October 2015, it will be illegal to smoke in vehicles with someone under 18 present – so with one less place to smoke, perhaps now is the time to stop? There is plenty of help and support available if you need it and you could join one of the thousands quitting with Stoptober this year. For more information about Stoptober go to https://stoptober.smokefree.nhs.uk/

Whether you choose to smoke or not, at Essential Insurance we are committed to finding the best policy for you, at the lowest available price. We work with our customers to understand their individual needs when it comes to life cover, so if you are successful at quitting or not, we can help you find cover at a price you can afford.

For further information and advice about life insurance policies to suit your needs, why not contact one of the team today? 0800 612 8005