Life Insurance No Medical
One reason that people give for not taking out life insurance is the requirement to have blood tests or a medical completed.
Whilst some people will require a medical test of some sort, the truth is that the majority of Australians can now obtain life insurance with no medical.
What is a medical for life insurance?
Life insurance companies sometimes require medical test as part of their underwriting process. They do this when they need more information about your health, which helps them to decide whether or not to offer you life insurance, and at what price they should offer insurance to you.
Medical requirements may involve a simple report from your doctor without any visit required. In other cases you may only need a blood test, for which the insurance company will pay for a nurse to visit you at home or work to complete.
Sometimes a full medical is required, where you will have to visit a doctor for them to complete blood tests and a full medical examination. Importantly, this is only required in a very small percentage of cases.
When won’t you need a medical?
For the average Australian, life insurance with no medical requirements is relatively easy to obtain.
If you are of reasonably good health without a history of major illnesses, and the amount of cover you are applying for is too far above average, it is very likely that the life insurance company will offer life insurance with no medical.
The benefit of obtaining life insurance with no medical really comes down to time saving and convenience. By not having to wait around for medical appointments and reports you can get your cover in place sooner to protect you and your family.
When will you need a medical?
There are two main triggers that will trigger the requirement for a life insurance medical. The first is yours and your family’s health history, and the second is the amount of cover you are applying for.
If you have a history of health issues, particularly major health issues, the life insurance company will require a medical test to check on your current medical status. Likewise if you have a BMI (body mass index) that is well above average, the insurer will want a medical report to ensure your health hasn’t been affected too adversely by your weight.
A family history of illness can also trigger medical requirements. If a single family member has suffered from a serious illness you are still likely to obtain life insurance with no medical, but if you have two or three family members who all suffered from the same illness, the insurance company will likely require medical tests to ensure you are not suffering from the same condition.
The second trigger for life insurance medicals is the amount of cover being applied for. If you are applying for a level of cover which is well above average, the insurer is exposed to a much larger risk and may therefore require a medical test just to make sure you are in acceptable heath.
Obtaining life insurance with no medical
The triggers for life insurance medical requirements can differ slightly from one insurance company to the next. If you are intent on obtaining life insurance with no medical but you have triggered medical requirements with one insurer, it may be worth seeing if another insurer will offer the same cover with no medical.