Turned down for life insurance, where next?

HoolyNI

Have decreasing term life insurance to cover my mortgage, should have taken level term, but there you go.

Have been trying this past few years to change to a level term policy, £50k over 20 years, but find that once my doc sends his report in, premiums go too high, or in the most recent application insurance gets refused altogether :shocked:

Am coming 44, 17 st/6ft...smoke 30 a day, like a drink at the weekends and recently had a diabetes scare....sugars were sky high, but a bit of exercise and diet modification got them back under control. Am also on meds for moderately high blood pressure and cholesterol.

Should i forget about changing my life insurance, or are there any firms out there who'll take on a basket case? At a reasonable premium of course :cheesy:

lisyloo

What would be the issue of keeping the life insurance as it is?
Are you single?
In which case is there a shortfall to pay off the mortgage?
Could this not be covered by the sale of the house, or your pension funds which would be released on death or other assets?
If you have a partner then could they manage the shortfall?

I can't comment on whether you could manage on the current policy as there is so much unknown information, but I think you need to consider what life would be like for those left behind if there wasa shorrtfall.
It's possible it might not be a huge issue and you can jsut leave it as it is.

The other option is to find an insurance broker although you will of course now have to declare that you've had insurance declined, but a broker will know which companies are more likely to be better for you.

HoolyNI

Main issue would be that as i'm overpaying mortgage any pay-out would be worth less, though i've just basically regretted not taking out level term cover when i took mortgage on.

Am married but wife has a good job so thats not really an issue.

lisyloo

ain issue would be that as i'm overpaying mortgage any pay-out would be worth less

If you are overpaying, then you will have an extra lump sum left over.
You will still get what you would have got if you had not overpaid so a lump sum will be availble for your spouse.

though i've just basically regretted not taking out level term cover when i took mortgage on.

Why?
You now have too much cover? (because of overpayments).
Why do you need even more cover if your wife has a good job.
She can continue to live in the house without a mortgage, so she will be in a good posistion.
I'm not really clear on what the issue is.

Unfortunately because of you smoking, weight and medical conditions, it going to be hard to make changes, but I can't really see a strong reason for it.
You've benefitted so far, becase decreasing would have been cheaper, so you've "wasted" less money, whilst you've been unable to claim (i.e. alive).

fasenet

Hi Hooly

I am an insurance broker that specialises in ratings and declines. I'll be happy to give you some free advice as to who is the best company to apply to if you are happy for me to ask you some more questions re your health? I can email you privately if you want me to?

My experience tells me that you will get cover at an elevated premium but some companies will increase the price by a lot and some won't. I should be able to give you an accurate idea before you apply.

Kind regards

Quentin

You cannot join up here and tout for business. Nor can you abuse the pm system to get prospects details.

fasenet

sorry - I was offering free advice on where to put an application direct - I wouldn't do it myself
I didn't know the rules - sorry

OshayAway

Hi HoolyNI, your best bet is to find a whole of market broker who is willing to do some pre-applicaltion research for you. Advisers have access to underwriters to inquire how they are likely to treat your case. This is entirely anonymous and is an indication only but the more info they have, the more accurate the responce. Specifically, it would be good to arm them with such details as:
Precises diagnosis
Symptoms
Test and results
Dates of the above
Medications and dosages past and present

It would be a good idea to ask your GP if you are unaware of any of these details. Or in your situation, ask for a copy of the report they have recently sent to the insurer.

The results of this research can be tremendously valuable as insurers can vary considerably on how they assess risk and therefore the resulting terms they offer.

It can be tricky to find a good broker / adviser to do this as it is very time consuming and obviously, the more insurers they enquire to the more likely to find better terms but the more time it takes. Time is money after all and the adviser may consider it to be too much of a gamble as if they work on commission, will only get paid if they find terms that you will accept.

lisyloo

Main issue would be that as i'm overpaying mortgage any pay-out would be worth less

Seems to me that there might have been a misunderstanding here.
I am neither an advisor or broker but a good advisor should check what you have first.
A number of people seem to be suggesting solving this with a new policy, but it seems to me that the first step is to look at the existing cover and see whether there really is a problem, especially in view of the misunderstanding above.
If you overpay you are not disadvantaged.

dunstonh

Your exisitng policy may have a guaranteed insurability option on it that allows an increase in cover with a gurantee to be accepted.

When buying life assurance, its often a clause I look for to make sure its included as I have used it a few times in the past and its well worth it. Of course, that view doesnt really fit with this site where cheapest at all cost is considered the thing to go for

HoolyNI

Thanks all for the input, am going to see a local broker and see what he can do.

Just assumed that in the event of my death the £10k i'm planning to take from savings and nip off the mortgage would be taken off any insurance settlement.