Guaranteed Acceptance Life Insurance
As a senior, life insurance can still be an important component of your overall financial plan. That is because your loved ones may end up having to pay for uninsured medical costs, unpaid debt obligations, and final expenses.
In fact today, an individual’s final expenses can run in the average range of $7,000 to $10,000 when factoring in the cost of a memorial service, a burial plot and headstone (or alternatively, cremation services), flowers, transportation, and the printing of funeral notices.
One of the best ways to provide your loved ones – and yourself – with peace of mind is to own life insurance protection. Your named beneficiary (or beneficiaries) can receive these proceeds free of income taxation so that bills and other debt obligations can quickly be paid off and / or survivors can continue to pay their living expenses in the future.
Qualifying for Life Insurance as a Senior
There are many options for purchasing life insurance as a senior – and these include traditional, medically underwritten coverage. Term and permanent life insurance plans are available – although the exact coverage that is offered will typically depend on the individual life insurance company.
To qualify for a traditional, medically underwritten life insurance policy, you will be required to fully complete an application for coverage. This application will ask you for more general information, such as your contact details, your age / birth date, gender, height and weight, marital status, occupation and income, health condition, health history, medications were taken, whether or not you are a smoker and family health history.
There is usually a requirement to undergo a medical examination. During this exam – which can take place in your home or other convenient location – you will meet with a paramedical professional who will ask you more health oriented questions. They will also take a heart rate and a blood pressure reading, as well as a blood and a urine sample for testing purposes.
If you have certain adverse health conditions, it is likely that you will also be asked for more in-depth condition-specific information, such as:
- When you were initially diagnosed with the condition?
- What you are doing to manage and / or control the condition.
- Whether you take any medication for the condition – and if so, the type of medication and the dosage.
- How often you visit your doctor or other healthcare professional regarding the condition.
In some cases, the life insurance company’s underwriters may also want to review your medical records. They may wish to obtain these records from your primary care physician and / or any specialist that you see for certain conditions.
Once all of your information has been received by the insurance company, the underwriters can more closely review everything – and from there, they can make a determination with regard to policy approval.
Alternatives for Those Who Don’t Qualify
In some cases, an individual may not end up qualifying for traditional life insurance coverage. If this is the case, however, it does not mean that you have to go without having any life insurance protection.
One option is to purchase a no medical exam life insurance policy. With this type of coverage, there may be some health questions to answer on the application for coverage. However, there is no medical examination that is required as a part of the approval process. Because of that, many people who do not qualify for traditional life insurance due to age or health related issues may still qualify for a no medical exam insurance policy.
Another alternative is to go with a guaranteed acceptance life insurance policy. In this case, regardless of your health condition, you will be approved for the coverage – and, once you are approved, the policy will typically remain in force, as long as you continue to pay the premiums. Many seniors consider the purchase of guaranteed acceptance life insurance – especially if it is doubtful that they will be able to obtain a medically underwritten policy option.
What is Guaranteed Acceptance Life Insurance and How Does It Work?
With guaranteed acceptance life insurance coverage, the only requirement for being approved for coverage is that you have paid your premium. Otherwise, you will have few – or no – health questions to answer on the application, and you will not be required to undergo a medical examination.
Many of today’s top life insurance carriers offer guaranteed acceptance life insurance coverage. So, with that in mind, having this type of coverage from a highly rated insurer can allow you to worry less, knowing that you have the life insurance protection that you need.
Are You a Good Candidate for a Guaranteed Acceptance Life Insurance Policy?
You may be a good candidate for a guaranteed acceptance life insurance policy if you are unable to qualify for a traditional, medically underwritten life insurance policy, and you are unable to obtain an employer-sponsored group life insurance plan due to being retired, unemployed, or working for a company that does not offer group insurance coverage.
You may also be a potential candidate for this type of coverage if you have a fear of needles and do not want to undergo a medical examination where it will be required for you to provide a blood sample.
Likewise, if you need life insurance coverage quickly as part of a loan qualification process or other reason, this may be a potential option for you. This is because, due to the fact that there are no medical records to review and no medical exam results to wait for, a guaranteed acceptance life insurance policy can be approved and issued very fast – sometimes even on the same day that you apply for the policy.
Factors to Consider When Purchasing a Guaranteed Acceptance Life Insurance Policy
Before moving forward with the purchase of a guaranteed acceptance life insurance policy, there are certain factors to consider. One of these is the fact many guaranteed acceptance life insurance policies will not pay out the full amount of the death benefit if the insured dies within the first two years of owning the policy.
This is because many of the applicants who purchase guaranteed acceptance coverage are typically considered to be risky due to their health condition and / or age. In order to help compensate for this added risk, the insurance company that offers the policy will protect itself by only paying out a portion of the death benefit proceeds during the first two years. (If however, the insured remains alive for at least two more years, the beneficiary will receive the full amount of the death benefit after that).
In addition, due to the added risk that an insurer take on by offering guaranteed acceptance coverage, the premium that is charged for this type of insurance is usually higher than that of a comparable medically underwritten life insurance policy.
For this reason, it is a good idea to first compare several different guaranteed acceptance insurance policies before making your purchase. The best way to do this is to work with an independent life insurance agency or brokerage that can provide you with information about numerous different policies, insurance carriers, and premium quotes.
Where to Find the Best Premium Rates on Guaranteed Acceptance Life Insurance
If you are seeking a guaranteed acceptance life insurance policy, we can help. We work with many of the top insurers in this market, and we can assist you with obtaining all of the details that you need. To proceed, just take a few moments to fill out the quote form on this page.
Our experts can also discuss with you any additional information that you may need. So, contact us today – we’re here to help.