How is no-exam insurance possible and can it be trusted?
On the surface it can all seem a bit too good to be true. Why is an insurance company going to insure me online without even meeting me? How can they issue a life insurance policy without any medical underwriting?
Let’s start with the first question of how and why would an insurance company would offer policies through the internet to people they have never met? The main points to keep in mind are the overall restrictions on no-medical exam insurance. Applicants are limited to a maximum death benefit of 500,000 USD, have to be under the age of 50, and have no serious history of pre-existing medical conditions. This limits the applicants, but also limits the risk to the insurance company.
Secondly, the insurance companies typically build in a small increase to the monthly premium to account for the increased risk of dealing with policies issued online and with no medical exam. Long story short, this means that applying online for a no-medical exam insurance policy will result in a quote that is slightly more expensive than a traditional insurance quote with full medical underwriting. That being said, the difference is typically less than 5 dollars per month.
So why not go through things the old way? Well, there are trade-offs. The initial quote for a traditional insurance policy could be lower, but the full medical underwriting (blood sugar, cholesterol, liver function, doctor’s interview, etc.) could reveal that you are not as healthy as you could be, and the price could increase significantly or even be rejected. Add to that the cost of time to meet and speak with an insurance agent multiple times, visit the hospital for various tests, chase doctors for supplementary health forms, possibly going back to the hospital for followup tests, etc. Overall you are looking at 1 to 3 months of work and multiple potentially uncomfortable conversations, the end result possibly being an insurance policy that’s even more expensive than the online insurance quote (if you don’t have a perfect bill of health). All to maybe save yourself about 5 dollars.
Alternatively, you could receive a quote instantly online, begin filling out the simplified online application, and be fully insured all in the same day from the comfort of your own home. The choice is yours.
We can assist with both online no-medical term insurance as well as traditional term insurance via an advisor and with medical underwriting, so get in contact if you have any specific questions.
No-medical term insurance
Pros: fast, easy, private, 100% online
Cons: limited to younger and healthier applicants and death benefits less than 500,000. Quotes slightly higher than traditional full-underwriting insurance
Traditional full-underwriting insurance
Pros: Almost anyone can apply, maximum death benefit of 7 million USD, potentially lower cost than online no-medical term insurance
Cons: Must speak with an advisor, strong possibility of medical testing, possibility of price increase or denial of coverage due to medical findings, 1 to 3 month process