Does Alcohol Affect The Premium Rates Of Life Insurance?
Whether you are applying for term or whole life insurance, there will be two alcohol related questions that will be asked:
1) How much alcohol and how often do you drink?
2) Have you been convicted for a DUI charge before?
The answers that you give to these questions will determine the cost of the premium you will be paying for your life insurance. That being said, life insurance underwriting is more likely an art rather than science and there is no consistency or consensus, among the various life insurance companies that deal with the answers of the two questions, especially the one at first.
Its true that excessive drinking is related to shorter life expectancy, however there is no agreement on what seems to be "excessive drinking". Is it a drink a day, maybe two or six? A point is also considered where moderate drinking has proved to increase life expectancy and cut down the chances of both heart attack and stroke, but that does not lower your Life insurance premium.
Obviously, a DUI in your record (unless you had it long time back) will most likely make you ineligible for getting the best life insurance rating class. If the DUI charge was recent and if there were more than one charge in recent years, you will have to pay even more.
When you are filling out the application for texas life insurance, be very accurate regarding your consumption of alcohol as the policy can be easily annulled if anything is discovered that is inaccurate. This usually happens when the claim is made. Being accurate with the questions is the only way of obtaining the life insurance policy and that too in a rightful manner.
Usually, alcohol does not stay in blood for more than 24 hours (unless you have been drinking when the nurse came to perform the medical tests). The use of alcohol can be shown by the presence of elevated liver enzymes that are to be tested. If there is an elevated liver enzyme, then it indicates that occasional drinking is done. If the elevated liver enzymes are found in the results, the following things may happen as a result:
- A policy will not be issued to you.
- Until the case is pinpointed, your application will be postponed.
- A policy will be issued to you, however you will have to pay extra premium because of drinking.
In case you end up with a life insurance rate that is higher than expected due to alcohol related issues, remember that the rates can be lowered over time if you are able to prove that you have resolved the problem.
Drinking moderately, like a glass of wine in a day, will not affect your premium rates with most life insurance companies provided that you do not have elevated liver enzymes. If you consume alcohol more than moderate and this is your only problem, you can still get an excellent rate on life insurance if you put in a little diligence and hard work.