How to Apply for Life Insurance With a Risky Occupation & Secure the Best Rates in [2022]
There are many risky occupations that most people would never consider negatively impacting a life insurance application. These jobs can raise a red flag and place them in a
high-risk life insurance classification. However, using the right company with an experienced independent agent can significantly impact the outcome of your application. The insurers are concerned about an applicant’s risky occupation that could one day take his life.
Your job could be just as serious as a medical condition or a heavy smoker. Thousands of people in the United States die yearly due to an accident or an illness connected to their job activities.
Table of Contents
- Examples of Occupations That Can Increase Your Rates
- How Can You Make Sure You Are Getting the Lowest Rates?
- How Do Life Insurance Companies Adjust Your Rates?
- What Are Flat Extra Fees & How Do They Work?
- What Is a Medical Pre-Screen & How Can It Help Me?
- Should I Be Working With an Independent Agent?
- How Can I Apply for Life Insurance With a Risky Occupation?
- In Conclusion
Examples of Risky Occupations That Can Increase Your Rates
Many people do not realize that their job can cause complications in purchasing life insurance. Often, rates will not go up if you apply with a life insurance company that is more liberal with your specific occupation.
This is just a sample of some of the occupations that can cause an increase in your life insurance rates if you were to apply for coverage.
- Life Insurance for High-Risk Occupations
- Life Insurance for Loggers
- Life Insurance for Iron & Steel Workers
- Life Insurance for Pilots
- Life Insurance for Ranchers and Farmers
- Life Insurance for Commercial Fisherman
How Can You Make Sure You Are Getting the Lowest Rates?
The responsibility lies with your independent agent (broker). We use over 40 top-rated companies, and we shop in the market hard to make sure we have our applicants apply with the best insurers. Once the application process is completed, we will carefully review the final rates. If we believe there is a possibility of getting a lower premium for our client, we apply to several other companies.
Once all projected rates come in, we choose the carrier that offers the lowest rates and then present them to our clients for their consideration. When the smoke clears, our client will be guaranteed to receive the lowest premium possible. The complete process is straightforward and requires little to no work for the applicant.
How Do Carriers Adjust Your Rates When You Have a Risky Occupation?
The most common way is by adjusting your health classification to fit the extra degree of risk they are assuming to ensure your life.
Most people would never realize that some of the more risky occupations could raise a red flag on your life insurance application. Your rates may be affected in several ways, such as the health classification you will be placed in after you apply. The classification you receive can vary from one carrier to another, depending on their underwriting guidelines.
Read our blog post designed to explain how health classifications work and how you can get the best classification possible if you apply.
Here is a basic breakdown of the classifications:
- Preferred Plus
- Preferred
- Standard
- Standard Plus
If you use tobacco:
- Preferred Tobacco
- Standard Tobacco
What Are Flat Extra Fees & How Do They Work?
Flat extra fees are another way an insurance company can charge an additional premium to cover a higher risk than the standard type. The flat extra fees are usually used for dangerous occupations, sports, and hobbies resulting in the insured’s death. This is done by adding an additional dollar for every $1,000.00 in life insurance coverage.
Remember that the flat extra can be anything the insurance carrier wants it to be at the time of the application. For example, some standard flat extra numbers would be $2.50, $5.00, or $7.50 per $1,000.00 of the face amount, otherwise known as the death benefit.
Here is an example of a $2.50 flat extra fee:
If you applied for a $100,000 life insurance policy and had a hazardous sport such as drag racing, you could receive a flat extra charge of $2.50 for every thousand dollars in coverage. Since you are requesting 100 thousand dollars of coverage, you would multiply 100 times the $2.50, giving you a flat extra fee of an additional $250.00 per year added to your base premium.
What Is a Medical Pre-Screen & Can It Help Lower My Premiums?
A medical pre-screen is a service that your agent should provide. A medical pre-screen takes about ten minutes, and it entails answering a series of questions to better understand what we can expect with your application. It will revolve around possible health conditions, hazardous occupations, dangerous sports, prescription drugs, and more.
This eliminates surprises during the underwriting process and helps us choose the best company you can apply to. This will result in you getting the lowest premiums possible once the application process is completed.
Should I Be Working With an Independent Agent?
If you are looking for the best life insurance rates with a risky occupation, independent agents, also
known as brokers, work with all the top life insurance companies in the nation. They can choose the best company to apply with, so you get the lowest rates. On the other hand, captive agents work for companies like State Farm or Geico and have only one company to place you with.
Most of their companies do not even insure any high-risk applicants. Also, independent agents work for their client’s best interests, not insurance companies like the captive agents.
How Can I Apply for Life Insurance With a Risky Occupation?
We always recommend using our modern SnapApp telephone application system over the telephone. You have three ways to apply: paper, online, or by phone. Applying over the phone will take about 20 minutes to complete and be the most effective use compared to your other options available.
Paper applications are obsolete and online applications can be confusing to many people and require a computer and a fast internet connection.
Combining table rating increases and flat extras is possible simultaneously. A typical example of this would be an individual with medical issues and a dangerous job or sport.
In Conclusion
If you believe your job may be a risky occupation, contact us to help you. This is our business, and we have successfully done this for over 30 years. Buying life insurance may look complicated, but it is quick and easy when using the right agent to help you every inch of the way. Please read some of our other blog posts and do not forget to use our instant quoting system to see all your options.
All the best,
Jack Venturi
708-334-6226
If you have a hazardous occupation and are concerned about how it will affect your life insurance rates, contact us today to help you with no cost or obligation. As brokers, we work for our clients’ best interests, not insurance companies. Our job is to help you get approved for the best policy for your needs with the lowest rates possible. You can also set up a time at your convenience to talk.
