Life Insurance Rate Class

When you apply for life insurance, carriers will take many factors into account to determine which health class you fall under. This is very important because the rate class is what's used to determine the premium you'll pay. The difference in premium between one rate class and another can mean hundreds or thousands of dollars over 10, 20, 30 years or more.

Your age, health, and the amount of insurance you are applying for are 3 basic factors. The younger you are and the healthier you are, the lower your premiums will be. If you buy $100,000 of life insurance coverage, it will be cheaper than $250,000. This is pretty simple to understand, but what else are the carriers going to look at to decide what rate class you get?

Height and Weight

All carriers have their own underwriting standards, which include a height and weight table. If you over even one pound over the weight limit for your height, it can bump you from a preferred rating to standard. The carriers place importance in height and weight (this is used to figure out your body mass index) because being overweight is related to other health issues like high blood pressure, cholesterol, and diabetes.

Blood Pressure

Carriers pay close attention to your blood pressure because high blood pressure is a risk factor for developing heart disease, stroke, and kidney problems. High blood pressure means your heart is working very hard to pump blood to the rest of your body.

Your blood pressure reading consists of two numbers- systolic and diastolic. Systolic is the first number and it measures the blood pressure when the heart is contracting. Diastolic is the second number and this refers to the time when the heart is in a period of relaxation. 

Cholesterol

High cholesterol is also another area that life insurance companies want to know about. Statistics show that high cholesterol is linked to a higher risk of heart attacks and stroke. Some carriers will offer standard rates if you are using one prescription to manage your hypertension, while other carriers may rate you higher.

Get a free no obligation quote today and compare multiple quotes from the nation's highest rated carriers. Remember that all life insurance carriers have different rates, so it pays to compare.