If you’re one of the more than 26 million adults in the United Kingdom who have diabetes, you can usually get life insurance, especially if the disease is under control. However, coverage will certainly come at a steeper premium than coverage for someone without diabetes. Even if you have a pre-existing ailment, having a life insurance policy can ensure that your loved ones have a stable financial future, thus life insurance is a sensible option. We will explain all you need to know about the cheapest life insurance for diabetics in the UK, type 1, 2, and all you need to know.
What types of cheapestlife insurance are available for people with diabetics?
People with mild or moderate diabetes can often buy a term or permanent life insurance policy. For people with severe diabetes or other health complications, life insurance without a medical exam might be a better fit. Here’s a closer look at your options.
#1. Term Life Insurance
If you die and leave a family behind, a term life policy might give a death benefit that can replace the essential income from your prime earning years. If you have well-controlled diabetes, you might want to consider term life. Diabetics are frequently approved for term life insurance, though at a higher price. Consider greater coverage terms if you are approved for a term life policy. This will prevent your premiums from rising as you age or as your health deteriorates. Fidelity Life offers term life insurance.
#2. Whole Life Insurance
A whole life insurance policy gives a death payout as well as a way to save money tax-free. The premiums are much higher than term life, and with diabetes, the rise could be even greater. If you are approved, however, your premium will be fixed for the rest of your life. As long as you pay your premiums, permanent life insurance will cover you for the rest of your life, so you won’t have to worry about reapplying or taking a medical test if your health changes.
#3. No Medical Exam Life Insurance
You may want to apply for a simplified issue policy if your diabetes is severe or uncontrolled, or if you have a history of blood sugar highs and lows (this is more prevalent with Type 1 diabetes). This sort of coverage does not require a medical checkup, but it does necessitate the completion of a health questionnaire.
How are life insurance costs affected by a diabetic condition?
On average, cheapest life insurance for diabetics is more expensive than for those who do not have diabetes. A chronic health condition like diabetes often entails higher premiums because life insurance firms base their rates on your life expectancy.
The type of diabetes you have might also influence the cost of insurance. The good news is that if you’re taking care of your diabetes, you could still be able to get a fair deal. Here’s how expenditures for persons with various forms of diabetes can differ.
#1. Life Insurance Costs for Type 1 Diabetics
Type 1 diabetics patients may find cheapest life insurance UK more difficult to obtain or more expensive than Type 2 diabetes patients. This kind of diabetes most commonly affects adolescents, teenagers, and young adults. Because Type 1 life insurance diabetics patients the UK produce little or no insulin. They must take insulin in the form of a tablet or a shot.
Although life insurance companies will look at your profile individually to establish a reasonable rate, early onset of Type 1 diabetes and medication requirements can result in higher pricing. The cost of cheapest life insurance for Type 1 diabetics in the UK is determined by several factors, including your age, blood sugar levels, diet and activity, medication adherence, and whether your diabetes has progressed to the point where it is affecting the health of vital organs.
#2. Life Insurance Costs for Type 2 Diabetes
Cheapest life insurance for Type 2 diabetics, who make up about 95% of all diabetics in the U.S., is generally less expensive than policies for people with Type 1 diabetes. This type of diabetes tends to develop in people 45 and older, although it’s increasingly common in children and teens.
With Type 2 diabetes, your body develops insulin resistance that causes your blood sugar to spike. Many people can control it with medication instead of controlling insulin, and it’s generally seen as easier to manage. That’s why life insurance companies often offer more competitive rates to people with this form of diabetes. However, the risk factors for Type 2 diabetes, like being overweight, and complications like heart or kidney disease can also impact costs.
What diabetics can do to improve life insurance options
Looking for the cheapest life insurance for diabetics that fits your needs and budget? Simple lifestyle changes can help expand your options and lower your rates – along with improving your overall health.
#1. Eat Healthy and Exercise
Processed foods should be avoided, meal quantities should be limited, and fiber- and nutrient-rich foods should be consumed. Many diabetics should lose weight and exercise regularly, according to medical authorities. Your primary care physician or a nutritionist can provide you with diet and wellness advice to help you feel better, lessen your symptoms, and improve your chances of finding a low-cost life insurance plan.
#3. Quit Smoking
Smokers pay more for life insurance than nonsmokers, and smoking also raises your risk of diabetes. According to the FDA, smoking can increase your risk of having Type 2 diabetes by 30-40%. Smoking raises blood pressure and lowers insulin efficacy, making it particularly harmful to diabetics. One of the best ways to boost your life insurance alternatives is to enroll in a smoking cessation program or quit smoking completely.
#4. Follow Your Treatment Plan
To improve your health and your life insurance options, stick to your specified treatment. Keeping up with insulin dosages or additional prescriptions, depending on the kind and severity of your diabetes, can be a challenge.
You can also broaden your cheapest life insurance options for diabetics by looking into non-traditional policy kinds. Inquire with your life insurance provider about whether policies are available for persons with pre-existing conditions. As well as other options for obtaining a policy at a reasonable cost.
Best life insurance companies for diabetics
The most effective life insurance firm Bankrate looked at examined companies that provide life insurance to people with a variety of medical histories, including diabetes. Others may only give diabetics guaranteed issue plans with no underwriting criteria, while others may only offer coverage or limits that address specific financial concerns held by persons with diabetes. Diabetics may want to look into the policies offered by a few major insurance providers listed below.
Keep in mind that the best life insurance for you and your medical condition will be by the amount of coverage you need and the type of policy you choose. Before deciding on the best life insurance policy for you. It’s a good idea to look into all of your alternatives and compare them.
#1. AIG
AIG offers a variety of life insurance options, including guaranteed issue whole life insurance policies that don’t require a medical exam. Depending on the type of diabetes you have and how well you manage it. You may be eligible for AIG’s universal or term life insurance. In the J.D. Power 2023 U.S. Individual Life Insurance Study, AIG had one of the lowest customer satisfaction scores. AIG, on the other hand, is financially sound, with an AM Best financial strength rating of A (Excellent). Which is an important indicator of a life insurer’s capacity to pay death payments.
#2. Mutual of Omaha
The term, whole, and universal life insurance are all available via Mutual of Omaha. Guaranteed issue policies are available, which may make it easier for people with advanced diabetes to acquire life insurance coverage. Mutual of Omaha, on the other hand, is in terms of availability, as it only writes insurance in 35 states.
#3. Nationwide
For persons with Type 2 diabetes, Nationwide offers a number of life insurance options, including term, whole, and universal life. Those with Type 1 diabetes, on the other hand, are usually not covered. Furthermore, all life insurance policies involve medical underwriting. Nationwide may not be a suitable alternative for diabetics who desire a no-exam coverage. Nationwide is a full-service insurer that allows policyholders to save money on their life insurance by combining it with another policy, such as a house or vehicle insurance.
#4. Prudential
Prudential, the third-largest life/annuity insurer in the United States, offers both term and whole life plans. According to the Insurance Information Institute (Triple-I). In addition, the organization provides a variety of digital life insurance tools. Furthermore, Prudential needs medical underwriting, thus persons with severe diabetes may not be eligible.
What happens to existing policies if I am diagnosed with diabetes?
If you are diagnosed with diabetes after purchasing a permanent life insurance policy. You do not have to worry about your coverage being terminated. As long as your premiums are paid on time, you will be insured for the rest of your life at the pre-diagnoses rates for permanent policies like whole life and universal life.
If you have term insurance, your payments will be for the duration of the policy. Which is commonly five, ten, twenty, or thirty years. You may choose to let your policy lapse at the end of your term or convert it to a permanent policy before the policy’s expiration date or maximum age. Some firms may enable policyholders to skip the medical test and use their health rating from their initial application if they convert their coverage.
Your health will be re-evaluated and your new rates will reflect your diagnosis if you want to renew the policy or move to a new life insurance company. If you have severe diabetes. You may be unable to renew your insurance and will need to consider a guaranteed issue policy.
What Questions Can You Expect The Insurer To Ask
If you have diabetes and are seeking life insurance, you should expect to be asked a lot of questions by your insurer. When an insurer examines a diabetic patient’s application, their primary goal is to learn about the patient’s current medical state and whether or not the patient is taking all required steps to keep diabetes under control. They are likely to ask some of these questions for this aim.
#1. When/what age were you diagnosed with diabetes?
When it comes to diabetes, the age at which you were diagnosed has a significant impact. The disease has had more time to do damage, thus the sooner you were detected, the worse it is. Similarly, the later in life you are diagnosed, the better your chances of acquiring insurance are. The average age at which an early diagnosis differs from a late diagnosis is 40 years. If you are with diabetes later in life (usually beyond 40 years) and have no other health risks, it is unlikely that it will have a significant impact on your insurance premium.
#2. What was the diagnosis/the type of diabetes? What is the course of the disease?
A person can be affected by one of two forms of diabetes. Type 1 diabetes, also known as Insulin Dependent Diabetes Mellitus (IDDM) or Juvenile-Onset Diabetes, and Type 2 diabetes, also known as Non-Insulin Dependent Diabetes Mellitus (NIDDM) or Adult-Onset Diabetes, are two types of diabetes. If you have Type 2 diabetes, you will almost certainly receive much better life insurance quotations than if you have Type 1. This is because, unlike Type 1 diabetes, which is identified later in life and requires considerably more strict medical supervision, Type 2 diabetes emerges later in life and may be easier to control with oral medicine and insulin.
#3. What is your A1c level?
Any number below 7.5 is considered a healthy A1c level. But, a diabetes patient with an A1c level of up to 8.5 may also be able to apply for life insurance. The ideal level to have is 7.
#4. What is your usual fasting blood sugar level?
A typical person’s blood sugar level should be 140. However, insurance companies will accept applications from persons who have a blood sugar level of up to 180. Some insurers will also take into account the patient’s fructosamine levels, which are essentially the patient’s blood sugar levels during the previous two to three months. Between 1.5 and 2.5 is the perfect level.
#5. What treatment are you undergoing?
When it comes to seeking life insurance as a diabetic, the treatment you’re receiving may or may not have an impact on your chances of securing coverage. If your diabetes is easily controlled with a well-balanced diet and exercise, or with oral medications rather than insulin. That is a positive sign that insurers may consider. What matters most to an insurer is whether or not the treatment you’re receiving is effective.
#6. What medication are you taking?
As previously said, diabetes that is easily controlled with regular exercise, nutrition, and oral medications is regarded as a positive indicator. Insurers often favor patients who can manage their diabetes with oral medications and pills over those who must use insulin to stay in control. A person may or may not be for insurance depending on their medical condition other than diabetes.
#7. Is the medication/treatment working?
One of the most crucial things the insurance will want to know is whether or not the diabetic therapy or medicine you’re on is effective. It is looked favorably if you have diabetes under control. Insurers will determine this by requesting your A1c level (which should be between 6 and 7). As well as your fasting blood glucose level (ideally under 100). These two criteria, together with the age at which you were diagnosed, are some of the most critical considerations in determining whether your life insurance claim will be approved or rejected.
#8. How often do you visit your doctor?
As previously stated, the most essential consideration for an insurer considering a diabetic patient’s application is whether or not the patient is able to control the disease. In addition to your treatment and drug effects, the insurer needs to know that you are seeing your doctor on a regular basis. It may work in your favor if you visit twice a year. If you come every quarter, it means you’re actively keeping the disease under control.
#9. Do you have any other health problems?
In addition to knowing that you have diabetes, the insurer will want to know about any other medical issues you may have. If you have any other illnesses, such as heart disease or kidney disease, it will affect the quotation you receive for the plan. Your risk factor with the insurance will naturally increase as a result of the extra medical issues you have. If you don’t have any issues from diabetes, it means you’ve to keep the disease under control, which will be favorable.
In addition to the questions listed above, an insurer may ask you the following:
- If you are or aren’t a tobacco user
- Whether you smoke or not. If you do, then how often.
- Your height and weight.
- Your occupation and income.
- Marital status
- Your general health and medical history.
- Your family’s general health and medical history.
#10. Will I Have To Pay More For Life Insurance?
When it comes to life insurance premiums, diabetes patients are more likely to pay higher premiums than those who do not have any medical conditions. The quote that a diabetic applicant receives is by the amount of risk that the insurer assigns to you. This risk rating is based on a number of factors, including the age at which you were diagnosed, your family’s medical history, whether or not you have any other health risks, your weight and height, your medical history, the type of diabetes you have, the medication/treatment you’re taking to keep it under control, whether or not it’s working, and your A1c/glucose/blood sugar levels.
As previously said, Type 2 diabetes is regarded as the weaker of the two diabetes types. As a result, premium rates for Type 2 diabetes patients will be lower than those for Type 1 diabetic patients. The most crucial factor for insurers is whether or not the patient can keep the disease under control and with what measures. Premiums for persons who are diagnosed with the disease later in life are usually less expensive.
FAQs
How much does Type 2 diabetes cost per year?
People with diagnosed diabetes incur average medical expenditures of $16,752 per year, of which about $9,601 is attributed to diabetes. On average, people with diagnosed diabetes have medical expenditures approximately 2.3 times higher than what expenditures would be in the absence of diabetes.
How can I get my A1C down quickly?
Since exercise prompts your muscles to take up sugar from your bloodstream, it helps your blood sugar levels drop more quickly after you eat a meal. As you make exercise a regular habit, you’ll see a downward trend in your A1c numbers. Never miss your meds. You can reliably lower your A1c through diet and exercise.
Can Walking lower my A1C?
Type 2 Diabetes: A 2012 study of 201 people with type 2 diabetes found that every additional 2,600 steps of walking each day were associated with a 0.2% lower A1c. For reference, 2,600 steps are a little over a mile (about 20 minutes walking at a normal pace).
