Pay An Increased Premium If You Smoke

Life insurance will help protect you and your family financially if you die or are diagnosed with a terminal illness. This means that if one of these terrible events were to occur and, as a result, you were unable to keep providing for your family, they would still have access to funds. Smokers can receive the same level of financial protection as non-smokers, however because of the increased risks associated with smoking, they have to pay an increased premium.

In 2008 it was estimated that 10 million adults in Britain smoke cigarettes. Nevertheless, smoking is still recognised as the greatest cause of preventable illness and early death in the UK, with more than 107,000 people dying in 2007 from smoking-related diseases including cancer. Around 86% of lung cancer deaths in the UK are caused by smoking. However, smoking can also cause cancer in other sites including the mouth, pancreas, stomach, liver, bladder, kidney, cervix, and bowel.[1] Because of these health risks associated with smoking, your life insurance company will need to know full details of your smoking habits. Thankfully, life insurance will protect your family financially in case of your death due to cancer, or your diagnosis with a terminal cancer, which is why it is so crucial to have good quality life insurance.

When you apply for life insurance, you will usually be asked various questions about your lifestyle, your job, any health concerns, family health history, and whether you smoke or not. Regardless of whether it's the occasional cigarette or if you smoke regularly, you must always inform your provider with accurate details of your smoking habit. They will then use this information, along with the other pieces of personal information they have, to determine what terms can be offered. If you do not tell them that you smoke and it later transpires that you do, you may well find that any claims may be rejected and your life insurance policy could be cancelled by your provider.

[1] - info.cancerresearchuk.org/cancerstats/types/lung/smoking/