Being Overweight Carries Life Insurance Pains

It's no secret that having health problems can make it hard for you to buy life insurance. High blood pressure, diabetes, and heart disease are among the conditions that can make life insurance companies balk at selling you a policy.

But what if you're healthy except for one condition: You're overweight. If that's the case, you still may have a hard time buying life insurance. Even if you're not obese, there are some cases where you'll have to pay more for life insurance if your weight reaches a certain level. And in most instances, the heavier you are, the more you'll pay.

It's All About "Build"
Along with age, medical history, and lifestyle, life insurance companies take your "build" into consideration on your application. "Build" is your weight relative to your height. Life insurers use tables that combine the two factors to help determine what kind of risk you pose. (See the American Medical Association's table at the end of this story.)

The more you weigh in relation to your height, the more potential you have for health problems. The ideal life insurance customer is someone who is expected to live a long, healthy life. But statistics show that overweight people are bad insurance risks because they are likely to develop health problems as they grow older. According to a recent study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, excess weight is linked to 280,000 deaths in the U.S. annually.

And it appears the U.S. waistline is getting bigger and bigger. From 1991 to 1998, the number of obese Americans — generally classified as at least 30 pounds heavier than the ideal weight for their height — jumped from 12 to 17.9 percent, according to the AMA study.

The More You Weigh, The More You'll Pay
If you're just a little overweight, say about 10 pounds, you may see no difference in the rates you are quoted. But if you're severely overweight, you'd better budget more money for life insurance.

Steve Zitney, a consultant in State Farm's life health underwriting department, says that a person can be denied life insurance at his company if they are "grossly overweight or dramatically obese," even if they do not have any other health problems. The company will also charge higher premiums if your weight is significantly more than it should be in relation to your height. For example, a 40-year-old male who is six feet tall should ideally weigh about 183 pounds. Zitney estimated that if he weighed more than 265 pounds, he would be charged extra premium.

Zitney confirms there is a direct relationship between increased weight and increased premium. If that 40-year-old, six-foot-tall male is 270 pounds, he will have to pay 15 to 20 percent more than a person of average weight, he says. But if he weighs 300 pounds, that figure jumps to 30 to 35 percent more.

Many other large life insurers take a similar approach to underwriting. David Potter, a spokesperson for Hartford Life, says that people who are at 150 percent of their desired weight will see an increase in premium. Again in these cases, the more weight you carry, the more your premium will be. "It's possible to be rejected by weight, but it's rare," Potter says. "Most of the people with weight problems do have other health problems, like high blood pressure and high cholesterol."

David Solie, president of RiskTutor, Inc. of Calabasas, Calif., which provides training for insurance agents for screening and managing "substandard" (or riskier) clients, says that if some people are just moderately overweight, life insurance could still cost them more. Solie says that people who are slightly overweight can be disqualified for a "preferred rate," which is a lower premium that rewards people who are healthy. For example, a person who is 20 to 30 pounds overweight and does not have high blood pressure or diabetes may garner a normal rate, but they won't see the preferred rate. "It means they may get a $600 rate instead of a $300 rate," Solie speculates.

Unfortunately, your weight problems can dog you whether you are applying for whole (permanent) or term life insurance. "Underwriting is based on survival mortality," says Deanna Tillisch, a spokesperson for Northwestern Mutual Life. "It wouldn't be different if you were applying for term or perm insurance."

Where The "Uninsurable" Go
Where can you go if you are rejected because of your weight? There are companies that specialize in insuring people with severe health problems, such as Impaired Risk Specialists Inc. of Glenview, Ill., which offers insurance to people with such illnesses as asthma, epilepsy, heart disease, and cancer.

Companies That Insure Obese People Citizen Security Life Insurance Co. 1-800-843-7752 Empire General Life Assurance Corp. 1-800-688-3518 Impaired Risk Specialists 1-800-285-3279 Presidential Life Insurance Co. 1-800-926-7599 or 1-888-PRES LIF

Diane Bobinas, an assistant vice president with Impaired Risk Specialists, says that one way her company is able to insure obese people is by offering a "graded death benefit policy" that pays out varying amounts depending on how long you live. In short, the longer you live, the more money your beneficiaries receive. For example, if you die within the first year, your beneficiary gets the premium you paid plus 10 percent interest of payout. If you die within two years, your beneficiary gets 25 percent of the death benefit; in three years, 50 percent; in four years, 75 percent; and in five years, the full 100 percent.

Citizens Security Life Insurance of Louisville, Ky., also offers a graded death benefit for obese people, but only in extreme cases Cheri Glenn, vice president of underwriting at the Citizens Security, says the company uses four "tables," or categories, that combine height and weight to determine what kind of policy should be issued. A person in "Table Four" — the highest table in terms of weight — would have to pay double the premium as a person of ideal weight. For example, Glenn estimated that a six-foot-tall male (who should ideally weigh 183) in Table Four would likely weigh about 320 pounds. If the person was even heavier than that, he would be assigned a graded death benefit policy, where he would pay still higher premium.

If customers feels that premiums are too expensive, some companies will advise them to seek a lower death benefit to make insurance more affordable. Still, there's no escaping the fact that being obese is going to cost you if you're shopping for life insurance. "Wherever you go in these cases, you're going to pay for the risk," Bobinas says.

How Much Is Too Much?
The following table compiled by the American Medical Association shows a desirable weight range in both males and females. Keep in mind that your insurance company may not use this same data, but the chart should give you a sense of how you measure up in relation to the ideal weight for your height.

Source: American Medical Association, 1996

		Desirable weight range
Height		Small frame		Medium frame		Large frame
Men	Women	Men	Women	Men	Women	Men	Women
5'1"	4'9"	123-129	99-108	126-136	106-118	133-145	115-128
5'2"	4'10"	125-131	100-110	128-138	108-120	135-148	117-131
5'3"	4'11"	127-133	101-112	130-140	110-123	137-151	119-134
5'4"	5'0"	129-135	103-115	132-143	112-126	139-155	121-137
5'5"	5'1"	131-137	105-118	134-146	115-129	141-149	125-140
5'6"	5'2"	133-140	108-121	137-149	118-132	144-163	128-144
5'7"	5'3"	135-143	111-124	140-152	121-135	147-167	131-148
5'8"	5'4"	137-146	114-127	143-155	124-138	150-171	134-152
5'9"	5'5"	139-149	117-130	146-158	127-141	153-175	137-156
5'10"	5'6"	141-152	120-133	149-161	130-144	156-179	140-160
5'11"	5'7"	144-155	123-136	152-165	133-147	159-183	143-164
6'0"	5'8"	147-159	126-139	155-169	136-150	163-187	146-167
6'1"	5'9"	150-163	129-142	159-173	139-153	167-192	149-170
6'2"	5'10"	153-167	132-145	162-177	142-156	171-197	152-173
6'3"	5'11"	157-171	135-148	166-182	145-159	176-202	155-176