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Age to BMI – Factors that Can Affect Critical Illness Insurance Premium

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Published on November 3, 2021. EST READ TIME: 3 minutes

The last one year has made it clear that everyone needs to be extremely careful about their health. Monthly checkups, proper diet and exercising are non-negotiable for a fulfilling life. Along with these factors, you also need to purchase a good health insurance which acts as your safety shield at the time of medical emergencies. After getting a health insurance plan, you can increase the overall protection level by adding a critical illness insurance policy to your insurance plan. A critical illness insurance policy pays a lump sum amount on getting diagnosed with the critical illnesses listed by the insurance company. This cover ensures that you have enough funds to battle the critical illness and get back on your feet at the earliest possible. Before you purchase critical illness insurance you need to know how the premium is determined.

Here are a few factors that affect the premium of a critical illness insurance policy.

1. Age

In most critical illness insurance policies, age plays an important role. Even though life is uncertain, it is more likely that an older insurance holder would face serious health issues compared to a younger one. Therefore, insurance companies might offer relatively cheaper policies to young applicants. But this does not mean that someone should wait or delay buying a health insurance policy. For example, if you get a policy in your early 20s, it is neither too late nor too early to get the benefits of critical illness insurance.

2. Pre-existing health ailments

While there are policies which are customized to cover pre-existing health conditions, an insurance company, in most cases, prefers a healthy policyholder. But this does not mean that you cannot get a suitable policy; it simply changes the options for you. An applicant who does not have any existing medical issues is most likely to pay lower premium than someone who is suffering from a disease.

3. Body Mass Index (BMI)

A higher BMI means a higher probability of medical issues involving the muscles, heart, etc. This means that visit to the doctors is likely to be more frequent and medical care costs will be higher. Doctor visits and medical care, meaning more costs for the insurance company. Therefore, insurance companies calculate a higher insurance premium for an applicant with a high BMI.

4. Family health history

If there is a history of critical illnesses in a family, then a person might find buying a critical illness health insurance plan a bit harder. This means that the premium will be on the higher side.

5. Lifestyle preferences

Some insurance companies take an applicant’s lifestyle preferences in consideration. For example, if a person is involved in adventure sports such as mountain climbing, or motorsports, the premium is most likely to be high.

6. Nature of job

An applicant’s profession also plays a role in determining critical illness insurance premium calculation. So if someone works in high-risk places like coal mines or construction sites, then the premium is likely to be costlier.

7. Coverage list

A wider coverage means a higher critical illness insurance premium as the applicant has opted for add-on policy benefits. Simply put, more benefits mean more cost, thus higher premiums.

8. Critical diseases covered

If the critical illness insurance you purchased covers more critical illnesses, then the premium will be expensive, too.

Conclusion

Critical illnesses can be damaging to an individual’s physical and financial health, and their treatment is higher than a regular health insurance plan can cover. A critical illness policy is vital to cover these treatment expenses, and opting for it at an early age shall allow the insured to avail of maximum coverage benefits when the need arises.

Disclaimer: The above information is for illustrative purpose only. For more details, please refer to policy wordings and prospectus before concluding the sales.

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