Height and Weight and Life Insurance Ratings

You may or may not know, but your height and weight is a critical component of the life insurance underwriting process. There is probably no other factor that proposed insureds become more upset about than when an underwriting offer is received, and you do not get your desired rating class due to your height and weight. In this post, we will examine the reasons that height and weight are so important to underwriters, the medical conditions that can result, and the life insurance companies that do the best for this situation.

Underwriters look first at height and weight

One of the first things that underwriters look at when a life insurance exam is received is the figures for height and weight. Every company has steadfast guidelines for their build charts, and it is something that is fairly cut and dry. For example, if your height and weight were, 6’1 and 220 pounds, most underwriters compare this to their charts, and can immediately determine that you will receive no better rating than preferred. In addition, a person’s height and weight are telling stats for other potential health problems that may arise down the line.

Heath conditions stemming from having poor height and weight

There are quite a few medical problems that are a direct result of being overweight. If you maintain a heavy figure for a long period of time, it leaves the door wide open for diabetes, high blood pressure, poor cholesterol numbers, and many others. Furthermore, as time goes on, carrying around a bunch of extra weight can start to take quite a toll on your heart, and result in numerous types of cardiovascular problems. As a result, even if you do not currently have any of these problems, it is statistically probably that you are at much greater risk of developing these problems later in life, ultimately raising the risk of passing away and triggering a claim for the life insurance company.

Some Life insurance companies are more liberal with height and weight

If you have read any of our other underwriting articles, you probably know that there are different companies that tend to excel for those who may have certain conditions. Height and Weight is no different. For those of you who aren’t overweight, but may be just a few pounds away from getting best class, Genworth Life Insurance has come out with a very liberal build chart that enables many to be able to qualify for best class! If you are a little bit on the heavier side, Prudential Life Insurance is very good and will offer standard rates for weights that other companies would offer table ratings. Both of these could result in significant savings for you if height and weight are a concern!