When you apply for life insurance coverage, your insurance agent should be very inquisitive.
They will want to ask you by your overall health, if you smoke and your family history.
One question that gets asked that many people that are applying for life insurance forget that will be asked is “How is your driving record?”.
Uh-oh…..
If you drive like a Nascar driver and have been ticket for it, it could cost you.
Not only does your car insurance go up, but also so does your life insurance! Life insurance is one of the most important purchases that you’ll ever make, and your driving record could have a huge impact on that.
Regardless of your lead foot, it’s important that you get a quality life insurance policy, and we can help you get that protection at an affordable price.
Yes, Your Driving Record Affects Life Insurance Rates
This may come as a shock to many, who may not believe it, but it is true. Life insurance rates and your driving record do have one thing in common: Death!
That might seem a tad over-dramatic to some, but death is certainly something to worry about on the road. When a driver does not care about the harm that dangerous driving causes, life insurance companies begin to realize they may not have a lot of time on this earth.
When you drive with only the end point and some fun in mind, that is why your driving record affects life insurance rates. This may seem unfair to some, but it is a real worry for insurance companies. Just like a disease or other serious health condition, bad driving raises your chance of death. When you have a higher likelihood of death, your life insurance rates go up. Just like if you were completely healthy and took steps to ensure you stayed alive and well for years to come, your life insurance rates would drop.
Your driving record affects life insurance acceptability, too. If you are a driver with a problematic driving history, they may consider you too much of a risk to insure. A person with a family they want to protect, even after they have entered the grave, will see this as a problem. They want to get good rates, a good company, and money for their family if they meet their demise.
Recent Driving History
A good thing for many drivers out there is that the top life insurance companies peek at your recent history, not everything. Life insurance rates and your driving record are a big worry, but so is whether or not you will get life insurance to begin with.
Any person out there who thinks they are safe to get life insurance simply because they are healthy needs to look into everything.
How Much Does Your Life Insurance Go Up Because Of Speeding Tickets?
Recently, I had a gentleman that was applying for a 20 year term life insurance policy. I asked the usual questions and everything seemed to be on track for a Preferred Best rating. I then asked about his driving record. There was a pause. Followed by a “Well, let me tell you about that…..”
The guy hadn’t had a speeding ticket in over a decade but happened to get his first one about 6 months ago. Now one ticket wouldn’t have been an issue. But he got not just one but two more tickets…..in the same week!
Having 3 speeding tickets on your driving record in one week does not do well for your life insurance premium. Especially when they occurred in the past 6 months.
His premium which would have been $1490 per year, ballooned to $1,913 per year. As you can see, your driving record does matter.
More than likely, you haven’t gotten three speeding tickets in one week. That’s a rare case that I may never run into again, but if you do have a couple of tickets in the last six months, then you could be facing higher premiums.
As long as your driving record isn’t filled with speeding tickets and accidents, then it isn’t going to impact your premiums too drastically. You’ll still be able to get affordable life insurance coverage, even if you’ve been caught going slightly higher than the speed limit.
Getting Affordable Life Insurance Coverage
There are a couple of ways to trim down your life insurance premiums. Making a few simple changes to how you live will contribute money back into your wallet.
Always remember to slow down on your drive home from work. We’ve already shown that speeding tickets can cause your premiums to go up, which means that it’s important that you’re driving as safely as possible. Taking a little longer to get to work in the morning, could help you save money on your life insurance coverage.
Our second suggestion is to quit tobacco use. Did you know smokers are going to pay twice as much for life insurance for comparable coverage. Kicking that bad habit could make you rich! Well not really, but it some great motivation!
This suggestion is pretty simple, improve your health. If you think of it as a waterfall, the healthier you get the better your quality of life and the lower your chances are of getting a disease later on in life. Combining all of this could lead to great results on your medical exam and at the bottom you’re gonna get a lower rate from the insurer. So start that diet and exercise you’ve always wanted to. Now is the time to prepare for all the stuff you’ll go through once your application is signed.
No carrier sees your lifestyle, age or driving record the same. Whats the harm in getting more than one quote? Don’t fall prey to sales tactics from individual agencies; instead look to agencies like us, independent, we work with many carriers in the industry and have the same relationship with each one. Our quotes are full-service and you’ll always get more information that way. Your time is precious. Spend them at home with your kids, friends, and family instead of taking the time doing the work for yourself. We will spend our time working hard on your behalf to help you achieve your financial goals.
Term Life Rates and Your Driving Record
Your life insurance rates and your driving record are things you have to consider. A bad driving record negatively affects your life insurance rate, as well as your acceptability.
If you have a family to take care of, or are hoping to sometime soon, then you need to look at how you drive. Bad driving does increase your chance of death, and life insurance companies know that.
We know you don’t want your dependents to suffer paying for final expenses.
Stop thinking your driving record is going to lower your shot at purchasing great coverage at a low price. Get quality coverage starting today!
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