Why a medical can be important to your Income Protection policy

Medical underwriting can be a key part of getting any insurance policy but why is it necessary and what benefits do you gain from it when looking for an Income Protection policy?

What is medical underwriting?

Medical underwriting is the process where an insurance company reviews your medical background and considers how it might affect the likelihood of you making a claim on your income protection policy.

An underwriter will assess information from a range of sources including the answers you give to any medical questions, information from your doctor or the results of any tests or examinations they request.

How can it affect my Income Protection quote?

Medical underwriting can cause some changes to your premium if a medical condition is of concern to the insurance company. Each condition is assessed individually and some conditions may not cause any changes whereas other more serious conditions can increase premiums.

Conditions are generally assessed on the way you are effected by them and the treatment and recovery you have undergone.

For instance an insurance company assessing someone who is overweight may ask if a client undertakes regular exercise in order to find out if the client is trying to correct the problem and take care of their health. Someone who exercises regularly may receive a better underwriting result than someone who is overweight but is not trying to rectify things.

Medical underwriting does not however mean that your premiums will go up in all cases. Many conditions are not seen as an issue by an insurer and will have no effect on your income protection insurance terms or premium.

The best way to find out if a condition might affect your policy is to contact one of our advisors who will be happy to advise you on the effect of your medical background.

What can it involve?

Income protection medical assessment can include a number of methods including the following:

• Medical Questionnaire – A series of medical and lifestyle questions asked as part of your income protection application form. This will generally ask about your height and weight, alcohol intake, cigarette usage and medical conditions from which you suffer. They then go on to ask more in depth questions about any conditions you have identified such as the treatment you have received and how the condition affected you.
• Telephone Interview – A telephone call from a nurse to enquire deeper about a particular condition you have told the insurer about. A call usually works better than writing to you because the nurse is specially trained to obtain enough information to assess the condition.
• General Practitioner's Report – A request from an insurer for your GP to complete a medical questionnaire about you. The insurance company pay for these and there is no cost to you. These allow the insurer to obtain in depth medical information such as the medical names of the condition and treatments you received. You must provide permission for the insurance company to approach your doctor about you income protection policy.
• Family Medical History – Your families medical background can be a good indication of your likelihood to suffer from a particular hereditary condition. Whilst assessing your income protection application, an insurer will ask if your close family (parents, brothers and sisters) have suffered from a range of conditions before a certain age, usually 65.

Will I always need a medical examination for my Income Protection?

Sometimes an insurer will ask a doctor or nurse to conduct a short medical examination with you. The insurance company pays for this examination and it is conducted at a time suitable for you. Medical examinations are quite rare when applying for income protection insurance and an insurer would much rather obtain the information they require through other means to keep their costs down.

What protection does it offer me?

Medical underwriting is highly important to ensure you are fully protected and not at risk of non-disclosure and therefore a reduced or rejected payout. The assessment of your health ensures the insurance company is fully aware of your medical background and unless a person has deceived the insurer whilst applying for income protection, the chances of non-disclosure are far far higher.