Posts filed under 'cigar smokers'
I will post this very quietly so as not to wake the life insurance underwriters who would likely leap on an article like this to do away with the great non smoking rates that cigar smoking applicants are getting right now. By the way, I haven’t seen this information shared in Cigar Aficianado.
I remember as a child when the family would travel. My Mom was a cigarette smoker and my Dad smoked cigars. In the winter in Wyoming there isn’t a whole lot of rolling the window down for fresh air, so at the end of a 50 or 100 mile trip I often felt like I had inhaled the equivalent of a small tobacco plantation on fire. It was not pleasant.
While much has been made of cigarettes and their second hand smoke, very little has been said about cigars and both the first and second hand dangers they pose.
The article made some very good points that I honestly hadn’t considered. Cigars often have a great concentration of nicotine, the substance you get addicted to. The not inhaling into the lungs argument is a myth as the nicotine is readily absorbed into the blood through the lining of your mouth.
While cigars are not as frequently blamed as cigarettes for lung cancer, they are a major risk factor for pancreatic cancer, bladder cancer, heart disease, and lung disease.
While a person might only smoke a cigar or two a day (frequent smoker), they are larger and because they are wrapped differently than cigarettes, have more of the toxins and irritants than cigarettes. “A Journal of Exposure Analysis and Environmental Epidemiology study found higher levels of the toxin carbon monoxide at two cigar social events in San Francisco than on a busy California freeway”.
Currently there are a handful of companies that will approve non smoking rates for frequent cigar smokers and plenty of companies that will just about look the other way for occasional cigar use.
Bottom line. Consider the risk. Consider your life insurance and take advantage of the fact that there are at least a few companies that haven’t put frequent cigar smokers in the same category as the cigarette smoking counterparts. Consider those who get to share that smoke!
June 18th, 2009
Well, if the last post didn’t hit on anything else important, everyone should at least know that smoking cigarettes can change your life expectancy, and not in a happy way.
If you do smoke cigarettes and need life insurance, let me be very clear about this. You need to shop with gusto. Usually there are just a couple of companies that will have rates that are as good as it gets for a smoker. From there the rates get ugly and by the time you are down to the 10th best company it’s like those rates got hit by a whole forest full of ugly sticks. There are fair rates out there given the mortality risk that smoking produces and understand that they will be about double what a non smoker will pay, at best, and also consider it a wake up call and a good reason to consider quitting. Once you haven’t used any tobacco or nicotine products for 12 months you can cut those rates in half or buy twice as much insurance or double the term length.
But what about cigar smokers? Or chew or snuff? Depending on the extent of your use, how heavily you smoke or chew, the rate classes you can qualify for can range anywhere from standard plus non smoker to the best rate class, preferred plus non smoker. The determinant of how heavily you use these things is first, your own statement as to use, and second a lab test that can determine if you are in fact an occasional user or an everyday user.
There are plenty of companies out there that will give great non smoking rates for cigar smokers if you truly don’t smoke daily. The most liberal actually says that you can smoke as many as one a week, but you have to test negative for nicotine. A little tricky. Most companies lean more toward the “occasional” use as acceptable, more like 1 a month or 4 a year. If that is your habit and you don’t smoke one shortly before your exam, a negative nicotine reading should be no problem.
Then there are a few companies that will offer non smoking rates, even with positive nicotine levels, as long as your nicotine use does not include cigarettes. Pipes, cigars, and chew are all acceptable at non smoking rates.
Bottom line. Big difference between cigars and cigarettes from both mortality and life insurance price views. Again, if you smoke cigarettes get an independent agent and shop carefully. If your nicotine habit is other than cigarettes, get an independent agent and shop carefully.
March 26th, 2009
One of the biggest life insurance rate hits is for those who smoke. There is some logic to that given the link between cigarette smoking and cancer and heart disease, but are the underwriters throwing apples and oranges in the same basket and assuming they all taste the same?
More companies than not bulk all forms of tobacco use in the same category as cigarette smoking, so for those who are cigar smokers or chew tobacco, even though the mortality risk is much different than for cigarette smoking, they pay the same rates. While most companies don’t really care if that is fair, some distinguish between the different forms of tobacco use and offer non smoking rates to.
To put this more in perspective, the cost difference between smoking and non smoking is about the same as that between someone in perfect health and someone with type 2 diabetes. Given the huge mortality risk hit appointed to smokers, the logic for that same risk for cigar smokers isn’t just thin, it’s absent.
There are companies out there who graciously allow an “occasional” cigar without taking someone to the cleaners. American General will even allow one cigar a week and still offer their best rate. The caveat and, in my mind, the bait and switch of that offer is that they also say you have to have a negative nicotine test on your labs. Given the length of time it takes for nicotine to leave the system, one cigar a week and a negative result on nicotine don’t logically match up. Most companies that allow occasional cigar use define it as one per month or four to six per year and negative nicotine.
There are a few companies out there who simply stand out on the issue. The goal of anyone who uses tobacco or nicotine other than cigarettes should be an approval at non smoker rates, rates that reflect the difference in mortality. Prudential Financial for instance will allow non smoking rates for tobacco use other than cigarettes even with a positive nicotine lab result. They don’t cap the amount of use in an attempt to paint you into an occasional corner.
Bottom line. If you smoke cigars or chew, and are being offered smoking rates or having a policy in force with smoking rates, seek out an independent agent who can guide you to the lower rates that are available, the rates that you deserve.
December 19th, 2008
Several years ago Cigar Aficionado ran an article on life insurance for cigar smokers. It was a poorly researched article at the time and fell well short of giving the information needed for the cigar enjoying public to get the best rates possible.
I have offered more than once to write a new article with updated and accurate information and they don’t seem to be interested. I guess they don’t see the significance in their clientele being able to, in many cases, cut their life insurance bills in half, or perhaps double their life insurance for what they are currently paying.
The issue is that with most companies cigar smokers as well as pipe smokers and tobacco chewers are all treated the same as cigarette smokers. The news is that there is at least one company out there that offers competitive non smoking rates in all three of those categories. Even with positive nicotine results on your labs. There are a handful that will offer non smoking rates no matter how much you smoke (other than cigarettes) if you have a negative nicotine lab result. There are a bunch of companies that will entertain “occasional” cigar smokers with negative nicotine, occasional being defined as anything from 4 a year to 2 a month.
Bottom line. It’s just a fact that the more affordable your life insurance is, the more likely it is to stay in force. Wake up Cigar Aficionado! The more they save on insurance the more they can spend on cigars.
October 27th, 2008
Preventive medicine has been around for a long time. In most cases that takes the shape of being on medication for borderline cholesterol or blood pressure issues. In some cases where women have a better than average chance of having breast cancer, radical mastectomy is considered to be not just a cancer treatment, but preventive medicine.
Women who come from a family with a history of breast cancer, or who have the known breast and ovarian cancer genes BRCA1 and BRCA2, there is a much higher than normal risk of them having breast cancer. For many women, knowing that breast cancer can kill, removing the breasts seems like a viable alternative to the uncertainty.
Breast cancer is the second most common cancer among women, but much deadlier than the most common, skin cancer.
Another preventive approach is through lifestyle changes. Everything from increased exercise to increased awareness concerning breast exams can be either preventive or help you in the effort to catch cancer in early stages where it is very treatable and curable.
From a life insurance standpoint, a preventive mastectomy would likely not lead to any different rates than the family history itself. If the procedure is due to genetics it would likely be treated the same as early stage breast cancer which would mean than standard or better rates should be available.
Bottom line. Tough decisions. A radical mastectomy is, well, radical and it is not a guarantee that you won’t get breast cancer. Even the smallest amount of breast tissue that is left can still get cancer. Just a tough decision.
October 1st, 2008
As I wrote that title it occurred to me that I might be showing my age. The advertising slogan for Prudential used to be (may still be?) “Own a piece of the rock”. Anyway, Prudential is a stand alone company when it comes to their treatment.
In an article in Cigar Aficionado a few years back they provided an overview of where cigar smokers could get the best deals. Unfortunately their source of information wasn’t horribly accurate and they wouldn’t entertain any clarification. I did post some updated information on their forum today and hopefully that will lead them to use an article to update their readers.
As recently as two years ago there were a few more companies that would entertain people who regularly smoke cigars, smoke pipes or chew tobacco, and tested positive for nicotine. The positive test is a big deal. There are actually numerous companies that allow “occasional use”, defined as anything from a cigar a week to 4 cigars a year, but if you test positive for nicotine all bets are off and you get a smoking rate.
Today Prudential stands alone as the company that will approve at non smoker rates for nicotine use other than cigarettes, even with a positive test. Any cigar smoker who is paying smoker rates through another company is paying about twice what they need to.
Bottom line. Many agents out there don’t do their homework and are just fine with you paying more than you need to. After all, more premium means more commission. Contact an independent agent today and tell them you want non smoker rates for cigar, pipe or chew use and if they don’t quote Prudential, find another agent.
July 2nd, 2008
Ahh! The good old days when smokers were smokers except with one life insurance company, some smokers weren’t smokers.
This actually wasn’t all that long ago, maybe a year and a half, but there was a company called US Financial who truly looked at things in a different way. This was a company that pioneered what they called “clinical underwriting”, a term that simply meant that they looked at each case on its’ own merit. This differs from traditional underwriting where, literally, each applicant with a health issue or habit is thrown into the same bucket and they are all given the same rate class with very little consideration for differences in control or habits.
This proved to be huge for those people who fell into what US Financial considered a social smoker category. Qualification for social smoker status was pretty straight forward. If you were under age 50, smoked less than a pack a day and had smoked less than 20 pack years (defined as less than a pack a day for 20 years), you could qualify for preferred non smoking rates even though you were in fact smoking.
This differed greatly from traditional underwriting. All the other insurance companies would put you in a smoker category even if you were one of those people who smoked half a dozen cigarettes a month, truly a social smoker. Those companies, which are now all companies since US Financial was purchased and put out of business by AXA Equitable, would have you pay rates 2 to 4 times higher than a non smoker even though there is clearly no clinical or medical link between a very occasional cigarette and the health conditions that are attributable to regular smoking.
But, as happens with most good old days, they disappear. AXA Equitable bought and destroyed one of the best, most innovative companies in the history of life insurance.
Bottom line. Now cigarette smokers are in fact smokers. There is still one bastion of relief for those who use tobacco or nicotine products other than cigarettes. A good independent agent would guide you to Prudential for non smoker rates if you are a cigar smoker or pipe smoker, or happen to chew. Again, all other companies would put you in the same bucket as cigarette smokers for those habits.
June 9th, 2008
I know I’ve been all about the downside of smoking and life insurance this week. I’ve gone on and on about the valid reasons why life insurance underwriters are a bit brutal when it comes to smoking, especially in combination with health issues that are caused by smoking or are exacerbated by smoking.
So, in an effort to end the week on an upbeat note, I thought I would shift gears from cigarettes to cigars. While most of us can probably agree that there are fewer known health risks connected to cigar smoking, primarily because you’ll kill yourself if you inhale, most insurance companies treat cigar and cigarette smokers exactly the same. If you smoke, you’re a smoker.
There are a handful of companies that allow “occasional” cigar use at rates as good as their best non smoking rates, but they are all over the map on what they call occasional. For instance, West Coast Life says 6 per year or less, Banner Life is at 1 per month, and Genworth is 1 per month. Keep in mind that life insurance exams test for nicotine, and there is a requirement with all “occasional use” companies that you test negative for nicotine. I always encourage the “occasional” applicants to lay off the occasions for 2-3 weeks before the exam. One of my clients recently disregarded that suggestion and had a cigar 2 days prior to the exam and blew his chance for some great rates.
There are a few more companies that actually allow you to celebrate all year. American General and ING Reliastar will allow a cigar a week, but again you have to test negative for nicotine. Just in case anyone thinks I am gaming the system by suggesting to clients to lay off for 2-3 weeks, these companies know that if someone smokes 1 per week consistently they will test positive. They also know that the agents recommend a hiatus and as long as the labs show what they want to see, they will approve it.
Many more companies offer their second best non smoking rate for occasional use. Included in that group would be Savings Bank Life who will allow a “few cigars a year”, North American at 2 or less per month and Lincoln Benefit at 1 per month. Again, negative nicotine.
The standout company in the crowd is Prudential who will allow cigars, pipes or chew at standard plus non smoking rates. No limits are required and they expect a positive nicotine result. They are the go to company for pipes and chew and for anyone that will have a problem showing a negative nicotine level.
Bottom line. At least there are options when it comes to cigars, pipes and chew. When it comes to cigarettes, the rate choices are high or higher.
May 23rd, 2008
For all of you that have applied for life insurance and smoke cigars, and didn’t use the right company and agent, you’ve felt the sting of smoker rates. In general, cigarette smokers will spend 2-3 times what a non smoker will spend on life insurance given everything else being equal.
I’ll try not to get on my soapbox too much about how it should be obvious why that’s the case with cigarette smoking. With links to just about every malady known to mankind, an insurance company would be crazy not to figure that into their mortality assumptions and rates. The best you can do as a smoker is to find an independent agent that has access to the best rates available. Right now, in most cases, that would be with Liberty Life and Western Reserve Life.
If you happen use tobacco in some other form such as cigars or chew, and run into an agent that doesn’t know any better, they will probably just quote whatever smoker rate they can find and hope you buy it because, well….because you’re a tobacco user and that means more premium and more commission.
A good indpendent agent on the other hand is going to know that with Prudential you can get non smoker, non tobacco user rates even if you smoke cigars or chew all day long and test positive for nicotine on your exam.
Bottom line. Cutting your rates in half by finding an agent who knows where to take your business and where not to makes sense somehow……unless you want to spend too much money.
March 24th, 2008
There are plenty of life insurance companies out there who will look the other way on cigar smoking as long as you are truly an “occasional” smoker. Each company has their take on what occasional means.
For a few companies you need to save those cigars for true celebrations, and then only for a few a year. You need to pick and choose your occasion wisely if you want them to ignore the habit in underwriting with some companies allowing as few as 2-4 per year. There are companies that must have golfing, cigar smoking CEO’s, These companies have stretched occasional to as many as a dozen a year.
Keep in mind that while these companies are allowing this use without underwriting penalty, they expect you to have negative nicotine results on your labs (yes they test for it). So, if you are an occasional user and would like the break offered, let your agent know so that they can advise you to lay off any occasions for a month prior to your exam. All of us in the business have had clients who have just been overcome with the joy of the moment and can’t resist smoking a cigar the day before an exam. Positive nicotine results lead this group of companies to assume that you are a common smoker and if you stay with them you will pay smoker rates, easily 2-3 times what you were expecting to pay.
The big alternative, and there is really only one left, is Prudential. They stand alone. They allow tobacco or nicotine use, except for cigarettes, even with positive nicotine in the labs at non smoker rates. So, for all of those who chew, smoke pipes or cigars, Pru has a deal that today is not found anywhere else. This is not a small deal if you fall into the category of a tobacco user other than cigarettes. This is huge and can cut your life insurance cost in half.
Bottom line. You’ll never hear about this if you don’t use an independent agent. You’ll never know about this if you aren’t completely honest with your agent about your tobacco habits. Don’t make yourself and your agent look foolish by assuming that you can slide that cigar use past the underwriters.
March 18th, 2008
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