I just want to go on record as saying I don’t write this kind of post to brag. I share these victories occasionally to help keep the hope alive for so many with bipolar disorder or other mood disorders who have been declined or abused with a high rating for no other reason than they used the wrong agent who used the wrong company. It doesn’t have to be that way.

I was contacted by this client after he had applied for life insurance through his auto and homeowner’s agent. I’ve shared hundreds of times that when you face a life insurance challenge, you need to use an independent life insurance agent who can gather the information and shop it to find the right LIFE insurance company to apply with. Things didn’t go well with his auto guy and he called me. After compiling all of the information on the client it was crystal clear that he met all of the criteria to get approved and get approved at a fair rate.

This person had been in a position of considerable authority in a large city for over 20 years. He was stable, dependable and took his bipolar condition seriously, always being compliant with medication and followup. He had been diagnosed bipolar almost 30 years prior and had never been hospitalized and since going on medication in his early 20’s had never really had any episodes of consequence and had never had any suicidal thoughts. The picture he painted was so squeaky clean that I asked him if he was sure he was bipolar and his answer kind of surprised me. He said he really wasn’t sure and neither was his psychiatrist, but in the position he held, with the number of people who were dependent on him being solidly in charge, he wasn’t going to quit taking the medicine to find out.

All companies that sell life insurance have underwriting guidelines that tell them how to treat specific situations. The best impaired risk life insurance companies and bipolar life insurance companies recognize that those are just guidelines. The other 99% of life insurance companies just take it as a fact, rule by the book and go on. If your application says that you have bipolar disorder you can expect to be declined by 95% of the companies, abused by high prices by 4% and given a fair hearing by 1%. So how do you get to the 1% that can help? You’ve figured part of it out. Search the internet and stay vigilant for those who are using bipolar disorder as a key word but don’t have anything to offer as far as how to win the day. Stay away from agents that don’t know about bipolar disorder. You can tell by their questions and their answers to your questions. If they don’t understand bipolar they won’t be able to help you.  Stay away from agents that only represent one company. They are the 99%.

Bottom line. Most people with bipolar disorder are leading stable, productive lives but are being led to believe that they can’t get life insurance. In so many cases that just isn’t true. If you have any questions or have been declined or abused because of your mood disorder, call or email me directly. My name is Ed Hinerman. Let’s talk.