With my feet firmly planted in impaired risk life insurance, the you and me’s who can’t lay claim to perfect health, it is rare when I send someone life insurance quotes at preferred plus, preferred elite, preferred best or whatever clever name insurance companies want to call their very best rate class. What I send out is the best rate I believe we can get approved based on my corresponding with, or shopping the case with, 20 to 30 life insurance underwriters. These are the best and brightest in the life insurance underwriting world and they want to earn my (your) business while not ignoring risk.

So what makes me think my life insurance quote to you is the best you will actually receive after underwriting? If I have asked all of the health and background questions and if you have answered those questions with the same answers that will show up in your medical records, then there are no surprises for the life insurance underwriter. I’ve learned what information they need for any given impairment and I make sure they know the accurate answers. If I’m not sure what information they’ll want I call them and find out. I learned a long time ago that to quote without shopping almost never works and to quote without all the facts is only moderately better, so when I am short on what I need, whether it is a copy of a surgical pathology report, a narrative summary of a stress test so I know your exact ejection fraction or a 5 year history of PSA results, nothing goes to the underwriter until you’ve supplied the supporting records.

I lose some potential customers at this point because, well, some people are just too busy to chase down information and frankly, some feel like it’s my job. I’d like to address the second issue. You can apply for life insurance and the company can obtain the records. But keep in mind that I am only needing a few snapshots out of those records and if I can’t see the snapshots I’m relying on your memory of past information that you probably never paid that much attention to even in the midst of it. With snapshots I am shopping with facts and without I am shopping with information that may not hold up when they do get the full medical records.

Bottom line. So, some people think I’m too demanding, but those who work with me find out that I’m good at delivering on what I quote. They’re ecstatic when they get approved where other agents have failed to come through for them. After presenting quotes I am sometimes asked, “So, what do you think the chances of getting approved at that price are?”, and I read back to them what I wrote to the underwriters and tell them that if what I wrote is a factual representation of the impairment, there is absolutely no reason the end product would be different. If you have questions or feel like you didn’t have an agent that really worked for the best possible rate for you, call or email me directly. My name is Ed Hinerman. Let’s talk.