Smoking has been linked, definitively, to heart disease, cancers, lung disease, and other respiratory problems. Life insurance firms base their rates on an individual’s life expectancy. The life expectancy calculations are based on medical studies done by either in house research departments or third party scientific studies. You may have a family history that suggests you could be all but invincible to the effects of cigarettes because Uncle So-and-so and Grandpa Whoever lived until the ripe old age of 102, smoked 3 packs a day, and died in a car accident, but this means nothing to the insurers. If you smoke, you are statistically more prone to developing a disease caused by smoking and, as such, your rates will be higher. There are a couple of companies out there that might take your anecdotal evidence into consideration, but you will still be deemed a high risk compared to a non-smoker.

Your life insurance company would prefer you live longer:

They don’t particularly care about you as an individual (though some companies do). They care the most about their profit margins and the longer you live and pay premiums the less soon they will have to pay out a death benefit. As a company that wants to collect premiums for as long as possible the whole life insurance underwriters will often offer lower rates to people who are expected to live a very long time. Your chances are fewer if you smoke, but this doesn’t mean you can’t get a decently priced smoker life insurance policy. Ignore the ads you keep seeing online, on billboards, and on the walls of your car and home insurance offices – you won’t get that price so you need to adjust your expectations.

Competition abounds in the smoker life insurance world:

Because life insurance is incredibly competitive today you will see tons of information that you never used to see. Before, they were constrained to TV and Magazines, but now they have the internet for promotion and as such the market has opened up wide. Do some comparison shopping and you will find that you will be able to find some decent rates. Keep in mind, too, that the amount you smoke could affect your rates. If you smoke a cigar once every year or one cigarette in a week you may be less of a risk than someone who smokes a pack a day. They will often reward you for less smoking.

The internet has not only made it easier for you to find information, but it’s made it easier for you to get multiple smoker life insurance quotes from many companies in one place. All you will have to do on an online quote system is answer a few questions and you’ll receive quotes from companies that service your area – usually within moments!