Unhealthy eating can affect your life insurance cover

With many people likely to have consumed more than their fair share of turkey and mince pies over Christmas, Legal & General is highlighting the affect that weight can have on life insurance premiums.

Body Mass Index (BMI) is a measure that the life insurance industry uses to asses a person’s shape and therefore health, when applying for a life insurance or critical illness policy. If an individual’s BMI is considered high, then they may be charged more for a policy due to the increased risk of ill health.

Bonnie Burns, Protection Marketing Director at Legal & General said: “Whilst the dangers of poor nutrition are becoming more widely accepted by the public, the impact of weight on insurance premiums is less well understood. BMI is just one of the factors that we consider when assessing a person’s health. Although this is not an exact science, we find that BMI is the best indicator of the risk of being overweight to people’s health. There is a BMI range which is considered to be acceptable. Anyone finding themselves outside this range may find that their premiums are higher than for someone at the same height as them but with a thinner waist.”

Legal & General will not increase premiums if a person’s BMI is 30 or under. Someone with a BMI in excess of 30 would be considered to be clinically obese.

Top healthy eating tips for maintaining a healthy weight:

1. Start as you mean to go on. Try and eat breakfast even if you don't usually, it will fill you up and help prevent you reaching for a high fat or sugar snack mid morning.

2. Go wholegrain. Swap your white toast for wholegrain bread or opt for a wholegrain cereal. This can help lower your risk of heart disease.

3. Herbal's the way. As an alternative to high fat, sugary hot drinks -try herbal teas instead as they are calorie-free, warming and add to your daily intake of fluid.

4. Pack your lunch. Rather than rely on limited shop-brought lunches, pack your own with minimal fats and maximum fruit and vegetables.

5. 5 a day Make your own soups with very little fat or salt using lots of fresh vegetables. It’s quick and simple to make and keeps well in the fridge for a few days.

6. Warm comfort. Warm fruit compote makes a great dessert during the cold dark evenings and a blob of plain yogurt or fromage frais makes it extra special.

7. Be prepared. Don't let snacking ruin your healthy diet. Make sure you pack fruit, nuts and seeds and carry some water or juice if you know you will be on the go for a while.

8. Slow cook. Those of you who like using a slow cooker can prepare healthy stews or casseroles without oil or salt.

9. Twice a week. Fish pie makes a healthy and warming dish and if you use oily fish it counts towards your heart friendly Omega 3 intake.

10. Whiz Up. A great way of upping your intake of fruit and veg is to make your own smoothies. Cram in a much as you fancy and whiz yourself a tasty, healthy treat.

Source – British Heart Foundation

Legal & General is advising everyone, whether they are ‘too short for their weight’ or not, to be 100 per cent accurate on their application forms for life insurance and critical illness.

Bonnie Burns commented: “The issue of non-disclosure of important personal facts is still a significant problem for the life insurance industry, so we would urge applicants as one of their New Year’s resolutions to be 100 per cent accurate on their application forms. If a life insurer finds out that medical details such as weight are inaccurate after a claim is made, then the policy might not pay out.”