Recently, my husband and I visited with our insurance agent, and filled out the forms that are required in order for us to apply for life insurance. We were told to expect a phone call from an underwriter, who will ask each of us some health questions. Today, the underwriter called.
Our insurance agent told us that the phone call was nothing to be worried about. She said it was best to answer everything with a simple “yes” or “no”, and to be truthful. There was no need to go into a long story about a particular health topic. Just answer the question. She also said that we should expect some of the questions to be repetitive. The information collected by the underwriter will be used to help the insurance company determine how much of a risk we represent to them, so they can decide how much our premiums will cost us.
The call today came from the “tele underwriter department”, and was being recorded. I think my husband and I were asked almost all of the same questions. I was asked to verify my name, and birthday. Both of these questions were asked twice. The underwriter wanted to know the last four digits of my social security number. From there, I was asked if, in the last ten years, I had been diagnosed with, or saw a doctor about, a whole series of possible health conditions. Three separate questions asked me if I had HIV. Several questions seemed to be designed to find out if I had cancer.
Some questions seemed to be asking me if I was a drug addict, or alcoholic. I was specifically asked if I used tobacco products. She also wanted to know if I was currently pregnant, or if I’d had complications with previous pregnancies. She then asked who my primary care physician was, which makes me wonder if the underwriter will be calling her next, to see if I told the truth.
Next, I was asked if my mother, father, or siblings had any of the diseases or disorders that I was asked about before. Lastly, I was asked if I would give my consent for them to use the information they collected today. I was asked to say “yes” if I was willing to let them use my word “yes” as a form of electronic signature. The last step in this process is to have a health exam. We are to wait until they contact us about setting that up.
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