Guide
Health classes explained
Understanding the four tiers—Preferred Plus, Preferred, Standard Plus, and Standard—and the factors that place you in each.
Insurance companies grade term coverage via rate class. While naming conventions may shift between companies, the scale stays the same: Preferred Plus (sometimes called Super Preferred or Preferred Best), Preferred, Standard Plus, and Standard, plus additional rating tiers for above-average risk. Tobacco users sit in a separate bracket with elevated rates.
What underwriters look at
Carriers examine your build (height and weight), blood pressure and cholesterol levels, family health background (especially early heart disease or cancer), driving history, medications you take, line of work and pastimes, and any tobacco or nicotine products. Getting Preferred Plus requires excellent findings across the board; Preferred is forgiving of minor variations; Standard Plus and Standard encompass controlled medical problems such as blood pressure being treated.
How to use the quote tool
Answer the health prompt truthfully: Excellent maps to Preferred Plus, Very good to Preferred, Good to Standard Plus, and Average to Standard. Your quotes are based on that tier; the carrier's underwriting will determine your final placement. Uncertain about your tier? Run quotes for two different categories to see the difference, then let the underwriting make the call. Overstating your health does not reduce what you pay; it only throws off your estimates.
Susman Insurance Agency can guide you toward carriers whose underwriting is more lenient with a particular condition—frequently a more valuable factor than focus on base prices.