Agent Owner, Gilmore Insurance Services, Marysville, Washington State
None that I know of will underwrite a mentally impaired person. It goes back to basic contract law and both parties being of sound mind to contract together.
In fact when dealing with seniors these days an agent must be sure the senior is of sound mind when doing any financial work. Often, a agent will include family members of the client in the discussion. Dementia is something that can come on quickly and courts have ruled against agents who may have sold products to seniors who not much later on, suffered from dementia.
President, The Firm of Steven H. Kobrin, LUTCF, 6-05 Saddle River Rd #103, Fair Lawn, NJ 07410
People with many forms of “mental illness” can get life insurance. Bear in mind that this term can cover a wide range of impairments. I know firsthand that many of them are insurable.
A lot of it boils down to the need for the life insurance.
Almost anybody can qualify for a burial policy. Depending on the age of the insured, and the state of residence, a number of small policies could be available. Won’t cost too much, and gets the job done.
But what if you need more substantial coverage?
For example, I worked with a family who had an adult son who is “mentally retarded.” He was reasonably self-sufficient. He actually worked for his father part-time, and did missionary work first church. He had the skills and personality to go door-to-door and spread his gospel.
The insurance company gave us money for not just final expenses, but then some for the family. There was a co-dependence there that was insurable.
You can see that people who are mentally ill can establish themselves as a valued member of the group. The members of the group therefore have an insurable interest in them, and deserve money to compensate for their loss.
And this could include people with many other impairments. Autism, depression, severe anxiety, PTSD. ADD. OCD. People with any and all of these can be fairly high functioning, and therefore insurable.
Don’t forget one other important item: planning for people with special needs. Folks with impairments can be functional, but can also remain dependent on their family members. What if those family members die? Life insurance is needed on on the parents, or responsible siblings, so that the dependent family member can remain self-sufficient.
Now, with regard to the choice of carrier: there is not a hot list of companies that take people with mental illness. Potential applicants need to be prequalified to identify the carrier with the most interest in this particular case at this particular time. And that could change from quarter to quarter, or from year-to-year. It is the job of the broker to know which companies like which types of cases.
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In fact when dealing with seniors these days an agent must be sure the senior is of sound mind when doing any financial work. Often, a agent will include family members of the client in the discussion. Dementia is something that can come on quickly and courts have ruled against agents who may have sold products to seniors who not much later on, suffered from dementia.
A lot of it boils down to the need for the life insurance.
Almost anybody can qualify for a burial policy. Depending on the age of the insured, and the state of residence, a number of small policies could be available. Won’t cost too much, and gets the job done.
But what if you need more substantial coverage?
For example, I worked with a family who had an adult son who is “mentally retarded.” He was reasonably self-sufficient. He actually worked for his father part-time, and did missionary work first church. He had the skills and personality to go door-to-door and spread his gospel.
The insurance company gave us money for not just final expenses, but then some for the family. There was a co-dependence there that was insurable.
You can see that people who are mentally ill can establish themselves as a valued member of the group. The members of the group therefore have an insurable interest in them, and deserve money to compensate for their loss.
And this could include people with many other impairments. Autism, depression, severe anxiety, PTSD. ADD. OCD. People with any and all of these can be fairly high functioning, and therefore insurable.
Don’t forget one other important item: planning for people with special needs. Folks with impairments can be functional, but can also remain dependent on their family members. What if those family members die? Life insurance is needed on on the parents, or responsible siblings, so that the dependent family member can remain self-sufficient.
Now, with regard to the choice of carrier: there is not a hot list of companies that take people with mental illness. Potential applicants need to be prequalified to identify the carrier with the most interest in this particular case at this particular time. And that could change from quarter to quarter, or from year-to-year. It is the job of the broker to know which companies like which types of cases.