How long does life insurance take to get approved?
Typically, it takes four to eight weeks for traditionally underwritten policies to be approved and issued. For instant life insurance policies that use accelerated underwriting, it's possible for coverage to go into effect on the same day.
With an instant life insurance policy, you can get approved shortly after you apply. You can apply with no medical exam. You won't have to wait days, weeks, or months for a decision and typically your coverage almost immediately if there is no waiting period.
Life insurance coverage is only officially active on and after the effective date. You don't have coverage right when you apply, before the effective date. You can get temporary life insurance coverage to protect yourself before your policy's effective date.
Applications That Take Months
If an underwriter wants to get you the best coverage and premium rates for your risk, they may need to do extra legwork to understand your health or other factors.
It's an awful thought, but not something you should worry much about. That's because very few life insurance claims are actually denied. “Life insurers pay the vast majority of claims made,” says Whit Cornman, a spokesperson for the American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI), an industry group.
Typically, it takes four to eight weeks for traditionally underwritten policies to be approved and issued. For instant life insurance policies that use accelerated underwriting, it's possible for coverage to go into effect on the same day.
Instant life insurance is usually a term life policy that doesn't require a medical exam and involves accelerated underwriting with competitive pricing.
A life insurance company is contractually obligated to pay the specified death benefit regardless of when the loved one dies, whether it is four months or forty years after the policy takes effect.
To get a life insurance policy with no waiting period, you must apply with a company where you answer health questions and are subsequently approved. You don't have to take a medical exam, but you will have to answer some questions about your health history.
Yes, you can but it depends on which type of life insurance policy you buy. Below, we explain which different types of life insurance policies allow you to claim straight away as well as some exclusions to look out for.
What are the red flags for life insurance underwriting?
What are red flags for life insurance underwriting? Some red flags underwriters pay attention to are smoking or drug abuse, serious health issues, risky occupations or lifestyles, poor financial stability or a criminal background.
For example, applicants might lie about their age, income, weight, medical conditions, family medical history or occupation. It's also relatively common for applicants to lie about their alcohol or drug use.

When initially underwriting a life insurance policy, life insurance companies sometimes check up to 10 years of an applicant's medical records.
People are typically denied life insurance because they fall into a high-risk category. This is often due to health challenges like diabetes, obesity or a previous diagnosis of serious disease. There are also nonhealth reasons for being denied life insurance.
Their reasons could be anything from a serious medical condition (like heart disease) or poor results from your life insurance medical exam to nonmedical reasons like bankruptcy, a criminal record, a positive drug test or even a dangerous hobby—carriers are not fans of insuring base jumpers in squirrel suits.
What does life insurance not cover? Life insurance exclusions often include deaths from undisclosed pre-existing conditions, certain risky activities, fraud and intentional illegal acts.
There can be several situations resulting in the later payment of a life insurance claim. However, most delays can be attributed to incomplete information and improper documentation at the time of the claim. If you experience a delay in benefits, contact your insurance company right away to determine the cause.
The average time from the receipt of your application to receipt of your insurance certificate is six to eight weeks. This depends on how quickly the insurance company's underwriter can obtain the necessary medical information and, if needed, financial documents to assess your application.
The waiting period for a standard life insurance application is four to six weeks on average, but it can be longer. You can add temporary life insurance to your policy to cover you during the waiting period.
The $10,000 refers to the face value of the policy, otherwise known as the death benefit, and does not represent the cash value of life insurance policy. A $10,000 term life insurance policy has no cash value.
How much does $50,000 worth of life insurance cost?
$100-$500 monthly is the average cost of a $50,000 whole life insurance policy. Remember that factors such as your gender and health will heavily influence the exact cost. Below is a whole life price table that outlines some monthly cost estimates.
Instant life insurance enables you to receive coverage without any medical underwriting or waiting period. It's an attractive option for those who need life insurance quickly or have pre-existing conditions.
In many cases, it takes anywhere from 14 to 60 days for beneficiaries to receive a life insurance payout. But many factors impact this time frame. These include the insurance company's procedures, when the claim is filed, how long the policy was active, the cause of death, and state laws regarding insurance payouts.
How term life insurance works: The basics. A term life insurance policy is the simplest, purest form of life insurance : You pay a premium for a period of time – typically between 10 and 30 years – and if you die during that time a cash benefit is paid to your family (or anyone else you name as your beneficiary).
The key reasons life insurance may not pay out include if the policy has expired, lapsed due to unpaid premiums, the insured was untruthful on the application, the insured died from illegal activities, suicide, homicide, or during the waiting period.