Florida is the birthplace of Gatorade, sunscreen, key lime pie, and air conditioning, as well as the oldest city in America, St. Augustine. It is the home of famously beautiful beaches, more golf courses than any other state, and the most lightning strikes per capita in the country. Low rates of obesity and smoking, coupled with an extremely low rate of death from influenza may affect life insurance rates in Florida.
Florida Life Insurance Quotes online comparison
If you want to get the best life insurance rates in florida, shop around and get quotes from a number of insurance companies.
Last year alone, 14,208 people did just that using insurancequotesinflorida.com to compare life insurance rates in Florida.
Life Insurance Rate Factors in Florida
Age - Age is one of the largest factors affecting life insurance rates in Florida. The younger you are when you purchase a policy, the less likely it is that it will pay out, so the lower your rates. So, it’s best to get life insurance while you’re young.
Life expectancy at birth in Florida is 79.4 years, slightly higher than the life expectancy at birth for the US overall, which is 78.9 years. What if you purchased a 30-year term life policy in Florida at age 53? You'd be more likely than not to pass away before 83 years of age, the end of the term.
On the other hand, what if you were 36 years old and purchased a 30-year term life policy? You'd be well under Florida’s life expectancy of 79.4 years old when the policy term ended. And you’d be a much lower risk to insure and would therefore pay much lower rates than the person in the former example.
Driving Record - Car accidents are incredibly common; they kill more than 30,000 people per year. If someone has a driving record littered with moving violations, they are at an increased risk of a premature demise. The result is higher rates.
Firearm Deaths - Places that have higher rates of accidental or premature death generally have higher rates. A significant part of these untimely deaths comes from firearm injuries, which account for about 33,000 deaths in the US every year. In Florida, the death rate from injury due to firearms is 11.9 per 100,000 deaths, the #23 highest rate in the country. Nationwide, the average firearm death rate is 10.4 per 100,000.
Gender - Women live longer than men on average. So they pay less for insurance than a similar man would. In Florida, the percentage of the population that’s female is 51.1%. The percentage that’s male is 48.9%. In the US as a whole, women are 50.8% of the population, and men are 49.2% of the population.
Health History - Most of us have one or two minor health issues. But if you have a serious illness or a family history of such illnesses, this can impact your rates.
There are conditions like heart disease or cancer which can make your premiums much higher. In some cases, a pre-existing condition can make you ineligible. That's why it’s important to get life insurance before something serious happens.
Lifestyle & Hobbies - People who engage in adventure sports or who have potentially dangerous hobbies will pay more for insurance. This is especially relevant in Florida, where water sports are very popular.
Marital Status - Married people live longer and are healthier than similar single people. So, if you’re married, you can get a modest discount on life insurance. In Florida in 2009, the rate of marriage for people over 15 was 32.2 per 1,000 people. The rate of divorce was 17.5 per 1,000 people. And the rate of widowhood was 12.8 per 1,000 people.
Occupation - People with hazardous jobs like logging and fishing will pay more for insurance than someone with a less dangerous, mundane office job. The most common job in Florida is a motorboat operator.
Tobacco Use - Tobacco users don’t live as long as non-tobacco users. So smokers pay a lot more for life insurance than an identical non-tobacco user. Tobacco use is associated with a number of health complications, such as heart disease, stroke, and COPD. Any of which may cause higher rates as well as an earlier death.
As of 2013, the national average rate of smoking was 19%. To compare to the most recent data available, in 2013, approximately 16.8% of Florida adults smoked cigarettes – about 2,600,000 adults.
Travel - If you regularly travel to developing countries, particularly countries on the US State Department’s Warning List, you will pay more for insurance than a traveler who sticks to developed countries.
Value of Policy - One of the largest contributing factors to a policy’s premiums is the value of the policy. As with anything, you get what you pay for. The more protection that you purchase, the more you pay.
Weight - Obesity has surpassed smoking to become America’s largest public health cost and problem. Obese or seriously overweight people have a lower life expectancy. This means an increased probability of their policy being paid out. Obesity increases the likelihood of health problems such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and some cancers. So overweight and obese individuals can expect to pay higher rates.
As of 2013, the adult obesity rate in Florida was 26.4%. This makes Florida the #37 most obese state. Overall, the average obesity rate in the US is 34.9%.
While each of these factors plays a big role in the cost of your policy, some aspects of life insurance are entirely individual. Insurance companies calculate your rates based on your own health, habits, and lifestyle. That’s why shopping around and comparing quotes is so important–to make sure you’re getting the best rate possible.
The best way to compare Life Insurance Rates in Florida is through insurancequotesinflorida.com
Financial Strength Ratings of Top Florida Life/Health Insurers
Source: A.M. Best (Ratings as of 8/31/2015)
AEGON: A+
American International Group: A
Lincoln National Corp.: A+
Metlife Inc.: A+
Jackson National Life Group: A+
Prudential Financial Corp: A+
Manulife Financial Corp.: NR
Nationwide Mutual Group: A+
Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co.: A++
Guggenheim Capital LLC: B++
Florida Life Insurance Regulations
Insurance in Florida is governed by the laws defined by Title 37 of the Florida Statutes, as outlined by the Florida State Legislature.
This legislature, which contains two parts and 84 chapters, is used to regulate claims and provide certain protections to Florida consumers, for example:
Grace Period: Any life insurance policyholder in Florida is entitled to a 30-day grace period” to make up a missed payment without punishment or file a death claim after the missed payment. This is to prohibit the insurance company from withholding a claim or cancelling a policy because of a slightly late payment. If the insured individual passes away during the grace period, the insurance company is responsible for paying the claim.
Guarantee on Death Claims: If an insurance company is unable to make payments on death claims, the Florida Life and Health Insurance Guaranty Association will cover up to $300,000 of death benefits. This is so that consumers have confidence that their beneficiaries will receive at least some of their death benefit, though the amount is the same regardless of how much the policy is worth.
These regulations don’t just protect consumers; they also protect insurance companies from fraud. For example, Florida insurers may challenge any information in your insurance application for up to two years from the policy’s effective date. If they find any evidence of fraud, they can terminate your policy immediately.