Americans Deemed "Too Risky" to Acquire Life Insurance are Getting a Second Look.

• Date: 24 September 2021
• Author: Ford, Paul

Life insurance ownership across the nation has dropped by 9% in the last decade.(l) As of 2018, it was estimated that 27% of non-elderly adults in the United States had at least one pre-existing condition that would disqualify them from getting life insurance--that's 53.8 million people.(2) According to NerdWallet, the average minimum life insurance monthly premium is $26. Therefore, that's up to $1.4 billion dollars insurance companies are losing by not taking a second look at these allegedly at-risk Americans.

"The decline in insurance coverage is partly due to how frustrating the process of obtaining coverage is. Large legacy companies are sticking with outdated insurance technology using actuarial tables that haven't kept up with changing needs. Those obsolete ways of determining eligibility are part of why a large number of Americans with pre-existing conditions are rejected for life insurance," says Traffk Co-founder and CEO Paul Ford. "We'll actually run the data via medical records, pharmacy records and see how this person manages the condition. If we find it's suppressed and/or very well managed and their vitals are just as normal as anyone else's, we help them."

Changes in life expectancy and internet usage means more people need life-insurance but may not be able to access it. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic people have had to confront their need for mortality protection.(3) Despite the radical changes, society underwent to keep people safely at home, most legacy companies have been...