When we discuss the future protection of your family, term insurance is the simplest and wisest thing you can do. You send an annual fixed sum (known as the premium), and the company promises to pay a large sum (known as the sum assured) to your family if anything adverse occurs to you during the policy term.
It’s easy, but you might not know this: your premium is not the same. One of the biggest reasons it’s not the same is whether you are a smoker or a non-smoker.
Here in this article, we will inform you why it’s like that, how much it could be, how to choose the best term plan in India, and why you need to compare term insurance before you buy.
Why Smoking Affects Your Term Insurance Premium
Insurance companies decide your premium based on how risky they think it will be to insure you. If you’re healthy and less likely to face serious health problems, your premium is lower.
But smoking is widely known to cause health issues like lung cancer, heart disease, and breathing problems. This means smokers are considered high-risk customers.
From their standpoint, they’re at greater risk of having to settle your claim sooner if you’re a smoker. To compensate for this risk, they charge a higher premium.
Who is a Smoker in Term Insurance?
You may think that you’ll be labelled a smoker only if you smoke cigarettes every day. But by insurance standards, the requirements are broader:
- Cigarettes, cigars, beedis, even when you smoke occasionally
- Chewing tobacco, gutkha, or paan masala containing tobacco
- Nicotine patches or e-cigarettes (in most situations)
If you have used tobacco or nicotine in any way in the past 12 months, most insurers will consider you to be a smoker.
Why You Should Always Be Honest
Some people think, “I’ll just say I’m a non-smoker and save some money.” But this is risky.
If, down the line, it is discovered you misrepresented information to the insurance company, for example, during a medical exam or investigation of a claim, they can deny your claim. That leaves your loved ones with nothing when they need it most.
Always in your good sense to provide correct information in your proposal form and during medical check-ups. The extra premium you pay is peanuts compared to the satisfaction of knowing your claim will not be denied because you have provided the correct information.
Premium Difference: Smoker vs Non-Smoker
Let us take an example. Let us consider a 30-year-old healthy male who requires a ₹1 crore cover for 30 years. If he is a non-smoker, he might have to pay somewhere around ₹9,000 to ₹12,000 per year. If he is a smoker, the same cover could cost him around ₹14,000 to ₹18,000 per year.
This means smokers can end up paying 40% to 60% more than non-smokers for the same coverage. And this gap becomes even bigger if you’re older because age adds more risk on top of smoking.
Other Things That Determine Premiums
Smoking is important, but not the sole determining factor. Your term insurance premium also depends on:
- Age – The younger you are, the cheaper your payments.
- Health issues – Things like high blood pressure, diabetes, or cholesterol levels may increase premiums.
- Lifestyle – Activities like drinking or having a hazardous profession (like construction or mining) may boost your premium.
- Policy term and sum assured – Longer policy durations and greater cover prices more.
How to Select the Best Term Plan in India
To get the best value for your money, remember the following:
- High Claim Settlement Ratio (CSR) – This indicates the number of claims paid out by the company against the number received by them. High CSR implies that the insurer is more trustworthy.
- Low premiums – Do term insurance comparison for the premiums of the non-smoker and the smoker plan before you buy.
- Flexibility – Select a plan that provides you with an option to increase coverage or include more benefits (known as riders) like accidental death cover or critical illness cover.
- Reputation and service – The ease of claim and customer service are as vital as the price.
Some of the best term plans in India available in the market today are:
- LIC Tech Term Plan
- HDFC Life Click 2 Protect Super
- Max Life Smart Secure Plus Plan
- ICICI Prudential iProtect Smart
- Tata AIA Sampoorna Raksha Supreme
Can a Smoker Pay Less?
Yes, but it takes some waiting and lifestyle changes.
- Quit smoking – If you don’t smoke tobacco for at least 12 months and clear a medical test, insurers can treat you as a non-smoker.
- Improve your health – Exercise, eat well, and maintain a healthy weight to reduce overall health risks.
- Buy early – The sooner you buy, the lower your premium, even when you smoke.
- Take medical tests – Periodically, going through a thorough checkup can get you a slightly improved premium.
Why Term Insurance Comparison Is a Must
Always do term insurance comparison online before buying. All aggregator websites permit you to enter your smoking status, age, and the amount of cover you need to compare premium quotations from multiple companies.
By comparing, you can:
- Get the best price for your profile
- Check the claim settlement rates of different insurers
- See what extra benefits each plan offers
- Don’t end up paying more for the same cover
Conclusion
The difference in premium between a smoker and a non-smoker term plan is not insignificant — it’s thousands of rupees each year. But this isn’t a penalty; it’s just the insurance company pricing according to risk.
If you are smoking, the most important things are honesty, choosing a good insurer, and quitting if you can. This will make you money in the long run and more importantly, it will keep your health.
Things to remember:
- Non-smokers are rewarded with lower premiums.
- Smokers pay more but still receive high cover.
- The best term policy in India is one that offers the right cover, a good claim settlement ratio, and the right price.
- Always do term insurance comparison before you buy.
Your term life policy is more than an investment product, it’s an assurance your loved ones are taken care of no matter what happens. Whether you smoke or don’t smoke, being true to that promise is one of the best investments you can make.
