question for alawyer

[jackrabbit]

hi! very impressed with your commments to questions.i just have a couple.
i had an insurance agent tell me to basically lie and say my son is not a smoker. admittedly he quits off and on and smokes about 4, yes 4 cigarettes a day, go fiqure, anyway even though i have decided to be truthful i am curious about this. is there some kind of personal privacy protection here or is this rep just plain wrong.also as i am in the process of changing his insurance companies i was puzzled today when my new insurer said my insurance for son will be retro-active starting from aug. 27 as soon as all the info is entered. does that mean i will have to pay insurance for those to months ttaht go retro even though he had other insurance? and if so can i re-file on some of his claims to at least recoup some of my premium money?can i go back like that with doctor bills and file on 2 difffernt insurance companies?is this a common occurance in the insurance world? do i need to cancel my soon to be old insurance company or will just not paying premiums do the trick?thanks for any advice and keep up the good work!!!!!!

 

[ALawyer]

Smoking is a significant heath and mortality risk, and thus rates are usually far higher for smokers than non-smokers, and in some case coverage may not be available to smokers.

If you were talking about life insurance, and your son lied about smoking -- even just 4 butts a day -- and he was on a plane that crashed within 2 years of the date of policy issue, the insurance company could successfully deny the claim in about half the states.

I don't know what the rules are for heath coverage in your state, or the nature of the coverage he may have had, or the new coverage. Sorry

 

[jackrabbit]

thank you!

thank you for your response.i am definetly as stated before going to tell the truth.i am also going to have a serious talk with my son about just quitting cigarettes for good.the previous insurance he had or has whatever we stated he was a smoker and there really wasn't much difference in the premiums.it would however no doubt be much better for him now and in the future to not have a medical history as a smoker.not to mention the obvious health reasons of course, and for the minimum he smokes why bother!he can chew on a carrot!i do think it was odd about that representative's comment.i may call and see what response i get from a different rep.
also i will find out all i need to do about his insurance companies.i feel kind of silly even having wasted your time there.
thank you again.i look forward to your post on this great board.
jackrabbit

 

[ALawyer]

Usually if someone has not smoked in 1-5 years companies give a much better rate. Some give an even better rate for those who NEVER smoked, as their bodies have not been damaged at all, but that's history he can't rewrite.