If you need to take out a new life insurance policy and have been diagnosed as suffering from hepatitis C, you will probably be able to get cover but it will be very expensive. If you lie about your hepatitis C status on the application form, you are likely to find your claims refused and the policy invalidated. Best practice in the insurance industry is to ask if you have ever tested positive for or been diagnosed with any serious illness in the past two to five years. By signing up for a policy you are giving the insurance company the right to investigate any claims by means of access to medical records.
Once you have disclosed that you have hepatitis C, the insurance company will contact your GP for a report. Your consent is required for this and will be requested on the application form. You can refuse consent but they will not offer you insurance, if you do so. The Insurers are obliged to tell you what they will be asking your GP.
You will be assessed on an individual basis, with reference to your medical history, the severity of symptoms and current liver function, an indication of disease progression and any past treatments. A typical response of an insurer would be to assign you a rating, depending on the severity of your illness, leading to a corresponding increase in premiums above the standard (anything from a 50% to 600% increase).
The insurance market is highly competitive so it is worth taking the time to check out several different insurers before you decide. Alternatively, you may want to get an independent financial adviser to do this for you. It is also crucial to make sure that you read the policy carefully to ensure that there are no exclusions or clauses that may affect your cover. Because policies will be based on individual circumstances, any improvement in your health following treatment should be passed on to the insurance company. There have been cases where people with hepatitis C have tested clear of the virus and subsequently been given normal life insurance rates.
If you are asymptomatic but you are considering being tested for HCV it would be wise to take out a policy before you get tested. Be careful here. If there is evidence that you took out a policy knowing that you were ill (i.e. youve had hepatitis C symptoms), the insurance company will try to prove this and will dispute your claims in the future.
