Obesity and Life Insurance

Being overweight is usually a cause of concern when applying for a life insurance policy. Some people who have challenging health issues related to being overweight think they cannot get any insurance at all and therefore, may not even try applying for life insurance coverage. Some have tried and have been declined by the few life insurance companies they have applied to. The fact is, even if you are overweight or obese, you may still be able to find an affordable insurance coverage policy that meets your needs. You may just have to try harder and shop around for the most affordable life insurance coverage.

Shed a few pounds before you apply for life insurance
If you are 10 lbs over your “ideal” weight, and have a good medical history with no existing medical conditions, many life insurance carriers may overlook the weight. Since being overweight or obese is a modifiable factor, one sure way to get cheaper life insurance premiums is by making sure you are the “ideal” weight for your age and height at the time you apply for a life insurance policy!

http://www.2articles.com/story/obesity-and-life-insurance

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Rest of the article at the link as usual. With weight and “bad living” continuing to rise this is going to become more and more of  topic. The life insurance companies will probably happily use topics such as this as an excuse to use the predictive modelling which is going to be such a controversy in 2011.

Estate Planning Life Insurance Finally Has Some Direction!

As of yesterday it appears that the President and Congress have reached a deal on a wide variety of tax issues. For the purposes of life insurance and estate tax the latest and most important news is the end to the repeal of estate tax and clear guidelines moving forward.

I’ve been following this closely for the last two years, watching, waiting, wondering how it would all shake out. My personal opinion is that no matter what party you belong to or believe in, this agreement is good news.

http://hinermangroup.com/blog/insurance/estate-planning-life-insurance-finally-has-some-direction/

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Death Tax/Estate planning is always a massive issue that galvanises both Democrat and Republican foot soldiers in America for reason I don’t really understand, and it’s all started again. I swear Obama trying not to get re-elected sometimes, the only way that will happen I sometimes think is if Sarah Palin becomes the Republican nominee.

Have life insurance? Is it enough or maybe too much?

Most parents know that they need life insurance. But many would rather have a root canal than shop for the best life insurance policy.

"People don't think about, 'What will my family do if I am gone and not earning a living?' " says Peter Katt, a fee-only life insurance adviser. "The whole point of this kind of planning is to provide the family with maximum flexibility so they're not stuck."

Planning for your death is not a cheerful topic. Too often, parents make a quick decision, ignoring important considerations. Among their mistakes:

http://www.usatoday.com/money/perfi/insurance/2010-12-10-personalfinance10_ST_N.htm

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USA Today do Life insurance advice! It’s the usual advice we all know, but it’s been awhile since we’ve posted anything on it, so we might as well have a refresher and it’s a not a bad one to be honest.

China Taiping's life insurance premiums up 51.22% in Jan-Nov

Dec. 10, 2010 (China Knowledge) - China Taiping Insurance Holdings Co Ltd<0966>, which was formerly known as China Insurance International Holdings Co Ltd, announced yesterday that its life insurance unit, Taiping Life Insurance Co, realized RMB 30.61 billion in premium income in the first eleven months of this year, sources reported.

The figure was 51.22% more than the RMB 20.24 billion the life insurer recorded in the same period of last year.

http://www.chinaknowledge.com/Newswires/News_Detail.aspx?type=1&cat=CMP&NewsID=%2039427

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AIG Recovers From 'Disgraced' to Pay Back Fed's Loan: Timeline

American International Group Inc., once the world’s largest insurer, struck a deal to repay the Federal Reserve as the company works toward independence, less than two years after the bailed-out firm’s then-leader said the AIG name was “disgraced.”

“This company is not going away, it’s here to stay,” Robert Haines, an analyst at CreditSights Inc., said in an interview yesterday after the insurer announced the agreement. “There’s a lot of interest in AIG again, and AIG as a franchise.” The following is a timeline of the rescue of New York-based AIG and the company’s efforts to repay taxpayers.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-12-09/aig-recovers-from-disgraced-to-pay-back-fed-s-loan-timeline.html

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A bit too much crowing by Tom Haines I think, like Newcastle United fans, you think he would have learned from his fall, but from those comments it doesn’t sound it. A comprehensive timeline can be found on this sight of all AIG’s actions for followers of this soap opera, do take a look, it shows how far along they have come in just two years.

Life insurers in de-risking mode

The macro environment for life insurance companies in Asia has begun to stabilize, but during the height of the crisis of 2008 and early 2009, the life insurance industry in Asia was severely battered, in particular in markets such as Japan and Taiwan, where insurers had been aggressively pushing high-yield guaranteed products and had been heavily exposed to equities.

“During the crisis, it dawned on numerous major life insurance companies, especially in Japan, that it pays not to be overexposed to equities,” says Jeffrey Liew, senior director at the Asia-Pacific insurance team of Fitch Ratings. “They started delving deeper into asset/liability management (ALM) and wanted to hedge some of the investment risks that they were exposed to previously.”

 http://www.theasset.com/article/18777.html

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A fantastic analysis of the Asian market, what happened and where it is going. Must read stuff for people in that market area.

Two Frontrunners Emerge in Bidding for Nan Shan Life Insurance

Taipei, Dec. 9, 2010 (CENS)--Two consortiums, one consisting of Ruentex Group and Pou Chen Group and the other of Primus Financial Holding and Goldsun Group, have emerged as frontrunners in the renewed bidding for Nan Shan Life Insurance, according to the Chinese-language Economic Daily News (EDN), sister publication of Taiwan Economic News (TEN).

Citing inside sources, EDN reports that three other contenders, Chinaturst Holding, Fubon Holding, and Cathay Holding, have been assigned to backseats by AIG Group, parent firm of Nan Shan, during its screening of the bids tendered by the prospective buyers. It, however, may be more difficult for the two front-running consortiums to win the approval of the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC), due to their lack of financial background.

http://news.cens.com/cens/html/en/news/news_inner_34568.html

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Sounds like AIG does not want to sell to a competitor, no matter how small they are now as by buying such an established Asian company will help them grow rapidly. Whether the local Financial supervisor will stand for it, which the article suggest they might not, AIG might have no choice but to sell grudgingly to a rival.