Fellow insurance blogger Jeff Root poses an interesting question about life insurance underwriting and e-cigarettes: is "vaping" (e-cig users' preferred term) the same as "smoking?"
Leaving aside any health or social aspects, the issue becomes what rate class one may expect to receive if one uses e-cigs. Most life insurance applications ask about "tobacco use," so carriers seem as concerned about the nicotine as the smoke itself. But e-cigs don't really "combust" in the way that tobacco cigarettes (or cigars or pipes) do.
Jeff found that most carriers don't make that distinction, and consider e-cig users the same as those who light up their Marlboros. He notes that one company - Prudential - does offer a slightly better rate class for e-cig users than their conventional cigarette-smoking brethren.
I emailed my underwriter for our primary company to see what she has to say about this:
"Just saw an interesting blog post on e-cigarettes and life insurance underwriting. I hadn�t even thought about it. As far as I know, none of my clients use these, but who knows when I�ll run into someone who does?
From what I can tell, these things generally include a liquid form of nicotine, but no tar, etc from smoke. Here�s what it says at Wikipedia:
�Liquid for producing vapor in electronic cigarettes, known as e-juice or e-liquid, is a solution of propylene glycol (PG) and/or vegetable glycerin (VG) and/or polyethylene glycol 400 (PEG400) mixed with concentrated flavors, and optionally, a variable percent of a liquid nicotine concentrate � When heated, propylene glycol breaks down into H2O (water vapor) and CO2 (carbon dioxide)�
So far, doesn�t seem the same as tobacco smoke, but what I�m having difficulty finding out is where the nicotine comes from (is it extracted from tobacco leaves? If so, then technically this would be �tobacco use,� no?).
So I guess my question would be: would someone who is in generally really good health but uses e-cigs qualify for �[a better rate class than traditional cigarette smokers]?�
Be interesting to she what see has to say.
ADDENDUM: It occurs to me that the same issue arises when we look at other types of policies, as well; how do health, disability and long term care underwriters look at this? Methinks I have some more emails to fire off...
Leaving aside any health or social aspects, the issue becomes what rate class one may expect to receive if one uses e-cigs. Most life insurance applications ask about "tobacco use," so carriers seem as concerned about the nicotine as the smoke itself. But e-cigs don't really "combust" in the way that tobacco cigarettes (or cigars or pipes) do.
Jeff found that most carriers don't make that distinction, and consider e-cig users the same as those who light up their Marlboros. He notes that one company - Prudential - does offer a slightly better rate class for e-cig users than their conventional cigarette-smoking brethren.
I emailed my underwriter for our primary company to see what she has to say about this:
"Just saw an interesting blog post on e-cigarettes and life insurance underwriting. I hadn�t even thought about it. As far as I know, none of my clients use these, but who knows when I�ll run into someone who does?
From what I can tell, these things generally include a liquid form of nicotine, but no tar, etc from smoke. Here�s what it says at Wikipedia:
�Liquid for producing vapor in electronic cigarettes, known as e-juice or e-liquid, is a solution of propylene glycol (PG) and/or vegetable glycerin (VG) and/or polyethylene glycol 400 (PEG400) mixed with concentrated flavors, and optionally, a variable percent of a liquid nicotine concentrate � When heated, propylene glycol breaks down into H2O (water vapor) and CO2 (carbon dioxide)�
So far, doesn�t seem the same as tobacco smoke, but what I�m having difficulty finding out is where the nicotine comes from (is it extracted from tobacco leaves? If so, then technically this would be �tobacco use,� no?).
So I guess my question would be: would someone who is in generally really good health but uses e-cigs qualify for �[a better rate class than traditional cigarette smokers]?�
Be interesting to she what see has to say.
ADDENDUM: It occurs to me that the same issue arises when we look at other types of policies, as well; how do health, disability and long term care underwriters look at this? Methinks I have some more emails to fire off...
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