Fatty Liver Disease & Life Insurance

We understand that society is constantly changing. People are often have jobs and family commitments that can often make exercise and healthy eating hard to follow.

This is leading to a higher amount of people being diagnosed with fatty liver disease. We are here to help you find the best insurer that is going to be able to support you and your health.

Here are some of things that we need to know:

• When were you diagnosed with a fatty liver?
• Are you taking steps to change your lifestyle?
• Have you developed cirrhosis of the liver?
• Do you have any other conditions like diabetes?

When you apply for life insurance, fatty liver will need to be detail to most insurers. It is likely that the insurer will want to see a report from your GP, to confirm the cause of the fatty liver and how strong the condition is.

The insurance provider does this so that they can hear your GP’s professional opinion and confirm the technical bits of any diagnostic tests, like a liver biopsy that have been performed. 

Your application will be assessed with a key focus upon the cause of the condition. 

Where the fatty liver has been thoroughly investigated, is well controlled, with no liver scarring, standard terms for life insurance might be possible.

If you currently drink alcohol, you may find that the terms that you are offered for life insurance, could be at a higher premium. This can also happen if a biopsy has confirmed that a large section of the liver has been affected.

When no biopsy has been taken, the insurer will based their decisions upon other tests that you have done. You will most likely have had liver function tests (LFTs) to figure out how well your liver is working. The readings from these tests are really important for your application and it is handy if you can have them ready for us when you contact.

If your fatty liver has been caused by alcohol, some insurers may increase your premiums quite significantly, or decline your application. Please do not let this put you off trying again, each insurer is different and we also have access to specialist insurers that can support you.

We research the market to make sure that your application goes to the best insurer for you. Our experts will take the hassle out of the application journey for you.

Critical illness cover pays out a cash lump sum of money, if you are diagnosed with a medical condition that is listed in the insurer’s claims set e.g. cancer, heart attack, stroke.

Critical illness cover for people with fatty liver disease will be looked at in a similar way as life insurance.

There is likely to be a higher focus on the cause of the fatty liver disease. This is because some of the causes of fatty liver disease, put you at an increased risk of needing to make a critical illness claim.

For people that have developed a fatty liver due to a high BMI, critical illness cover could be offered at standard terms or an increased premium. It really depends upon how high the BMI is and how much the liver has been affected.

Where the fatty liver has led to more conditions like fibrosis or cirrhosis, the policy may be available at non-standard terms. This will be in the form of a premium increase or an exclusion on liver related illnesses.

If your fatty liver has been caused by diabetes or alcohol, you will probably have to speak with a specialist critical illness insurer. Some specialist providers may offer you the policy but it will probably have a significant amount of critical illnesses excluded.

It is extremely important to go through the terms and conditions on these policies, to make sure that you know what you are getting. Our advisers can help you with this.

Income protection pays you a replacement of your monthly income, if you are unable to work due to ill health.

Income protection for people that have a fatty liver, can be available. The insurer will be particularly interested in the cause of the fatty liver.

If your BMI is below 40, there are often options to look at for income protection. The policy could be offered at standard rates or at an increased premium.

Where the fatty liver is caused by diabetes or alcohol consumption, cover may not be available with many companies, but it is still worth contacting us to check your individual circumstances.

As an alternative you may find that Accident, Sickness and Unemployment cover is more suitable for your circumstances. Accident, sickness and unemployment cover provides short-term income protection, between 12 and 24 months, in the event that you cannot work due to injury illness or involuntary redundancy.

These policies are not medically underwritten so will not take into account your medical history at the point of application, but your existing medical conditions will be excluded from any allowable claims.

Are you going on holiday? We work alongside a specialist travel insurance broker, that can help you to find insurance when you have a fatty liver. To find out more, please visit our travel page here.