Did you know a third of our population is on a diet and another third of our population is trying to maintain their weight at any one time! [i]

Australians are spending bucketloads of money in an effort to lose weight.  We all know the benefits of slimming and keeping active.  But losing weight won’t just trim your waistline, it could trim your insurance premiums too.  

Around seven million Australians are now overweight or obese?  While there are more overweight men than women (67 per cent compared to 52 per cent), obesity is more common among women (22 per cent) than men (18 per cent)[ii].  In Australia, it is estimated 20 per cent of children are also overweight or obese. 

Rather than assuming scientific advances will continue to add to our life expectancy, Professor Ilona Kickbusch, an independent health consultant who previously worked with the World Health Organisation (WHO), has said that today’s generation of children may be the first to be sicker and die younger than their parents.

We all know that obesity increases the risk of many chronic and potentially lethal diseases such as heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, kidney disease, diabetes, liver problems such as fatty liver, sleep apnoea, gout and joint and back problems. 

But did you know that it may also be fattening your insurance premium?   Not only is obesity becoming a problem for society, it is increasingly becoming an issue for life insurers.  In the USA for example, studies have shown that there has been a substantial rise in disability claims for those under 60 with obesity related disorders[iii]

As a result insurers are charging higher premiums for those people with a high body mass index (BMI).  A person’s BMI is calculated by dividing their weight in kilograms by their height in metres squared.  The higher a person’s BMI, the higher their premium. 

Rates of obesity are rising rapidly both in Australia and worldwide which is having a major impact on health and health care costs.  It is considered to be a preventable disease and can be managed through counselling, support and lifestyle changes.

So congratulations if you have managed to significantly reduce your weight.  However, unless you can keep that weight off and tell your insurer – you will still pay your higher premiums.

Get in touch with your adviser and get him/her to let your insurer know so that you can start saving money now – after all advisers get paid ongoing commission to look after you, and if you aren’t talking regularly, they are getting paid for doing nothing.

This also applies by the way if you have given up any hazardous pursuits or smoking.

Please Note:

This publication has been prepared to provide you with general information only. It is not intended to take the place of professional advice and you should not take action on specific issues in reliance on this information. In preparing this information, we did not take into account the investment objectives, financial situation or particular needs of any particular person. Before making an investment decision, you need to consider (with or without the assistance of an adviser) whether this information is appropriate to your needs, objectives and circumstances. This information is provided for persons in Australia only and is not provided for the use of any person who is in any other country.

[i] http://www.babyboomerslifechange.com.au/health-wellbeing/food.php

[ii] www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au

[iii] www.swissre.com/pws/media

Popularity: 24% [?]