If you’re considering applying for life insurance, it’s essential to know about MIB (Medical Information Bureau) and how it works.
The MIB is a database that stores information on individuals’ medical history, which insurers use to determine the risk of insuring them. Understanding MIB and its role in the insurance process can help you make informed decisions before applying for life insurance.
We’ll help you understand MIB for life insurance, how to obtain a free report and show you how to increase your chances of getting approved for life insurance.
Each insurance company has different criteria and there be one that is more flexible to your situation. If you have questions contact us before you dive into an application.
What Is MIB For Life Insurance?
The Medical Information Bureau is a legitimate database used by life insurance companies to gather and share medical information about applicants.
Your MIB report is similar to a credit score. If you ever had to apply for a loan or credit card the bank probably assessed your credit risk.
These days, many employers use credit reports for hiring decisions. They’ll look at your payment history and whether you have judgments, collections or bankruptcies to determine your character and how responsible you are.
A similar process happens when you apply for life insurance. The insurance company will use a MIB report to assess your health risk and determine if they’ll approve your application and even how much you’ll pay.
MIB’s Underwriting Services are exclusively used by member life and health insurance companies to evaluate an individual’s risk and eligibility for policies such as life, health, disability income, critical illness, and long-term care insurance.
If you’ve applied for insurance in the last seven years, it’s recommended that you review your MIB report before applying for a new policy, just as you would check your credit score before applying for a mortgage.
You will not have an MIB Underwriting Services Consumer File unless you have applied for individually underwritten life or health insurance in the last seven years.
MIB.com
Who Uses The MIB For Life Insurance?
Life insurance companies use the Medical Information Bureau (MIB) to help them identify errors, omissions, misrepresentations, or potential fraud in the application process. By doing so, MIB assists insurance companies in placing applicants in the appropriate risk groups, which can help keep insurance premiums low for consumers.
When individuals withhold or omit information that would have caused the insurer to decline the policy or charge an extra premium to account for the additional risk, it can indirectly affect all insureds of the company.
To compensate for poorer than expected mortality experience, the insurer may need to make adjustments such as raising rates, reducing dividends or interest credited to policies.
People buy insurance to control or reduce the risk of some loss. They buy life insurance to reduce the risk of financial loss to their families or businesses due to death.
Life insurance companies are in the business of reducing those risks for people by collecting incremental amounts of money from each insured and promising a comparatively large lump-sum payoff down the road when the insured dies.
But the insurer takes risks, too. There is the risk that they may not charge enough for the amount of payout they are guaranteeing.
They invest their reserves that back up their guarantees for the long haul, and they run the risk that their investment return will not be sufficient or that the investments may even lose money.
The most intensive part of the screening process is for medical conditions. When an application for life insurance is submitted, the insurer wants to know whether this person is of average health and can thus be charged the standard premium.
Or does some medical condition increase the likelihood of premature death, in which case the insurer must charge a higher premium or even refuse to insure the person?
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What’s In Your MIB Report?
Obtaining your MIB report is important because it allows you to review your medical information and ensure its accuracy. If there are any errors or discrepancies, you can address them before they impact your insurance application.
Additionally, reviewing your MIB report can help you understand how insurance companies use your medical history and assess your risk, which can be helpful when shopping for life insurance.
Overall, obtaining your MIB report is a proactive step you can take to ensure that your insurance application process goes smoothly and that you are getting the best possible rates.
If you haven’t applied for an individual insurance policy with a member company in the last seven years, you may not have an MIB report on file.
However, if you have applied for insurance and were approved without any concerns about your health, it’s still a good idea to check your MIB report for any inaccuracies.
The report contains health information that could impact your insurability, so it’s important to make sure it’s up-to-date and correct. This health information may affect insurability and includes:
- Medical
- Medical conditions and illnesses including prescription medicine
- Hazardous activities and hobbies
- The report also includes names of member companies that:
- Provided information about you
- Requested and received information about you
MIB does not collect, maintain or store any medical records in its database such as examination reports, attending physician statements, lab test results, x-rays, underwriting files or reasons for denial of insurance.
Instead, MIB’s members furnish “codes” to MIB, which represent medical and avocational information that is significant to the underwriting process. These codes can be thought of as a simple form of encryption.
MIB.com
In other words, if you’ve been taking medication for a health condition and apply for a policy and forget to include that information it could raise a flag.
Get A Copy Of Your MIB For Life Insurance Report
MIB is considered a consumer reporting agency. As a result, the Fair Credit Reporting Act says you can request a copy of your report once per year if one exists.
Keep in mind, that you won’t have anything on file if you have not applied for insurance in the last seven years.
If you’re looking to obtain a copy of your MIB report, you have a couple of options. The easiest way is to visit the MIB’s website and request your report online.
You’ll need to provide some personal information, such as your name, address, and social security number.
Alternatively, you can request your report by mail. Once you receive your report, be sure to review it carefully and report any errors or discrepancies right away.
Visit MIB for more information and to obtain a copy of your report.
Speak With A Licensed Agent
We hope this post has given you insight into the application process. During your search, you may want to speak with a licensed agent.
Life insurance depends on many risk factors like health, finances, credit score, lifestyle and even your driving record. If you have questions contact us before you dive into an application.
We work with several life insurance companies such as AIG, Ethos, Banner Life and Mutual of Omaha.
Each has different criteria for underwriting and may be more flexible to your particular situation.
There is no cost or obligation and it can save you time, money and the possibility of being denied coverage!
Information is meant to be accurate and educational and not intended to be legal, medical or financial advice. Be sure to do your own research and contact a professional for help. Our site is free to use, but we may receive a commission from our partners & advertisers at no additional cost to you. Read our disclosure for more information.