Guide
Health classes explained
Understanding Preferred Plus, Preferred, Standard Plus and Standard: what each means and how you move between them.
Carriers set term life premiums using rate classes. The names vary slightly, but the tier is consistent: Preferred Plus (sometimes Super Preferred or Preferred Best), Preferred, Standard Plus, and Standard, followed by table ratings for higher risks. Tobacco users have their own parallel set of classes at higher rates.
What underwriters look at
Height and weight, blood pressure and cholesterol levels, family history of heart disease or cancer before age 60, driving record, medication history, occupation and hobbies, and tobacco or nicotine use. The best classes require clean results across nearly everything; Preferred accepts a bit more variation; Standard Plus and Standard allow managed conditions like treated high blood pressure.
How to use the quote tool
The health question matches your honest self-assessment to classes: Excellent → Preferred Plus, Very good → Preferred, Good → Standard Plus, Average → Standard. Quotes reflect that class; underwriting confirms the final class. Unsure? Quote two classes and compare; let the application settle it. An inflated health rating doesn't lower your final rate—it just makes the estimate less accurate.
Susman Insurance Agency helps you find carriers whose underwriting guidelines are more favorable for your specific health profile, which often matters more than the advertised rate.