Summary
An interesting new product has been developed by Animal Friends Insurance (AFI). The new insurance plan offers cheaper premiums to vegetarians, based on evidence that they are at a lower risk than their carnivorous counterparts of developing certain diseases. It remains to be seen whether other insurance organisations will follow the new policy marketed by Animal Friends Insurance .

A none profit insurance firm has marketed an insurance scheme which offers vegetarians and egg eaters a reduced premium life insurance.

The offer, considered to be the 1st of its type, is being marketed by Animal Friends Insurance (AFI). The firm is offering veggies a six per cent cheaper premiumon life assurance premiums
The business said that veggies ought to pay less for the product, which pays out if the policyholder were to die, because they were more unlikely to suffer from a range of chronic diseases, including cancers.

Elaine Fair, AFI’s senior director, claims that the danger of vegetarians being diagnosed with certain cancers is lowered by up to forty per cent and the danger of them suffering from heart disease is reduced by up to 32%, but despite this they have, until now, had to pay broadly the same insurance costs as customers who eat meat.
She says that AFI believe that this is unfair and says the life industry should recognise the idea that being a veggie can impose have a significant effect on life expectancy and lower its charges accordingly.

A standard price arrangement is also on the market for meat eaters. Both plans are brought to the market by LV=, which used to be known as Liverpool Victoria.

In common with standard life plans, a range of aspect contribute to the cost of the premium including whether the applicant smokes, their weight, age and sex.

Currently, AFI is making the 7% cheaper premium itself from the money it receives from LV=. In the future, however, the firm’s aim was to offer lower costs on specialist insurance plans. In making the discount the business is hoping to sign up enough veggies to make it viable for LV= to underwrite another insurance plan that takes the veggie diet into account.

Indeed there are welcome savings to be made, a 40-year-oldnon-smoker buying £300,000 worth of life insurance cover might potentially save £393.60 over a twenty year term.

Where critical illness is concerned, AFI believes that life insurance companies should try to treat those that eat meat and those that do not eat meat in a way that is similar to the way they assess smokers and non-smokers. Perhaps others in the insurance industry will do something similar.

It is thought that some senior managersin the insurance industry do not believe there is any proof that veggies live longer, and how any insurer would know that those who had applied stating that they are vegetarian did not eat the odd spare rib.

When it comes to smoking, it’s true that there are your Doctor’s records - if you do smoke it’s probable that your GP is likely to know about it. But this isn’t the case when it comes to eating meat, an executive from the insurance industry commented.

But many veggies argue that they are not concerned about people falling off the vegetarian wagon and suggested that once a vegetarian has become a vegetarian, they do not return to meat-eating, unlike people who smoke who tend to drift out and back again into their old smoking ways.