Life Insurance With Acne
People worry about declaring acne and the worry is almost always out of proportion to the condition.
What is worth being accurate about is not the spots. It is the treatment, how long it went on, and whether it involved anything that needed monitoring, because that is the part of the history with substance to it.
This page explains what we would need from you. What any insurer then does with it is their decision, and the only way to know is to ask them.
The short answer
Acne is one of the most common conditions in the country and on its own it is not usually the part of an application that takes any working out. What is worth declaring properly is the treatment, because acne is sometimes managed with long courses of antibiotics or with medication that involves blood monitoring, and a monitored medication is a more substantial entry in a medical history than the acne is.
What it is
Acne is blocked and inflamed hair follicles, driven largely by oil production and hormones. It is extremely common in teenagers and considerably more common in adults, particularly women, than most people assume.
It ranges from occasional spots to widespread inflammation that leaves scarring. Treatment ranges from nothing at all, through topical creams, to long courses of oral antibiotics, hormonal treatment such as the combined pill, and in more persistent cases isotretinoin.
Why it comes up on an application
- The condition is usually self-limiting, so it is often something that happened rather than something ongoing. Dates matter more than detail.
- Isotretinoin is the part worth flagging if it applies to you. It is prescribed under specialist supervision with blood tests and, for women, a pregnancy prevention programme, and that supervision is what makes it a meaningful entry rather than a footnote.
- Long courses of oral antibiotics are worth mentioning for the same reason: they are a prescription history, and a medical history is a list of prescriptions as much as a list of diagnoses.
- Acne is sometimes a feature of another condition, polycystic ovary syndrome being the common one, and if that applies the other condition is the thing to declare properly.
What we would ask you
- When the acne started, whether it is still active, and roughly when it settled if it has
- What it has been treated with, especially anything taken by mouth rather than applied to the skin
- Whether any treatment involved blood tests or a specialist rather than your GP
- Have you ever had cancer, a heart condition (including heart attack), stroke or brain injury, MS or a neurological condition, or Type 1 or 2 diabetes?
- Do you have any other medical conditions? (please state condition and any treatment taken)
- Are you waiting any medical tests, appointments or treatment?
- Date of birth (DD/MM/YYYY)
- Do you smoke?
Declare The Treatment, Not Just The Diagnosis
This is the practical point and it applies well beyond acne.
People answer medical questions by thinking about diagnoses, and underwriting works at least as much off prescriptions, referrals and tests. Somebody who had a year of oral antibiotics and a dermatology referral at nineteen has a more substantial history than somebody who used a cream, even though both would describe it as acne.
So the useful thing to dig out is what you were actually given, by whom, and for how long. If you cannot remember, your GP record will have it, and it is far better to go in with the right answer than a vague one.
Why Accuracy Matters More Than The Condition Does
The risk on a page like this is not the acne. It is answering the question badly and creating a problem that did not need to exist.
An application that leaves out a year of prescribed medication is inaccurate, and an inaccurate application is the main reason claims are examined rather than simply paid. Our guide to whether life insurance pays out goes through how that works.
Nothing about declaring acne is likely to be the hard part of your application. Getting it wrong could be.
Which cover is relevant
The usual starting point, and the cover where the whole of your health rather than any single entry decides what is available. Acne alone is seldom the deciding factor.
Pays a lump sum on diagnosis of a listed serious condition. Worth understanding that acne is not one of those conditions, so this is about other risks rather than about your skin.
Replaces income if illness or injury stops you working. Severe acne is occasionally disabling enough to affect work, and if that has happened to you it is worth saying so.
Common questions
Do I need to declare acne on a life insurance application?+
Answer the questions you are asked, fully and accurately. If you are asked about skin conditions, medication or specialist referrals and any of those apply, then yes. Leaving out something you were asked about is the thing that causes problems later, and acne itself is rarely the difficult part of an application.
Does acne affect life insurance?+
What any insurer does with it is their decision and depends on your whole health picture rather than on one entry, so we will not guess. What we can tell you is that the treatment history tends to carry more weight than the condition, particularly where medication involved monitoring or a specialist.
I took isotretinoin. Does that matter?+
It is worth declaring properly. It is prescribed under specialist supervision with blood tests, so it sits in your record as monitored treatment rather than as a cream. That does not tell you what terms you will be offered, which is the insurer's decision, but it is the detail to have ready.
What if my acne was years ago?+
Say so, with roughly when it started and when it settled. A condition that resolved years ago and a condition that is active now are different entries, and dates are usually the most useful thing you can give us.
Can I get cover if I have acne?+
We cannot promise that any application will be accepted, because acceptance, price and any exclusions are always the insurer's decision. What we can do is take your details to the insurers we work with and tell you what is actually available to you rather than what might be.
Cover that often goes with this
The gaps we most often find sitting next to this one.