Life Insurance With a Hernia

"Hernia" Means Four Different Things To An Underwriter

A hernia is tissue pushing through a weak point in the muscle wall that should hold it in. On an application form that one word covers conditions an underwriter treats quite differently:

• Inguinal and femoral hernias, in the groin. Common, especially in men and in manual jobs, and usually repaired surgically. Mainly an income protection question.
• Umbilical hernias, at the belly button. Often linked to pregnancy or weight, sometimes repaired, sometimes simply monitored.
• Hiatus hernias, where part of the stomach moves up through the diaphragm. Really a reflux and digestive question, assessed on what investigations showed.
• Incisional hernias, through the scar of an earlier operation. The hernia is minor; the reason for the original operation may not be.

Give the type on your application. "Hernia" with no detail invites questions, and the detail is usually reassuring.

Repaired Or Waiting Is The Question That Decides Income Protection

For life insurance, a groin or umbilical hernia makes no real difference either way. For income protection, the decisive question is where you are in relation to the repair.

If you are waiting for surgery, the insurer knows there is a planned operation and a recovery period ahead, and that a claim may follow. That is a known event rather than a risk, and insurers do not generally insure known events. So income protection is commonly postponed until you have had the repair and returned to normal work, or offered now with the hernia excluded.

If the hernia has been repaired successfully and you are back at work with no problems, it often makes no difference at all. If it has recurred, or you are having a second repair, an exclusion becomes more likely. A hernia that is simply being monitored without plans for surgery is assessed on its symptoms and your job.

Take Life Cover Now, Decide About Income Protection Separately

Waiting for a hernia repair is not a reason to delay life insurance. It is usually available on ordinary terms while you wait, and putting off cover your family relies on because of a routine operation is a poor trade.

Income protection takes a little more thought. You can either:

• Apply now and accept an exclusion for the hernia, which protects you against every other illness and injury during what may be a long wait; or
• Wait until after the repair and your recovery, and apply with a cleaner history, accepting a gap with no cover.

The right answer depends on how long you expect to wait, whether you are self-employed or have generous sick pay, and whether the insurer will review the exclusion after a successful repair. Some insurers offer a review; others do not. Our guide to why income protection matters is worth reading if you are tempted to leave it.

Heavy Lifting Jobs Are Where An Unrepaired Hernia Bites

A hernia that is a mild nuisance at a desk can make heavy lifting impossible. That is why income protection underwriters look closely at occupation. Builders, scaffolders, roofers, removals staff, warehouse and delivery workers, farm workers and care staff who move patients are all in jobs where an unrepaired or recurring hernia could stop them working.

For those occupations, an insurer is more likely to postpone or exclude until the hernia is repaired. The encouraging side is that once a repair has healed and you are back on full duties, manual workers are often treated much like anyone else. If you work for yourself, our guide to self-employed income protection covers deferred periods and how long a policy should pay for.

A Hiatus Hernia Is Underwritten As A Reflux Condition

A hiatus hernia rarely needs surgery and has little to do with lifting. It is usually discovered during an endoscopy for heartburn, reflux or indigestion, and insurers look at it in that context, alongside other stomach and bowel conditions.

What the endoscopy found is the key. A hiatus hernia with reflux controlled by medication is typically viewed lightly across all types of cover. Inflammation of the oesophagus, a stricture, or Barrett's oesophagus, where the lining has changed, are assessed more carefully. Barrett's matters mainly for critical illness cover, because it is associated with a higher risk of oesophageal cancer, and insurers will ask about your surveillance programme and the most recent results.

Weight is often relevant too, both for hiatus and umbilical hernias, and is assessed alongside them. Our high BMI page explains how that works.

With An Incisional Hernia, The First Operation Is The Real Question

An incisional hernia forms through the scar of a previous abdominal operation. The hernia is underwritten like any other, repaired or waiting, but the insurer will also ask why you had the original surgery.

After an appendix removal or a caesarean section, that is a formality. After surgery for bowel cancer, Crohn's disease or diverticular disease, it is the underlying condition that shapes your terms, potentially on life and critical illness cover as well as income protection. If that applies to you, our pages on life insurance after cancer and stomach and bowel conditions are the more relevant reading.

What To Have Ready, And What Not To Leave Out

• The type of hernia and when it was found.
• Whether it was repaired, the date, and whether you made a full recovery.
• Whether you are on a waiting list, or surgery has been discussed.
• Any recurrence, and the dates of any further repairs.
• Time off work, and whether you are on full duties now.
• For a hiatus hernia: endoscopy dates and findings, medication, and any surveillance.
• For an incisional hernia: the reason for the original operation.

You have a legal duty to take reasonable care to answer the insurer's questions honestly. Being on a waiting list is something most applications ask about directly, and leaving it out is a real risk, because the operation is precisely what an income protection claim would follow. Declared openly, a hernia is rarely a problem. A broker can check how insurers treat your stage of treatment before you apply, so you know whether to go now or after surgery.