MEDICAL CONDITIONS
Life Insurance With Eczema, Psoriasis and Skin Conditions
Most skin conditions make no difference to the price of life insurance. What insurers look at is the treatment you need, whether your joints are involved, and how it affects your work.
The short answer
At a glance: how it usually affects each type of cover
| Type of cover | Typical outcome | What decides it |
|---|---|---|
| Life insurance | Usually standard rates | Severity and treatment; severe psoriasis may prompt a closer look at heart risk factors |
| Critical illness cover | Usually standard rates | Skin conditions are not generally linked to the conditions these policies cover |
| Income protection | Often accepted; a skin or joint exclusion is possible | Time off work, psoriatic arthritis, and jobs involving chemicals or frequent hand washing |
A general guide to how UK insurers commonly approach this, not a promise of terms. Every application is underwritten on its own facts.
Your Treatment Tells The Insurer More Than Your Diagnosis
Skin conditions are rarely a mortality risk, which is why life cover is usually unaffected. When an underwriter does look closer, the diagnosis is not really what they are reading. The treatment is. Emollients and steroid creams suggest a condition that is managed at home. Light therapy, immunosuppressant tablets or biologic injections suggest one severe enough to need specialist care, and they bring questions of their own.
That is why two people who both write "eczema" or "psoriasis" can be asked very different follow-up questions. If your condition is mild and treated with creams, you will usually find the application simple.
Eczema: Rarely A Life Cover Issue, Sometimes An Income Protection One
Atopic eczema is very common and, for life and critical illness cover, it is usually accepted at standard rates. Insurers start asking more if you have needed oral steroids, immunosuppressants or a biologic, if you have had hospital treatment for infected eczema, or if it has kept you off work.
For income protection, the type of eczema and the job matter. Hand eczema or contact dermatitis is more relevant in work involving frequent hand washing, gloves, chemicals or wet work, such as healthcare, catering, hairdressing, cleaning or construction, because the job can keep triggering it. In those circumstances an exclusion for skin conditions is possible. Some insurers will review an exclusion after a set period without flare-ups or time off.
Psoriasis: Severity Matters, And So Do Your Heart Risk Factors
Mild to moderate psoriasis treated with creams, scalp treatments or phototherapy is usually accepted at standard rates for life cover. More extensive psoriasis is still insurable, but insurers will want to know how much of the body is affected, what treatment you have had, and whether you are under a dermatologist.
There is one less obvious reason underwriters look more closely at severe psoriasis. Medical research associates it with a higher risk of cardiovascular disease and with conditions such as raised blood pressure, raised cholesterol and diabetes. So an insurer may pay more attention to your blood pressure, cholesterol and weight alongside the psoriasis. If those are in good order, say so, with recent readings if you have them.
Psoriatic Arthritis Moves You Into A Different Assessment
Once psoriasis involves the joints, insurers generally stop treating it as a skin condition and underwrite it as an inflammatory arthritis. The questions change accordingly: which joints are affected, whether there is any damage on scans, what disease-modifying or biologic treatment you take, and how your mobility and work have been affected.
Life cover is often still available, with terms depending on severity. Income protection is where psoriatic arthritis matters most, because it can stop people doing their job, and an exclusion for joint or musculoskeletal conditions is possible. Our arthritis guide covers how inflammatory arthritis is underwritten in more detail.
Biologics And Immunosuppressants Mean More Questions, Not No Cover
Methotrexate, ciclosporin and biologic injections are now common for severe eczema and psoriasis. Being on one does not make you uninsurable. It does tell an underwriter two things: that the condition needed more than topical treatment, and that your immune system is being deliberately suppressed. Expect to be asked:
- the name and dose of each treatment, when it started, and why it was chosen
- whether earlier treatments were stopped because they did not work or caused side effects
- whether you have regular monitoring blood tests, such as liver function checks, and whether they have been normal
- any serious infections or hospital admissions while on treatment
- how well the condition is controlled now
A condition that is well controlled on treatment, with normal monitoring results, is a considerably better application than the same treatment with ongoing flares or abnormal results.
Acne And Isotretinoin: The Medication, Not The Skin, Prompts Questions
Acne itself is not something insurers price. Isotretinoin (often known by the former brand name Roaccutane) is different only because it carries warnings about changes in mood, so a course of it may lead an insurer to check the mental health part of your application more carefully.
If you had no mood problems during treatment, there is nothing more to say beyond answering any medication question accurately. If you did experience low mood, anxiety or anything more serious, and it was recorded or you were treated or referred, answer the mental health questions fully, with dates and how long it lasted. A short episode that resolved after the course ended is often viewed much more favourably than people expect. Our mental health guide explains what insurers ask and why.
Skin Cancer Is A Separate Conversation
Melanoma and other skin cancers are underwritten as cancers, on their type, stage, treatment and time since treatment, not as skin conditions. If you have had one, see our guide to life insurance after cancer. If a mole or lesion is currently being investigated, it is usually better to wait for the result before applying, because an insurer is likely to postpone until it knows.
Getting The Application Right First Time
The common mistake with skin conditions is leaving them out because they seem too minor to mention. You have a legal duty to take reasonable care to answer each question accurately. If a question covers your prescription creams, a dermatology referral or time off work and the answer leaves it out, an insurer may reduce or refuse a claim later, even though declaring it would probably have changed nothing. The safest approach is simply to answer what is asked, in full.
Where a specialist broker earns its keep is in the less straightforward cases: biologic treatment, psoriatic arthritis, a job that aggravates hand eczema, or a mental health episode during isotretinoin. Insurers treat those differently, and we can check how your details are likely to be viewed before a formal application goes in.
Have Your Treatment History To Hand
About CoverLife
CoverLife is a UK life insurance broker specialising in cover for people with medical conditions, including applicants who have been declined, postponed or rated by another insurer. We have a panel of 15 UK protection insurers, including Aviva, Legal & General, Royal London, Vitality, LV=, Scottish Widows, The Exeter, Guardian, MetLife, Holloway Friendly, British Friendly and National Friendly.
CoverLife is a trading name of CoverTrade Risk Management Ltd, authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, firm reference number 1020148. Advice is given by a named adviser and there is no charge for it. More about CoverLife
Cover that often goes with this
The gaps we most often find sitting next to this one.
- ArthritisPsoriatic arthritis is underwritten as inflammatory arthritis rather than as a skin condition, and that changes income protection in particular.
- Depression and mental healthIf isotretinoin treatment coincided with low mood, the mental health questions apply, and this guide explains how insurers assess them.
- Income protectionWhere skin conditions are most likely to matter, because occupation and time off work count for more than the diagnosis.
Common questions
Does eczema affect life insurance?+
Usually not. Eczema managed with emollients and topical steroid creams is very common and is generally accepted at standard rates for life cover. Insurers become more interested when it is severe enough to need tablets or injections that act on the immune system, or has led to hospital treatment or significant time off work. Even then, life cover is often still available on normal terms; any effect is more likely on income protection.
Can I get life insurance with psoriasis?+
Yes. Most people with psoriasis are offered life cover, and mild to moderate psoriasis treated with creams or light therapy is often accepted at standard rates. With more severe psoriasis, insurers ask about systemic treatment and may look more closely at your blood pressure, cholesterol and weight, because severe psoriasis is associated with higher cardiovascular risk. Psoriatic arthritis is assessed separately and matters more for income protection.
Do I have to declare eczema or psoriasis on a life insurance application?+
If the questions cover it, yes. Some applications ask specifically about skin conditions; others ask about any condition you have seen a doctor for, any regular medication, or any specialist referral. A prescription for a steroid cream or a dermatology referral can fall within those. Declaring mild eczema or psoriasis rarely changes the terms, while leaving it out where a question covers it can give an insurer grounds to question a claim.
Will taking methotrexate or a biologic affect my life insurance?+
It will lead to more questions, but it does not mean cover is unavailable. These treatments tell an insurer the condition is more severe, and because they suppress the immune system, insurers may ask about serious infections, monitoring blood tests and side effects. Have the drug name, dose, start date and the reason it was prescribed ready. Many people on these treatments are still offered life cover, sometimes at standard rates.
Is psoriatic arthritis treated differently from psoriasis?+
Yes. Psoriatic arthritis is an inflammatory joint condition, and insurers usually underwrite it in a similar way to other inflammatory arthritis rather than as a skin condition. For life cover it is often still insurable, with terms depending on severity and treatment. For income protection it matters more, because joint pain and stiffness can stop people working, so an exclusion for joint or musculoskeletal conditions is possible.
Can I get income protection with eczema?+
Often, yes. The question is whether your eczema has kept you off work and whether your job could make it worse. Hand eczema or contact dermatitis in jobs involving frequent hand washing, chemicals or wet work, such as healthcare, catering, hairdressing, cleaning or construction, may lead to an exclusion for skin conditions. Mild eczema that has never affected your work is often accepted without one.
Do I need to declare taking Roaccutane (isotretinoin)?+
If the form asks about medication or treatment within the period it covers, yes. Isotretinoin is prescribed by a dermatologist, so it will be in your records. Acne itself does not usually affect life insurance. The reason insurers may ask more is that isotretinoin carries warnings about mood changes, so if you experienced low mood or saw anyone about your mental health during treatment, answer the mental health questions accurately too.
I had low mood while taking isotretinoin. Will that affect my cover?+
It will need to be declared if the mental health questions cover it, and insurers will want to know what happened: your symptoms, any treatment or referral, how long it lasted and whether it has resolved. A short episode that settled after treatment ended, with no recurrence, is often viewed far more favourably than people fear. Answer as accurately as you can and include the dates; an adviser can help with the wording.
Does acne affect life insurance?+
Acne on its own does not usually affect life insurance, critical illness cover or income protection. You may need to mention prescribed treatment if a question asks about medication, but it is not a condition insurers associate with serious illness or long absences from work. The only part that tends to prompt follow-up questions is isotretinoin, because of its link with mood changes.
What if I have a mole being investigated?+
Wait for the result before applying if you can. An insurer is likely to postpone a decision while a mole or skin lesion is under investigation, because it cannot price a possible diagnosis it does not yet know. Once the result is back, a benign finding usually makes no difference. If it is a skin cancer, the application is assessed on the type, stage and treatment, which is a different conversation altogether.
Does hidradenitis suppurativa or rosacea affect life insurance?+
Rosacea, vitiligo and similar conditions that affect appearance rather than general health usually make no difference to life insurance. Hidradenitis suppurativa can be more involved, because severe cases may need surgery, biologic treatment or time off work, so expect questions about treatment and absence. As with other skin conditions, the effect is more likely to show up on income protection than on life cover.
Should I use a broker if I have a skin condition?+
If your condition is mild and treated with creams, most insurers will reach the same answer and a broker mainly helps by comparing price and policy wording. Where advice adds more is with systemic or biologic treatment, psoriatic arthritis, a history of time off work, or a mental health episode linked to isotretinoin, because insurers' approaches to those differ and the wording of your answers matters.