Guide
Health classes explained
Preferred Plus, Preferred, Standard Plus and Standard: definitions, distinctions and what determines placement.
Life insurers sort term policies using rating tiers. The terms change between companies slightly, but they ladder the same way: Preferred Plus (sometimes called Super Preferred or Preferred Best), Preferred, Standard Plus and Standard, then table ratings for additional risk. Tobacco users get a matching set of brackets at elevated prices.
What underwriters look at
Age and height-to-weight ratio, blood pressure and cholesterol readings, family medical history up to age 60 (heart disease or cancer), motor-vehicle record, medications you take, your job and recreational pursuits, and any tobacco or nicotine consumption. Preferred Plus demands clean results on nearly everything; Preferred is more forgiving; Standard Plus and Standard accommodate managed conditions such as controlled high blood pressure.
How to use the quote tool
The health question wants an honest self-assessment: Excellent aligns with Preferred Plus, Very good with Preferred, Good with Standard Plus and Average with Standard. Your quote uses this category; final placement happens after underwriting. In doubt? Request quotes at two different health levels and see the spread, then allow underwriting to settle it. A higher-than-honest rating doesn't shrink the final payment; it just makes the estimate misleading.
Susman Insurance Agency has the connections to point you toward carriers with lenient rules for particular conditions, often yielding results that beat the standard-rate quote.