Quit Smoking Incentive

I remember the power of advertising when I was much younger was incredible with major tobacco companies portraying coolness, sporting ability, and power with smoking.

Whether you were a fan of skiing, wanted to be a cowboy riding through the Grand Canyon, a Formula One racing driver, or a professional cricketer, it was something cool to do for so many. That all stopped when the government clampdown on the advertising of course.

The reality is far from it of course we know most people that are smoking are desperately trying to give up the habit.

I really applaud some of the prominent global insurance companies, such as the ones I discussed with my Global Partners, who have Quit Smoking Incentives, whereby over time participants are rewarded with a significant reduction in premiums for giving up the dreaded weed!

When you look at the financials it is hard to see why anyone would procrastinate on the price of anything when they are spending so much on cigarettes.

In the UK packet of the mainstream, cigarettes costs just shy of ￡13. If an individual is getting through 20 cigarettes per day, that equates to ￡4,745 per annum. If that were over the lifespan of a 20-year funded plan, that would be ￡94,900 and we have not even started talking about the premium of the insurance plan itself yet! That is just on the cigarettes!

That is a mortgage!

I was looking at the premiums for a smoker and non-smoker male, age 45 with a decent sum assured, and premiums over just 20 years until his retirement.

The differential between the two prices (smoker and non-smoker) had a hike of 50% on cost for the smoker. And we have not even got to the health costs yet - that is just the price of a policy.

It is estimated that the cost of smoking to the UK is ￡12.6 billion per annum with ￡2.5 billion covered by the National Health Service, ￡5.3 billion is carried by employers, and ￡4.1 billion by the rest of society.

Back to the immediate costs, i.e., cigarettes and insurance policies, if a prospective client genuinely able to demonstrate they have given up then in the meantime whilst the go on this journey there are plans which will treat them favorably to make sure that their loved ones and businesses are adequately protected.

How is that for a financial incentive!