Life Insurance Applications- Why is it taking so long?

Term Life Insurance and Term Life America with its 30 years of life insurance underwriting experience  has found that once an insurance company receives an application, it will usually take 10 days to 2 weeks before the application is logged onto their system, reviewed by a pre-underwriter and your lab results received.  Then it can go to the underwriter for an initial review.   

Then, other than a perfect application, (only 3% to 5%), anytime the insurance company receives an outstanding requirement, it will be 7-10 days before the underwriter reviews it. 

Waiting For Medical Records

So, Why does it take so long for medical records to be received by the insurance company for a life insurance application?

Usual- 30 to 60 days!    Unusual- 4months, complicated medical conditions!  

The usual process consists of this scenario:  The insurance company contacts a medical records service, which then contacts the doctor’s office.  This usually takes about a week.  Then the doctor’s office may have the request sitting at their office for two weeks before they inform the medical records service company that prepayment will be needed.  The medical records service relays this information to the insurance company.  The applicant’s file then goes back to the underwriter for approval of the prepayment, which could take many additional days.  Then the check is cut, forwarded to the medical records service and finally, to the doctor’s office.  Many times it will take several weeks after payment is received by the doctor’s office before the records are provided.  It’s not unusual for doctors’ offices to have an employee in only once or twice a month to make copies of patients’ records.  The records are then forwarded back through the medical records service and to the insurance company.