Editor’s note: First published April 2013 | Fully refreshed January 2026 to reflect current Irish underwriting practice, insurer medical thresholds, and application sequencing risks.
10-second summary: Being asked to do a life insurance medical doesn’t automatically mean there’s a problem. In many cases, it’s triggered by insurer limits, cover size, or how your application was assessed — not your health. Pausing before the medical can sometimes lead to a better outcome.
If you’ve landed here, chances are an insurer has asked you to attend a medical exam — and your first thought was probably:
“Does this mean something’s wrong?”
Usually, no.
In Ireland, life insurance medicals are often triggered by process, not problems.
The insurer you applied to, the amount of cover requested, and your age matter just as much as your health.
Before you book anything, it’s worth understanding why the medical was requested — and whether it’s actually necessary.
A medical exam is typically requested for one of three reasons:
Crucially, this does not mean another insurer would reach the same conclusion.
Different insurers apply different medical thresholds.
The same person, applying for the same cover, can get:
That’s why insurer choice before you proceed matters.
If a medical is required, it’s arranged and paid for by the insurer.
The exam is usually carried out by an independent nurse or doctor and takes around 30 minutes.
It typically includes:
The results go directly to the insurer’s Chief Medical Officer.
You don’t receive a “pass” or “fail” — the outcome feeds into underwriting.
Not always.
Once a medical exam or GP report is completed, it becomes part of your underwriting record.
If it results in:
That outcome must usually be disclosed in future applications.
This is where people unintentionally make things harder for themselves.
In many cases, we can place the same cover with a different insurer who:
The key is checking this before attending the exam.
33-year-old non-smoker.
Brother died from a stroke at 42.
Father had a heart attack at 50.
Most insurers applied a 75% loading.
One assessed the risk differently and offered standard terms — saving over €10,000 across the policy term.
Almost all insurers applied a 50% loading.
One did not — again, standard rates.
Same risk. Different outcome.
The difference was knowing where to apply first.
If you’ve been asked to attend a life insurance medical, the safest move is to pause briefly and sense-check your position.
We can speak to insurers confidentially first, without triggering additional underwriting or creating a formal record.
That way, you know your realistic options before proceeding.
You can either:
Nick McGowan, QFA RPA APA
Nick is a qualified financial advisor and founder of Lion.ie, an independent Irish life-insurance and income-protection brokerage based in Tullamore.
He’s been helping people get fair, transparent cover for over 15 years and was named Protection Broker of the Year 2022.
Lion.ie specialises in life insurance, mortgage protection, serious illness cover and income protection — particularly where medical history makes things less straightforward.
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