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10-second summary: If your ferritin and liver results are normal and you’re on regular treatment, you can usually get life insurance, mortgage protection and income protection at standard rates in Ireland. Untreated or complicated cases may see a premium increase or temporary postponement until things stabilise.
Editor’s note: First published January 2016 | Refreshed May 2026 with updated Irish underwriting guidance and expanded insurer examples.
You’ve got haemochromatosis?
You’re definitely not alone. Ireland has one of the highest rates in the world, so insurers here see it often.
The good news is that once treatment is working and your ferritin levels are stable, most insurers are very comfortable with it.
The mistake people make is assuming that because one insurer panics, they all will.
That’s not how underwriting works.
Different insurers assess haemochromatosis differently, especially if:
That’s why the order you apply matters.
Being accepted doesn’t automatically mean you got the best outcome, and applying to the wrong insurer first can sometimes narrow your options unnecessarily.
When you apply for life insurance or mortgage protection, the insurer mainly wants to know whether the condition is under control.
They’ll normally focus on:
They’re usually not worried about the word “haemochromatosis” itself.
What matters is whether treatment is working and whether your iron levels are now stable.
If your consultant is happy and your bloods are behaving themselves, insurers are often happy too.
Most people actually fall into the first category.
That surprises many applicants because Google can make haemochromatosis sound much scarier than insurers usually treat it once it’s under control.
Peter was 35 and had just been diagnosed with haemochromatosis during a routine check-up.
His ferritin was 950 which was high, but already falling nicely with venesection treatment.
No symptoms.
Feeling completely fine.
He applied for mortgage protection through his bank and got postponed.
No cover meant no mortgage, cue panic.
When he came to us, we reviewed the blood results properly, approached the right insurer first, and got him covered at standard rates within 48 hours.
That’s why the order you apply matters.
Different insurers can look at the exact same haemochromatosis case and come to very different conclusions depending on:
That’s also why being accepted doesn’t automatically mean you got the best outcome.
Haemochromatosis is a genetic condition in which the body absorbs too much iron from the diet.
Over time, excess iron can build up in organs such as:
Symptoms can include tiredness, abdominal pain, joint issues and low libido, although many people have no symptoms at all.
Treatment is usually straightforward and involves regular blood removal, called venesection or phlebotomy.
Once ferritin levels are normalised, most people remain healthy long-term with simple monitoring and maintenance treatment.
Usually not.
If your ferritin and liver-function results are stable, insurers will often rely on:
Where bloods are fluctuating or there are complications, the insurer may ask for additional medical information before making a decision.
If your condition is controlled and there’s no organ damage, you’ll often pay the same price as someone without haemochromatosis.
Where ferritin remains high or there are complications, insurers may:
Again, different insurers take different approaches, which is why choosing the right insurer first matters so much.
You’ve already done the hard part by getting diagnosed and starting treatment.
Now let’s make sure you don’t accidentally apply to the wrong insurer and create unnecessary hassle for yourself.
Complete our quick blood conditions questionnaire and I’ll tell you:
Complete the blood conditions questionnaire here.
Or if you’d rather talk it through first, you can book a quick call with me here.
Anything you tell us stays confidential, because we anonymise medical details before speaking to insurers.
If you have another blood condition, these guides may help:
You can also visit our life insurance with medical conditions hub for more underwriting guides.
Thanks for reading,
Nick
Written by Nick McGowan, QFA RPA APA
Nick is a qualified financial advisor and founder of Lion.ie, a multi-agency Irish life insurance and income protection brokerage based in Tullamore.
He’s been helping people secure fair, transparent cover for over 15 years and was named Protection Broker of the Year 2022.
If you’d like straight answers without the sales pitch, learn more about Nick here.
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