Can your family’s medical history mess with your insurance? 

life insurance
Written By Jam Villasanta

Your family medical history can impact your life insurance—but not in the way most people think. If your cousin had heart surgery or your grandpa had diabetes, that doesn’t usually raise red flags. What insurers do look at? Your immediate family: mum, dad, siblings. And whether they had certain health conditions young. 

Insurers aren’t judging your genes—they’re managing risk. If your sister had cancer at 29, they’re going to take a closer look. 

“When you take out insurance that is related to your current or future health, you are entering a contract with the company. Companies that provide life insurance (including income protection, disability and trauma insurance) base an offer and cost of the policy on the level of risk they are taking on. These are risk-rated insurance policies.”
— Health Centre for Genetics Education

Who actually counts as ‘family’ to an insurer? 

Insurers are  looking at your first-degree relatives—that means your parents, children, brothers, and sisters. 

The types of health conditions that usually get insurers paying attention include: 

  • Breast cancer 

  • Bowel cancer 

  • Prostate cancer 

  • Heart disease 

  • Type 1 diabetes 

If someone in your immediate family had one of these before the age of 60, that could mean extra questions, higher premiums, or exclusions. 

Source: Skye Wealth Insurance Pre-Assessment Questionnaire 

So, what if my brother broke his back surfing? 

Totally fine. Freak accidents don’t count. 

But if your brother had prostate cancer at 30? That’s probably a consideration for underwriters. Insurers are more concerned with hereditary or genetic risks, not unrelated injuries. 

Family history helps insurers spot patterns. They're not being invasive; they’re trying to predict risk. (Source: RACGP) 

What happens when something does flag up? 

Usually one of three things: 

  1. Standard cover – You get the green light, no issues. 

  2. Exclusion – A specific condition is left off your policy. E.g., if your mum had breast cancer at 35, breast cancer may be excluded from your cover. 

  3. Loading – You’re offered cover, but with a higher premium to balance the risk. 

Most people think family medical history means you’ll be declined. That’s rarely true. It’s more about what might be excluded.

What if I don’t know my family medical history? 

That’s okay. You’re only expected to disclose what you actually know. If you were adopted, or your parents kept things private, insurers won’t expect you to guess. 

But here’s the thing: be as honest as you can. If something important comes up later—even if you didn’t mean to leave it out—it could make the claims process trickier down the track. 

Source: Moneysmart

Does this affect trauma cover or just life insurance? 

It could affect all three: life, trauma, and income protection. 

  • If your dad had a heart attack at 42, your trauma policy might exclude heart conditions. 

  • If your sister had bowel cancer at 35, your TPD policy could flag exclusions related to that. 

Source: Cancer Council

Why do insurers care so much? 

Because they’re insuring your future—not just your now. A strong history of early-onset illness ups your statistical risk. And insurance, at its core, is a numbers game. 

If five clients have a family history of breast cancer under age 40, and three of them claim in 10 years, that’s not just coincidence—that’s risk data. 

Life insurance underwriting is part science, part stats, part story. Family history is just one piece of the puzzle. 

What should you do about it?

  1. Be upfront. 

  2. Work with an adviser. 

  3. Get a pre-assessment. 

A pre-assessment helps you understand what you're really eligible for before you apply—and gives your adviser time to find the insurer most likely to say yes. 

And remember: just because one insurer flags a family history issue doesn’t mean they all will. That’s where working with someone like us makes a real difference.  

Bottom line? 

Your family’s health history might nudge your insurance in a different direction, but it doesn’t automatically mean rejection. It just means you need to know what counts, and how to work around it. 

We’ll help you do exactly that. 

Jam Villasanta
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