Yes, you can get life insurance with diabetes in Australia. Learn how Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes affect your coverage options, premiums, and what information insurers need to approve your application.
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General Advice Only
Authorised Representative Number: 1244847 | Australian Financial Services Licence: 246623
Medical Disclaimer: This article discusses how diabetes may affect insurance applications. It does not constitute medical advice. For medical guidance about managing diabetes, consult your endocrinologist or GP.
Yes — many Australians with diabetes do obtain life insurance.
Diabetes is considered a "pre-existing condition," which means insurers will assess your application more carefully than for someone without diabetes. Outcomes vary widely between insurers, between Type 1 and Type 2, and based on how well-managed your condition is.
Thousands of Australians with both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes hold life insurance policies in Australia. Acceptance is common where the diagnosis is well-managed; loadings, exclusions, and (in some cases) declines do occur — particularly for Type 1 with complications, or Type 2 with poor HbA1c control.
This guide walks through how diabetes affects life insurance options across our 9-insurer panel (AIA, Zurich, TAL, OnePath, ClearView, NEOS, Encompass, Acenda, Futura), what insurers ask during underwriting, and the considerations that may help present your application well.
Life insurance underwriting works from population mortality and morbidity data. Diabetes — both Type 1 and Type 2 — is associated with elevated risk of cardiovascular events, chronic kidney disease, retinopathy and other complications. Zurich's Cost of Care Volume 2 notes that people with diabetes can be "up to four times more likely to have a heart attack or stroke" than the general population.
Insurers translate that elevated population-level risk into individual underwriting decisions, considering:
Where the 9-panel matters: Each panel insurer (AIA, Zurich, TAL, OnePath, ClearView, NEOS, Encompass, Acenda, Futura) maintains its own underwriting philosophy. Insurer A may apply a loading where Insurer B applies an exclusion. Pre-assessment through your adviser before formal application can help identify which panel insurer is likely to offer the most favourable terms for your specific profile.
Important framing: Well-managed diabetes — particularly Type 2 with normal-range HbA1c, no complications, and stable lifestyle factors — has substantially better insurance outcomes than poorly controlled diabetes with complications. Underwriters look at the complete picture, not just the diagnosis label.
Type 1 Diabetes:
Type 2 Diabetes:
Critical underwriting principle: Insurers assess Type 1 and Type 2 differently because the underlying biology, treatment burden, and complication trajectories differ. The label "diabetes" alone tells the underwriter very little — the type, duration, control, complications, and treatment regime are what drive the decision.
Pre-diabetes (HbA1c 5.7–6.4% / 39–46 mmol/mol, fasting glucose 5.6–6.9 mmol/L, or impaired glucose tolerance) sits in a different underwriting category. Common outcomes across the panel:
Common consideration: Where HbA1c improves into the normal range and stabilises (typically over 6 months of consistent results), reapplication may yield improved terms compared with applying during an elevated reading. Discuss timing with your adviser.
Underwriting questionnaires for diabetes applications across the panel cover:
1. Diagnosis Details
2. Current Management
3. Medical History
4. Lifestyle Factors
5. Healthcare Engagement
Common documents your adviser may request before submitting an application:
May suit: Well-managed diabetes (Type 1 or Type 2) with no complications, particularly where the household needs higher cover amounts, level premium structures, or features such as an Own Occupation TPD definition.
Process:
Common outcomes:
Premium impact framing:
Verified baseline rates for a 35yo male professional (AAA occupation, non-smoker, $500k life cover, stepped, monthly): $14.76–$32.04/month across our 9-insurer panel (LRO API, March 2026). Diabetes loadings sit on top of this baseline. Insurers do not publish their loading tables, and outcomes vary significantly by Type, HbA1c level, age at diagnosis, complications, and overall risk profile.
A common pattern across the panel:
A pre-assessment through your adviser before any formal application can help identify which panel insurer is likely to offer the most favourable terms for your specific profile.
May suit: Cases where fully underwritten cover has been declined and the household would still like a base level of life cover, accepting the trade-offs.
Process:
Trade-offs:
When to consider: After fully underwritten options have been explored across the panel and unable to secure suitable cover, and where partial protection with the waiting-period limitation matches the household's needs.
May suit: Recent diagnosis, poor control, or as supplemental cover to a retail policy.
Process:
Limitations:
Common consideration: Group cover can serve as a baseline while a household evaluates whether retail cover is also appropriate. Many households hold both, with the retail policy filling gaps in sum insured, definitions, or portability.
Households navigating a diabetes life insurance application often follow a sequence like the one below. This is general advice only — it does not consider your individual circumstances. Discuss timing and tactics with your treating clinicians and your adviser.
Activities that may help present a stronger picture to underwriters:
Stable HbA1c
Regular Medical Engagement
Address Emerging Complications
Modifiable Risk Factors
Why this matters: Underwriters look at current control alongside the diagnosis. A six-month track record of consistent HbA1c results often positions an application better than a single point-in-time reading.
Before submitting an application, your adviser may ask for:
Common practice: Request a "GP letter for insurance purposes" — many practices have templates that summarise diagnosis, current management, recent results, and absence/presence of complications in a format underwriters can readily assess.
A pre-assessment is a structured way of gauging panel-insurer appetite before submitting a formal application. It typically involves:
Why pre-assessment matters for diabetes: Formal declines may be visible to other insurers via industry data sharing. Pre-assessment helps avoid that risk by gauging appetite before any formal application is lodged.
Common considerations when choosing an adviser:
When the chosen panel insurer is identified and indicative terms are favourable, the formal application proceeds. Key principles:
Full and frank disclosure:
Common disclosure gaps:
Consequence of non-disclosure: Misrepresentation can lead to claim denial, policy avoidance, or cancellation. Refer to the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth) and your insurer's PDS for the specific duty-of-disclosure framework.
Underwriters may request:
Indicative timeline: 2–8 weeks from application to decision is a common range for diabetes cases. Complex profiles with complications or recent hospitalisations may take longer; straightforward Type 2 cases with excellent control can move faster.
Insurers do not publish their diabetes loading tables. The figures below are framing, not promises — your actual premium will depend on the panel insurer chosen, your full medical profile, and product features (level vs stepped, sum insured, benefit options).
Verified retail life cover baseline for a 35yo male professional (AAA occupation, non-smoker, $500k life cover, stepped, monthly): $14.76–$32.04/month across our 9-insurer panel (LRO API, March 2026). Female rates are typically lower than male equivalents at the same age. Diabetes loadings apply on top of this baseline.
Common reference profile: 35-year-old, non-smoker, HbA1c at clinician's target (often around 6.5–7.0%), oral medication only (e.g. metformin), no complications, healthy BMI, normal lipids, normal blood pressure, regular medical engagement.
A material loading on the underlying premium is the typical outcome. Acceptance is common across the panel for this profile. Specific loading varies by panel insurer.
Common reference profile: 35-year-old, non-smoker, HbA1c reasonably stable (e.g. around 7.0%), insulin pump and continuous glucose monitoring, no complications, healthy BMI, normal lipids, normal blood pressure.
A larger loading than equivalent Type 2 cases is the typical outcome, reflecting the longer cumulative exposure window and greater day-to-day variability of insulin-dependent diabetes. Acceptance is common but not universal — some panel insurers are more conservative on Type 1 with onset before age 10. Pre-assessment through your adviser identifies which panel insurer is likely to offer the most favourable terms.
Source: Baseline rates from LRO API live quotes, March 2026. Loading framing reflects general industry patterns; actual underwriting outcomes vary significantly.
Compounding worth noting: A 35yo Type 2 smoker with elevated HbA1c and elevated BMI can pay multiples of the non-smoker AAA professional baseline of $14.76–$32.04/month, where cover is offered at all. Smoking cessation (and waiting 12 months for non-smoker rates — uniform across the 9-insurer panel) is one of the most cost-effective single steps a household can consider before applying.
The scenarios below are illustrative composites — they are not real client cases. They show the general shape of how panel-insurer underwriting tends to respond to different diabetes profiles. They do not predict outcomes; individual underwriting decisions depend on the full medical picture.
Profile:
Indicative outcome pattern:
Factors that often help this kind of profile:
Profile:
Indicative outcome pattern:
Factors that often help this kind of profile:
Original profile (declined application):
Activity over the following 8 months (with endocrinologist support):
Reapplication outcome pattern:
General principle this illustrates: Underwriting decisions reflect current control. Households facing a decline often have options through stabilisation and reapplication after 6–12 months. Discuss timing with your treating clinicians and your adviser.
Households often see better outcomes when applying:
Less favourable timing typically includes:
Underwriting philosophies differ across the 9-insurer panel. Factors that vary:
Common consideration: Pre-assessment through your adviser can identify the panel insurer most likely to offer favourable terms before any formal application is lodged.
Income Protection covers inability to work due to illness or injury and replaces up to 70% of income (with no super-fund overlay; this is the regulatory cap from APRA's 2021 Individual Disability Income Insurance changes). For households with diabetes:
Trauma cover (sometimes called Critical Illness) pays a lump sum on diagnosis of a defined trauma condition. Specific to diabetes:
TPD pays a lump sum on permanent and total disability. For diabetes-affected applicants:
A formal decline can be difficult, but it does not close all doors. Common considerations:
Understand the reason: Request a written explanation. Common decline reasons include HbA1c above the insurer's underwriting threshold, recent hospitalisation, established cardiovascular complications, or progressive retinopathy/nephropathy.
Options that often remain open:
Stabilise and reapply (typically 6–12 months later)
Try other panel insurers
Consider guaranteed acceptance products
Group insurance through super
Misrepresentation can void a policy or lead to claim denial under the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth). Key points:
Industry data sharing: Australian insurers share certain information about formal declines and exclusions, which is one reason pre-assessment is preferred over speculative formal applications.
Both Type 1 and Type 2 are commonly held by retail life insurance applicants in Australia, with our 9-insurer panel covering many such cases. Type 1 typically attracts larger loadings than Type 2 at equivalent control levels, reflecting the longer cumulative exposure window. Some panel insurers are more conservative about Type 1, particularly with onset before age 10 or with established complications. Pre-assessment helps identify the most favourable panel insurer for either type.
Insurers don't publish hard thresholds, and underwriting decisions consider the full picture rather than a single HbA1c reading. As a general pattern: HbA1c at or below the target your treating clinician sets for you (commonly between 6.5% and 7.5% — but individual targets vary) tends to support better outcomes. Stability across multiple consecutive readings matters as much as the absolute number. HbA1c consistently above 8% often triggers larger loadings; consistently above 9% may trigger declines.
Acceptance is often still possible, but expect larger loadings than for either condition alone. Hypertension and diabetes both contribute to cardiovascular risk, and insurers price the combined picture. Documenting that both conditions are well-managed (stable HbA1c, blood pressure consistently within your clinician's target range) strengthens the application. Pre-assessment helps identify the panel insurer most likely to offer favourable terms.
Yes — gestational diabetes must be disclosed even if fully resolved. It elevates the lifetime risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, which insurers consider in underwriting. Where gestational diabetes resolved at or shortly after delivery and there are no ongoing glucose issues, some panel insurers may apply standard rates; others may apply a small loading or request additional information. Failing to disclose it can void cover under the duty-of-disclosure framework in the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth).
Most retail policies don't reduce premiums based on improved health — premiums are set at policy inception and adjust over time based on the policy structure (stepped premiums increase with age; level premiums adjust through the level period and then convert).
If your diabetes profile improves materially, the typical pathway is to apply for a new policy with the improved profile and, once that policy is in force, cancel the original. Discuss the timing carefully with your adviser to avoid any gap in cover.
For an existing in-force policy, premiums adjust based on the policy structure, not based on health changes:
A new application for additional cover, however, would be assessed against your then-current health.
Both have a place. Default super-fund cover provides automatic acceptance up to specified limits, with no individual underwriting — this can be valuable where retail cover is hard to obtain. Trade-offs include lower default cover amounts, "Any Occupation" TPD definitions, and premiums that erode retirement savings.
Common consideration: Many households use super-fund cover as a baseline and add retail cover where the gap on sum insured, TPD definition, or portability matters to the household's circumstances. Discuss the appropriate mix with your adviser.
A common range across the 9-insurer panel is 2–8 weeks from formal application to decision. Straightforward Type 2 cases with excellent control, no complications, and complete documentation can move faster. Complex profiles — Type 1 with established complications, recent hospitalisations, or co-occurring cardiovascular conditions — often take longer due to medical evidence collection.
Pre-assessment (a structured pre-formal-application conversation between your adviser and panel insurer underwriters) usually returns indicative views within 5–10 business days and helps avoid lengthy formal applications that may not yield favourable terms.
If you're considering life cover with a diabetes diagnosis, common starting points include:
This is general advice only — it does not consider your individual circumstances.
Pre-assessment with our adviser identifies which panel insurer is likely to offer the most favourable terms for your specific diabetes profile, before any formal application is lodged.
Get an Indicative QuoteAbout the Author
Written by the team at Insure Me For Life (AR 1244847) under Consilium Advice Australia Pty Ltd (AFSL 246623). This article provides general advice only and does not take into account your individual circumstances.
General Advice Only
Authorised Representative Number: 1244847 | Australian Financial Services Licence: 246623
Sources: LRO API live quote data (March 2026) for verified baseline rates. Zurich Protection Plus PDS (lines 812–837) for trauma condition listing. Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth) for the duty-of-disclosure framework. APRA Individual Disability Income Insurance changes (2021) for the 70% IP cap.