A 45-year-old male smoker can cut life insurance premiums by £276.60 a year, and save £1,000 on tobacco spending, by quitting cigarettes.
The 45-year-old taking out a life insurance policy for 10 years of life cover of £50,000 would pay a monthly premium of £51.75, compared with £28.70 per month as a non-smoker.
A male smoker aged 25 can save over £150 a year on life insurance premiums by doing the same, Aviva has announced this week, just in time for No Smoking Day on Wednesday 10th March.
A male smoker taking life insurance cover of £125,000 for 30 years would pay £36.50 per month, compared with just £23.87 for his non-smoking friend of the same age, Aviva said.
Two thirds of UK smokers say they would like to give up smoking, and the smoking statistics show a decline in smoking for both men and women.
In 2008, 20.3% of UK men were smokers, falling to 18.5% in 2009. The men smoked on average 11 cigarettes a day in 2008.
In the same period, the number of women smokers fell from 16.2% to 15.3%, Aviva said. The average woman smoker went through 10 cigarettes a day in 2008.
Aviva based its calculations on a current cost of 10 cigarettes of £3.
In each case, then, the savings of £1,000 per year from no longer buying cigarettes would more than pay for the reduced life insurance premiums, so that each former smoker effectively had their life insurance cover, and peace of mind, at no extra cost.
Smokers are entitled to apply for a life insurance policy as a non-smoker when they have been off cigarettes for a year, Aviva said.
Click here for life insurance advice and ways to cut life insurance premiums or call 0800 678 5929
