h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

One of the issues that really bugs me and still needs to be campaigned upon is the use of lifestyle questionnaires for life insurance, life assurance & pensions.

I think it is an unreasonable intrusion to ask someones sexuality and to then use just this answer to decide upon -
whether they will be offered cover at all
whether they will be offered cover only after a blood test shows they are HIV-
if they are offered cover that it will be at a higher rate.

Whilst a number of companies have change there lifestyle questionnaires, mostly following trade union pressure (i.e there own workers object) there are still too many organisations using them.

Hi Ross. As you may know, M2M2 is undergoing a bit of a makeover at the moment, so all comments like that are wlecome. Encouraged in fact. How bad is this problem? It's something I knew about, but have never come in contact with.

It is getting better, but life insurance still use life style questions in their application forms to categorise people into risk groups. Gay Men as opposed to lesbians almost invariably get categorised as high risk, along with people who participate in dangerous sports (parachuting, rock climbing etc.). Further the admission that one is gay also invariably leads to a request for you to have a HIV test before life insurance cover is considered.

I know that Ivan Massow's insurance firm only uses companies that do not ask these questions (not that I wish to promote his business, but at least he is an out gay man).

The upshot is that you have to shop around, but be careful, if you refuse to provide a blood test you are likely to get black listed and find getting insurance very difficult. Further, if you "lie" and are found out this invalidates the insurance and also gets you blacklisted.

*earmarks space on current campaigns page*

Do they think gay men are bad for business then?

Not so much bad for business, as more likely to die. This is all to do with the presumption that all gay men are promiscuous, that all gay men engage in unsafe sex - ergo all gay men are at a higher risk of contracting HIV, developing AIDS and dying early; the consequence of which is that the life insurer has to pay out earlier.

I know its dumb but they are conservative city institutions prone to institutionlised discrimiation, bigotry etc.

Is there a similar situation when it comes to loans and financial er, things like that?

Funnily enough for loans (non secured) it is probably easier as a gay man to get one, mainly due to the higher % of your income that is "disposable". - thats the pink pound or euro or dollar for you!

Where loans are secured against your property it is also not a problem, it only becomes one when the security for a loan is an insurance policy!!

It all goes in circles doesn't it.

I remember seeing this article with a business man saying "Right - that's all the financial questions. Now, are you a poof?" I can't remember what for though...

Cheers for the info by the way. I've put it on the campaigns page and will change it so it reads better later!

Most of them force you to take an HIV test before even considering you for life insurance. I find this to be deeply insulting and homophpbia at its worst as heteros are not asked similar.

This so-called equalities bill might help. I guess we'll see.