Would you recruit your grandpa for your school basketball team if he asked nicely? Would you let your irresponsible and broke BFF borrow money from you? Would you ask your little brother for help with your math homework when he can barely add 2 and 2?

Didn't think so.

And insurance companies are just as picky. They have no reason to insure someone if they don't think they're going to make money off of 'em. Insurance companies are businesses, after all, so they're not giving handouts to every grandpa, BFF, and little brother on the planet.

When you hand over premiums every month and never make a claim, the insurance company gets to keep the cash for themselves.

Not a bad deal.

Are You Insurable?

So what makes you insurable? Well, it depends on the type of insurance you're applying for, but in general, insurance companies most interested in your business if you…

• are in good health.
• don't take crazy risks.
• don't have a bad driving record.
• are fairly young.
• are employed full-time.
• have a good credit history.
• don't have a history of trying to cheat insurance companies.
• don't have a history of huge claims.

So what happens if you do have some of these risk factors? You can still be insured, but it's more than likely that your premiums will be higher. For example, if you're in the habit of paying your credit card bill late, the insurance company might just charge you more; that way, even if you don't pay your premium on time, the company still gets your money.

Hey, no one said it was easy.