Flying as a hobbyist or private pilot can make it harder to get life insurance. You can still compare rates and find coverage, but you may find that few companies offer affordable coverage depending on how often you fly and where, what kind of airplanes you operate, your license, and other factors.
While your life insurance may be more expensive if you’re a private pilot, it’s still worth getting a policy — especially if you have a family that depends on your income or you’re paying off debt, like a mortgage or other loans.
How being a private pilot can affect your life insurance
Since being a private pilot can be risky, it may make your life insurance rates more expensive. While some life insurance companies have lenient guidelines for pilots, others charge a flat fee on top of your premiums that can add to the cost of your life insurance.
If you’re a private pilot, you may have to pay a flat fee of an additional $2 to $5 per every $1,000 of life insurance coverage that you purchase. That means that if you get a policy with $500,000 of coverage, you’ll pay an extra $1,000 to $2,500 a year depending on your background.
While it’s usually a good idea to get life insurance when you’re young and rates are cheaper, if you’re still an inexperienced flier and you don’t have any dependents or debts yet, it may be better to wait to get a policy. If you have less than 100 hours of solo flying experience, your premiums and your flat fee will be especially high.
What is an aviation exclusion rider?
Life insurance companies may offer you lower rates if you agree to an aviation exclusion rider, which excludes a flying-related death from coverage.
That means that if you die flying a plane or doing any flying-related activities, like skydiving or parachuting, your beneficiaries won’t be able to collect a payment.
It may be risky to agree to this kind of waiver, but it’s one way to lower your premiums if you can’t find affordable coverage.
How to get life insurance as a private pilot
Getting life insurance as a private pilot is basically the same process as getting life insurance with any other hobby or background.
The main difference is that when you apply for life insurance with a private pilot’s license, you’ll likely have to answer questions about flying, including:
Do you fly domestically or internationally?
Have you flown, or do you plan to fly to remote locations?
How many flight hours do you typically have in a year?
How many flight hours do you have in total?
Have you had any aviation accidents or violations?
What type of license and rating do you have?
What type of aircraft do you fly?
Your answers to these questions affect what you pay for life insurance. Your rates will be higher (and it may be harder to find life insurance at all) if you have a history of accidents, fly to remote locations, or you don’t have many flying hours.
Best life insurance companies for private pilots
Finding the company with the right life insurance as a private pilot is an easy way to protect your family’s financial security.
We used industry data, pricing from our partners, and third-party ratings from trusted sources like AM Best and J.D. Power to pick the best life insurance companies.
The best life insurance depends on your health, age, family medical history, budget, the coverage you need, and other factors, but here are a few places to start looking.
Best term life insurance for private pilots: Prudential
Best life insurance for student pilots: Protective
Cheapest life insurance for private pilots: Legal & General America
Best no-medical-exam life insurance for private pilots: Pacific Life
Methodology
Why you can trust our picks
Our recommendations are based on internal and external expert analysis, as well as our Policygenius Life Insurance Price Index, which uses real-time data from leading life insurance companies to determine pricing trends. When reviewing a life insurance company, our editorial team uses a proprietary scoring rubric with five factors — price, policy details, financial strength, transparency, and customer experience — to assign an unbiased rating between one and five stars. These ratings are also taken into consideration as part of our company recommendations. We don’t get paid for our reviews.
Our reviews and recommendations can help you find a reliable insurer for your family’s financial protection, but the best life insurance company for you depends on multiple factors. A licensed agent at Policygenius can support you during the application process to ensure you get the right coverage for your circumstances at the most competitive price.
Best term life insurance for private pilots: Prudential
2024 Policygenius award winner
Prudential
4.1
No-medical-exam option
Why we chose it
With nearly four million policyholders and 150 years to its name, Prudential offers competitive coverage options for seniors, as well as people with some of the most common medical conditions, including asthma, depression, and fibromyalgia.
Pros and cons
Pros
Good for people over 60
More flexible income requirements than some other insurers
Considers applicants with a variety of immigration statuses (visas and green cards)
Cons
Younger applicants will likely find better prices elsewhere
The best company for term life insurance if you’re a private pilot is Prudential. We like Prudential because it offers some of the most affordable rates to pilots — no aviation exclusion rider necessary. To qualify for the best rates, you should be at least 30 years old with at least 1,000 hours or or five years of experience as a certified pilot, and a minimum of 100 hours in your current aircraft.
Best life insurance for student pilots: Protective
Protective
4.8
30+ year terms
Why we chose it
Protective has some of the most affordable and comprehensive life insurance options available.
Pros and cons
Pros
Competitive rates for all ages and health classifications
Good for people with mental health conditions, kidney conditions, and some cancers, including prostate cancer
Term lengths up to 40 years
Cons
Not available in New York
Not great for people who have had bankruptcy, marijuana users, or visa holders
Limited no-medical-exam policy options
Protective is the best life insurance company if you’re a student pilot and have little flying experience. Unlike other insurance companies, you can get life insurance from Protective while you’re young without having to play an extra fee. While your rates will be higher than if you were a more experienced pilot, this helps keep them down.
Cheapest life insurance for private pilots: Legal & General America
2024 Policygenius award winner
Legal & General America
4.9
30+ year terms
All 50 states
No-medical-exam option
Why we chose it
Legal & General America, which also does business as Banner Life and William Penn, has some of the longest term lengths — up to 40 years — and most competitive life insurance rates available, even for people with a history of medical conditions.
Pros and cons
Pros
Competitive rates for a variety of health conditions
Fast instant-decision option for qualifying applicants
Variety of term lengths up to 40 years
Cons
Application underwriting can take longer than average
Does not have the most competitive rates for older applicants
We found that Legal & General America, which also does business as Banner Life and William Penn in some states, has the most affordable life insurance rates for private pilots. You can get the cheapest rates with an aviation exclusion rider, but it’s not necessary.
You can still get cheap rates from Legal & General America without a waiver. If you have 100 or more hours of solo flying experience or fly less than 250 hours annually, you can qualify for Standard rates — the third best risk classification.
Best no-medical-exam life insurance for private pilots: Pacific Life
2024 Policygenius award winner
Pacific Life
4.8
All 50 states
No-medical-exam option
Why we chose it
Pacific Life offers some of the lowest rates for term life insurance across age brackets. It also has the most competitive rates for many health conditions and builds.
Pros and cons
Pros
Extremely affordable across age brackets
Affordable guaranteed universal life insurance option for people who need lifetime coverage
Favorable underwriting for many health conditions
Cons
Traditional term life not available in NY
There are better carriers for active duty military, people who have a history of alcohol abuse, and people who have been through bankruptcy
Pacific Life is our pick for the best no-medical-exam life insurance. Flying can sometimes be an automatic disqualifier for a no-medical-exam policy, but Pacific Life still allows hobby pilots to apply for coverage without taking a medical exam — though you will still have to answer questions about your flying history and you might have to pay an extra fee.
Why private pilots need life insurance
You should get life insurance if you fly, even if you don’t do it professionally. Life insurance can help you:
Replace your income: If you die suddenly, any family who relies on your income will still be able to keep up with their expenses.
Cover outstanding debt: Your life insurance policy can also help your family pay off any debt they take on after your death, like private student loans, a mortgage, or car loans.
Employer insurance coverage: You may get some life insurance through your regular job if you have one, but this kind of coverage doesn’t provide as much protection as a private life insurance policy and it may also be affected by your flying.
How much does life insurance cost for private pilots?
The average cost of life insurance if you’re an experienced private pilot and you have at more than 100 solo flight hours is between $30 and $35 per month for a 20-year term life insurance policy with a $500,000 death benefit payout.
That said, what you ’ll pay for life insurance depends on your qualifications and how frequently you fly, as well as other factors like your age and health.
Term life insurance rates for private pilots
Age | Gender | $500,000 coverage amount |
20 | Female | $28.37 |
Male | $34.95 | |
30 | Female | $29.76 |
Male | $35.05 | |
40 | Female | $45.23 |
Male | $55.47 | |
50 | Female | $97.11 |
Male | $130.15 |
Methodology: Average monthly rates are calculated for male and female non-smokers in a Standard Plus health classification buying a 20-year $500,000 term life insurance policy. Rates can vary based on different types of aviation activity. Life insurance averages are based on a composite of policies offered by Policygenius from Brighthouse Financial, Corebridge Financial, Legal & General America, Lincoln Financial, Mutual of Omaha, Pacific Life, Protective, Prudential, Transamerica, Symetra, and Foresters Financial, and may vary by insurer, term, coverage amount, health class, and state. Not all policies are available in all states. Rate illustration valid as of 01/01/2024.
