How smoking drains your pockets in more ways than you think

Many smokers in the UK are observing Stoptober, and others have perhaps considered it. Stoptober, is a campaign organized by National Health Service (NHS), UK, that encourages smokers to quit cigarettes for the month of October, with the hope that this will encourage them to stop smoking for good. While during this month many are perhaps more receptive to learning about the adverse effects of cigarettes, it is perfect timing to point out how smoking costs you way more than the money you pay at the cash points or vending machines.

Smokers pay higher life insurance premiums

Besides the money one pays when purchasing cigarettes, and the detrimental health effects they bring about, hence leading to more expensive trips to the pharmacy and the doctor, smoking leads to ridiculously higher life insurance policies. Matt Sanders, life cover spokesman for Gocompare.com said: “Insurers will consider a number of different risk factors when calculating life insurance premiums, including smoking.” Smokers up to the age of 40 will pay as much as 113 per cent extra for their policy, or approximately 83 per cent more than non smokers.

Additionally the older smokers are when they take out their cover, the greater the additional cost, with smokers aged 40 and above facing premiums that are double the amount of their nonsmoking peers. A 25-year-old taking out a £200,000 25-year level-term policy would normally pay a monthly premium of about £6.87, giving a total policy cost of £2,061, while a smoker of the same age might be charged approximately £10.24, increasing the cost to £3,072.

Smoking costs the NHS a whopping £2 billion per year, as around the 80% of deaths caused by lung cancer, bronchitis and emphysema in the UK, are known to be stemming from smoking. Besides the above is the obvious money one would save from not purchasing cigarettes, which was calculated to an increase of £4,375 cash in hand for the average taxpayer.

Why things are looking up in the UK

Despite all the above, things are hopeful and on the right track in the UK as the country is leading the way in harm reduction research, and stop-smoking campaigns. As a testament to this the UK is reporting the lowest amount of smokers ever recorded. Amongst the several studies carried out is the internationally renowned Tobacco Harm Reduction report by Public Health England and Royal College of Physicians, which found vaping at least 95% safer than smoking. These results led to Stop-Smoking Services offering free e-cigarette samples to anyone wishing to quit smoking.

Unfortunately the above contrasts greatly with what is happening on the other side of the world in the US, where the proven effective smoking cessation aids are so over-regulated that they are not always accessible to smokers wishing to quit their deadly habit, hence passing on the opportunity to save many lives.