Snoring 'can boost retirement cash'
Published on 05 October 2012 11:30 AM
Some heavy snorers are able to pick up higher annual incomes during retirement, research has shown.
Although the condition can be embarrassing and uncomfortable at times, pensions experts have highlighted that it can add thousands of pounds to an individual's coffers.
MGM Advantage revealed that anyone who has sleep apnoea, of which heavy snoring is a symptom, can pick up an additional £12,000 if they declare it when buying an annuity.
The findings reveal that a man with the condition can take home an extra £571 a year above the largest conventional annuity rate, which equates to £12,000 in total over a typical retirement period of 21 years.
In order to get the additional cash, people need to have a clinical diagnosis of sleep apnoea to prove they have the condition.
Currently in Britain around six million people over the age of 65 have been diagnosed with sleep apnoea.
The extra cash is made available as part of annuities, which set the size of retirement income for life, because they can be enhanced to take a number of medical and lifestyle conditions into account.
The enhanced annuities are available to people with certain health issues or lifestyle choices because providers believe that they are less likely to live longer.
Experts have stressed that the illnesses taken into account to receive the bumper pension payments are not necessarily well-known and it is well worth adopting a thorough approach when discussing any illnesses with providers.
Some of the other health complaints that can pave the way for enhanced annuities to become a viable option, include angina, diabetes, high cholesterol and high blood pressure.
Andrew Tully, pensions technical director at MGM Advantage said: 'If you are a snorer, you're highly unlikely to tell many people but, when thinking about your retirement and purchasing your annuity, it's something to make very clear.
'Sharing that little bit of information could mean a difference of thousands of pounds of extra retirement income.'
Copyright Press Association 2012