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Golddoor said:
Sure. I think honesty is the best policy. You never know when non-disclosure could come back to haunt you, as I'll explain.
Even if I had no ethical issues with doing that myself, which I probably would, think about what it could do for catastrophic claims. You might get away with that for small claims and there's a good chance that you would never get a serious injury that would be denied, but it could happen.
You mentioned motocross, as did I. Now, you might have an injury you seek later medical attention for and you would likely be able to fabricate some sort of explanation. However, what if you were unconscious and carted off the track in an ambulance for a major injury? You've got your helmet, boots, and protective gear on when you're wheeled into the ER. Believe me, it WILL be documented that your injuries occurred during a motorcycle racing event and the insurance company WILL see it. A good company might give you the benefit of the doubt and pay the claim, but a bastard of a company could deny you.
The same thing can happen in various other sports and activities. I go to many of these local NHB fighting events that are just regular local guys with a day job that are hoping to someday get on Spike TV or some other bigger ticket at their shot. Serious injuries that require IMMEDIATE attention are rare in that sport, as it's not as dangerous as the casual onlooker thinks, but if for some reason you were wheeled into the ER with your trunks and handwraps on, it WOULD be documented on your records. When I used to play hockey, I would walk by the stretcher with the neck restraint they kept at the rink, because it's understandable that a very serious injury could occur there. More than one person has been paralyzed from a hockey injury. If I were to ever get rolled in with my shinguards and skates on, my medical records would record an ice hockey injury. In fact, a goaltender that played on the last team I played for played goal for about four different teams (common for a goalie---in high demand) was playing for one of his other teams and one of the opposing players got hauled down from behind on a breakaway. In a fluke accident that skater's blade landed on the inside, underside of the goalie's thigh and sliced all the way into his artery. Fortunately, the hospital was about two minutes away, but I'm sure he was hauled in with his pads still on and his medical records indicate an accurate account of what happened.
As health insurance agents, what do you guys say all the time? "You may be able to handle some of the small claims, and it's the catastrophic events that you need to be concerned about." By not disclosing accurate info on your health application, there are scenarios where you could be exposed to massive claims with no coverage. I myself would prefer to just be upfront about it and if that company doesn't want my business I'll go elsewhere.
Again the point of the whole thing is just that we can't turn dollars over to consumers and expect everyone to run to individual policies because it won't work for every lifestyle, let alone those that are medically uninsurable. Group insurance does not really have the ability to deny such claims. I could get a call from Johnny Knoxville tomorrow about starring on Jackass 3 and there is little my insurance coverage could do about having to pay my injuries from only God knows what.
