You won’t always be required to take a medical exam when applying for life insurance.
However, insurers do have the right to ask you to undergo a medical to find out more about the level of risk involved with offering you cover.
This is only likely with some pre-existing health conditions, as insurers may need to see if your condition has caused any other medical problems.
What’s more likely is for insurers to request a medical report from your GP (they will need your permission to do so and you’ll be able to see the report before it is sent to the insurer).
The exception to this is an over 50s plan, where no medical information is required.