A DUI may affect a person's rate for life insurance, or the ability to qualify for life insurance policies, for up to 3 to 10 years.

The amount of time depends on the life insurance policy and the insurance company guidelines for DUI's.

Some No Exam life insurance policies will delay until two years after the DUI occurs. Other no exam life insurance plans and carriers may not count the DUI unless drug or alcohol treatment was needed as a result of the DUI. However, some life insurance companies will not consider a recent DUI at all, they will just decline the applicant.

When applying for a medically underwritten life insurance policy, a DUI can keep a person from the best rates for as long as 10 years with some life insurance companies.

However, if it was an isolated incident and the applicant now drinks lightly or does not drink at all, the impact is less than if substance abuse treatment was ordered and the applicant has gone back to drinking heavily.

The life insurance company will also look at other traffic violations in the driver's past, if there a multiple driving offenses, and other factors related to alcohol abuse.