Private health insurance question.

[Orchid1]

I was wondering if anyone could help with a couple of questions I have?

Currently I have private health insurance through my work with Vitality which i've had for a number of years and never used.

I was looking at Bupa healthcare which seems a bit more comprehensive and also comes at a reasonable monthly cost.

Therefore my first question is if I had two health insurance plans covering me at the same time would that cause any problems?

My second is regarding covering excluding conditions. The Vitality plan was done on a Moratorium basis as I didn't want to give them access to my medical history however with Bupa I would let them see it. About a year ago I got referred to a dermatologist because of a suspicious mole on my back however it turned out to be absolutely nothing so if I went with Bupa and they saw I had a mole checked would they exclude any further mole checks or health issues arising from one that became a problem?

Thanks.

[StanleyT]

I've been here through various job changes etc and "I've already spent my policy limit" between private and work paid insurance.

With the payments I found it was best to fess up. Medicash, who I'd only paid two months premiums to in the 2015s before I was given a free work policy by Aviva asked me to pay them in full for the year (£250 I think it was) and they would cancel their policy. I'd had £300 physio and £310 between teeth and glasses in those two months....always make sure you get your claims in straight as the policy renews.

Aviva whom I ended up with when I went out of Medicash as our company changed again said we'd have to use our previous insurers 50:50 for each claim until the previous policy ran out. Aviva were not happy that Medicash had asked me to cash out that policy and terminate so I no longer had a 50% claim route there!

Unum Lifeworks whom our company now uses puts certain stops in place before you can use their insurance e.g. no dental claims except routine if they were not agreed in the three months prior to the start of the policy.

[lingus75]

Orchid1 said:

I was wondering if anyone could help with a couple of questions I have?

Currently I have private health insurance through my work with Vitality which i've had for a number of years and never used.

I was looking at Bupa healthcare which seems a bit more comprehensive and also comes at a reasonable monthly cost.

Therefore my first question is if I had two health insurance plans covering me at the same time would that cause any problems?

My second is regarding covering excluding conditions. The Vitality plan was done on a Moratorium basis as I didn't want to give them access to my medical history however with Bupa I would let them see it. About a year ago I got referred to a dermatologist because of a suspicious mole on my back however it turned out to be absolutely nothing so if I went with Bupa and they saw I had a mole checked would they exclude any further mole checks or health issues arising from one that became a problem?

Thanks.

Hi, I have been a medical insurance broker for 12 years now so I can give you a good insight.

Vitality schemes are good on paper, but typically we get more complaints about the claims process with them than anyone else, it can be very laborious. If you us the Vitality benefits which are great then this can help take the edge of the process. I would also like to say that even under a moratorium, in the case of a claim they have the right to look at your medical records, and in fact if you refuse, the claim will stop as it is part of the agreement you signed up to when you took the policy.

The bupa plans are good, but please be aware that they call all of their policies comprehensive. Generally, the industry believes that comprehensive means full out patient consultation and test allowance (almost all policies these days cover full MRI, CT and PET scans and full inpatient and cancer care), however, bupa decided that even the policies which limit your outpatient consultation and tests (bloods, ECG, ultrasound, colonoscopy, endoscopy) are called comprehensive. So, you could actually have what looks like a comprehensive plan, which only allows £500-£1000 for the tests which isnt enough.

When you buy another policy what you need to do is called a 'switch', this is where, subject to qualifying questions, the new insurer will take on pre existing conditions, but please dont think that this means the gates are open for existing conditions if you have something planned or pending. The Bupa switch criteria is better than most, so as long as the mole came back negative and you are not prone to them generally, and certainly do not have anything planned or pending you should be okay.

The Vitality rates tend to be cheaper than the bupa rates generally, so thats why I am thinking you may be in for a surprise if you look at what bupa are offering as an outpatient. Dont dismiss AXA products as they fill a nice gap between Vitality and bupa and the policies are very good.

The company I work for (although I am not on the direct sales team now) is called USAY compare. Have a look at the website to put yourself at ease, but they are the largest independent broker in the UK and specialise in switching policies, if that is in case the best option.

PM me and I will give you the name of someone who I have been working with for a long time to have a chat with.

[The Stiglet]

Who is the most comprehensive healthcare provider in the UK if you're looking for a money no option cover? Is it Bupa or Axa? Or have I missed any?