Free money (if you have private medical insurance!!)

[newmomma]

Hi,

Just a reminder to any of you who have private medical insurance.

I was checking my policy (for an ill-health-related query) and noticed my policy had a Childbirth Benefit for every child - £100 each!!

I've had two babies in the last 20 months and nearly missed it.

All I have to do is send in copies of their birth certificates and they'll forward me a cheque for £200.

They did say the policy has a cut-off of 24 months so its a good thing I happened to read it.

Anyway - I thought I'd draw attention to this for anyone out there who might have insurance (mine is through work and I rarely think about it) and might have missed this benefit on their policy too.

Good luck!

[saritam]

hi

also if you add your baby to the policy within 3 months they will go on with medical history disreguarded which means that they will have cover for any medical conditions they may be born with or develop.. it can be important if you need to claim for anything later.

I am a mum and a health insurance broker free advice and quotes to all mums on here :)

[newmomma]

Oh, that's good to know - except I'm sure there would be an additional premium for adding the children and as its a work-benefit i'm not sure they'll pay the extra.

But the £200 has made my day! [grin}

[newmomma]

, even...

[sh77]

wonderful. which company are you with? i wonder if bupa offers this.

[goodlifemummy]

I had this payment with my twins, and then I also claimed for their 2 week stay in scbu after their birth - almost £1000 each. I added them on the policy as soon as I could,and will be doing the same with DC3 in December. I can honestly say I haven't noticed the additional cost of the health insurance - it must be pennies - it comes out of my tax somehow - I get this benefit through work

[Ephiny]

Yes I think it's normal to be able to add partners/children to your policy if it's through work (this is the case for both me and DP), and if all you're paying is the tax on the premiums your employer pays on your behalf, it should only be a very small increase from your perspective. Worth checking if you can do this.

[MumNWLondon]

My DS was added at birth but DH changed jobs (work policy) and new policy its should have covered pre-existing conditions but they refused to pay out as it was a "birth defect" - (operation on pre-auricular sinus) - in the end he had it done on the NHS. I was a bit annoyed as the operation was because it got infected not because he was born with it. Anyway now DS2 born with same condition and likely it was need to be removed around age 3. Its a different insurer so will be interesting to see if covered.

[BagofHolly]

We are with AXA PPP through my husband's company and they provide this benefit EXCEPT if the children are born as a result of Assisted Conception, when they only get £50. And they're not covered for the first 90 days of their lives, just as a result of their conception method. When I queried this, they told me it's because "many ivf babies are defective."

AXA PPP suck.

[debs0508]

Axa PPP can suck if you get the wrong person on the phone. Hang up and call again and find someone that speaks your language!

I am a Mum of 2 - we are with Pruhealth who also give this cash benefit for new Mums and cover various forms of pregnancy complications.

I'm also a private health insurance broker so again, happy to give free advice - I should be the expert! Feel free to test my knowledge.

It bugs me that when someone leaves a company, there are often hiccups in the cover being switched.
My advice is to put your medical insurance through a broker, then you get someone else fighting your corner for you and getting things through for you but it doesnt cost you any extra.

Axa PPP are great in most cases - I've got lots of clients with them. They all have their good and bad sides.

[BelieveInLife]

Whereabouts would I find if this is included in my policy or not? I'm with AXA PPP and have looked in my Membership handbook but can't find anything in there.

[MrsChemist]

Oh, I have a question!

I'm with pruhealth and get £200 towards maternity costs (not the labour, but other stuff, like tests and scans and things)
Would this include fancy 3D/4D scans, or would it just have to be a 2D scan?

[debs0508]

Let me find out today and come back to you! I will look in the policy wording for you for Pruhealth and Axa PPP.

Believe in Life - what was it you needed to know - the Allergy testing bit?

Policy wordings are long and complicated!

[NoTeaForMe]

Through my husbands policy we get £50 for every night you stay in an NHS hospital, and as I have to stay in for 48hours I will actually benefit from this, we'll be looking into whether we get £100 just for having a baby too. He's with axaPPP, so does this mean it's guaranteed or will it be different policy holder to policy holder?

Ta!

[BelieveInLife]

debs no sorry, it's where I'd find if I'm entitled to the childbirth benefit. I couldn't see that I was in my handbook...

[debs0508]

NoTeafor me - the cash benefit is a benefit that you get when you could have gone private but chose to stay in the NHS.

Depending on which policy you are on, you may get the £100 - let me know which one - Assure, VIP etc.

[innka]

thank you for bringing it up! I will go and check

[HelenMumsnet]

Hello.

We've been contacted about this thread by AXA-PPP Healthcare and they've asked to post up this statement from them:

"Whilst we would like to offer some clarification here, we cannot comment on individual cases.

"However, please be aware that we offer a large number of medical insurance policies for individuals and businesses that offer different levels of cover and benefits so, if you have any questions, it's best to contact your Personal Adviser, who can explain the benefits available to you on your particular policy.

"Here's how to contact us."

[PixieCake]

Thanks so much for flagging this up - I would have totally missed it.
I'm with AXA too so should get £100. Yippee!

BelieveInLife - in my AXA handbook it is in the benefits table(p36) as point 17, and also under point 5.5b, childbirth.
If you can't find it I'm sure they can tell you on the phone.

Does anyone know whether, if your DH is covered too, can you both claim it or is it only one payment per child? (getting greedy now!)

[harlekaz]

Hi, does anyone know if there are any private health insurance policies that cover for you going into a private hospital to have the baby? my partner and I are thinking about starting a family next year so if there is one out there I want it!! lol

Thank you xxxxx

[MummyBeth]

Thanks for the info - shall be checking policy this evening! :)

[chuichi]

The cut-off is definitely NOT 24 months, have called PruHealth and spoken to them.

You need to claim within the first 6 months of child being born.

I've missed out on my £100!