Is private health insurance useful?

[PrivateHealthInsurance]

I had it through work until recently and am wondering if it's worth getting my own. The quote is crazy expensive, and although I can afford it I'm wondering if it's worth it as I've looked through the handbook and not that much is actually covered?

The only benefit I can see is cover for cancer diagnostic tests, 24 hr access to a GP phone service, and mental health service as this is where waiting times on the NHS can be pretty long.

For the rest, I think the NHS is pretty good once diagnosed with a condition so I'm not sure there's any point?

What has your experience been?

We find it very useful. DP has an eye condition. When it flares up, if it doesn’t get treated quickly, it can lead to blindness. The last time he tried to go through the NHS he didn’t get an appointment until two months after attending a&e by which point, he had already had to go private.

Using my insurance I get to see who I want within three days and when I’ve needed tests I’ve usually been able to have them within a day. Appointments are longer and feel more thorough, just because unlike NHS staff they’re not rushed off their feet. Our premium shot up this year and we didn’t even contemplate not renewing.

I have 5 major conditions.

Only one was diagnosed on the nhs the rest I had to go private for, either cash or through DH's medical insurance through work.

Our DD got very ill as a teen and was written off by the nhs and it was only through private health we were able to keep investigating and get a diagnosis and get her back to health.

It's very expensive on its own, but the nhs is not good. If you actually get ill you will need it.

Yes, 100%. I would not feel comfortable or safe without it due to the current state of the NHS. I’m fortunate to have a policy through work but pay for Bupa for my teen DD - It‘s £60 per month that would be better off in my bank account but it’s worth every penny for peace of mind alone.

I don’t know what area of the UK you’re in to think that the NHS still performs well for non emergency care, this is simply not the case and should you need non urgent surgery, diagnostics or treatment you could very likely be left to wait for months or even years. All whilst you deteriorate and have to put your life on hold.

DD was diagnosed with a spinal condition a few years ago, I did not have her insured at the time and it is one of my biggest regrets. The wait alone just for an initial consultation with a spinal surgeon was 18 months. She was forced to endure an entire year of horrific pain, both mentally and physically with her condition rapidly worsening whilst waiting for major surgery on the NHS. In desperation I looked into remortgaging our house in order to raise the £50,000 it would take to pay to have it done privately, I am far from the only parent who has had to do this and it is a disgusting reality of our broken health service.

Thank you for your experiences, you have convinced me. The quote for me and 2 DC is 84 pounds a month (second child is free), it sounds cheap compared to 60 pounds for just your DD @MaloneMeadow . It makes me feel like maybe I haven't selected all the right options? Do you have an excess?

That's the problem, I don't really feel I understand it enough and worry I'll spend all that money but then when I need it it will be something that's not covered.

We are in the South East and whenever I've needed anything, once past the horrible A&E bit, I've always been impressed with the care, but I know it will only get worse.

The DC are small but I really want to have that peace of mind for them. I can't imagine then being poorly and getting fobbed off and having nowhere to turn.

I have one through work and used it to get diagnosed with a lung condition after a year faffing with the NHS and cancelled appts due to strikes.

I'm glad I have it and think if I could afford it I'd get my own policy if I didn't get it through work.

Have a look around at different providers as you may be able to get a better package.

That’s a pretty good quote - DD’s is inflated as they’ve paid out for quite a lot (2 surgeries, loads of consultations + scans etc) over the past year or so. It started out at £33/month, we only pay £100 excess so could bring the monthly cost down a lot if we chose to pay more. Always best to go through a broker though so that’s what I’d suggest. They’ll get you the best deal and the best package - Cransford were fabulous for us

I have Bupa with work for my family and have used it approx 5 times. I honestly don't know how I'd cope with the stress of having to wait months or years and deal with cancellations on the NHS.
My elderly parents have taken out equity on their house to pay for both hip replacement and heart treatment after having to wait months and put up with constant cancellations. It's not fair but that's how it is.
If you can afford it, do it

I hadn't thought about a broker thank you!

I was so close to approving this Bupa quote but I can get a much better cover at this price from Aviva and they explained everything to me so I actually know what I am getting now!

Really pleased to have this sorted!

I see you've already got it sorted- brilliant!

Just be mindful that the insurer will tell you certain things are excluded (that usually are on all policies across the board)- don't be surprised you may call about something and find it is not covered. Not everything can be listed in the documents for each symptom or condition.

I work for a health insurance company and there is so much to get used to when you're new- they should make it easy when you do go to claim though :)

I can recommend Benenden Health. I pay £15pm for myself and DD and have used it in the first year. You immediately get 24/7 GP consultations which have been useful twice. After 6 months you can get diagnostics. I wasn't sure I'd really use this but having a surprise PE (I mean, you can't plan these things I guess!) meant that all of a sudden I was at the whim of an overstretched NHS for an urgent medical issue. I won't go into the many ways I was failed by the NHS who were clearly so understaffed they couldn't have done much more with what they had, but I didn't get proper scans and was sent home to effectively die before being sent back in and actually diagnosed. As you can imagine after that I didn't want to hang around waiting to see what might happen next and sadly have developed anxiety since the ordeal as a result. I have been so glad to be able to ask my GP for a referral to a respiratory specialist who could check my lungs (one was taken semi-functional with the large clot) and scan me for various things to try to get to the root cause. He also explained the initial CT scan in full (I was just discharged with diagnosis in NHS and sent home to wait for a call from hematology, not even kept in over night) so I finally had a much better understanding of what happened to me. He is worried they haven't found the root cause of the clot as I am very healthy and to him telling me a flight caused it isn't a huge causal factor. He has arranged that I have a scan of my legs 2 weeks after the NHS takes me off blood thinners to check for clots as he is concerned I may have problems again. It feels so good to be heard and seen as someone to help with a more preventative approach, as if I actually have someone in my corner at a very scary time of my life. I have also had an abdomen ultrasound as I have been losing weight since August and thankfully nothing worrying was found there - all organs checked. For £15pm I have been very very impressed.

It is for wee children, is dd costs 18 quid a month.

Me on the other hand would be 150 or some such

Benenden is great, we used to have it but if OP can afford ‘proper’ fully comprehensive health insurance then that is the far better alternative in the current climate. What they will cover is very limited given how little it costs and it’s meant to be used as a backup to the NHS only. Also their Ts&Cs have recently changed due to so many people immediately claiming after 6 months. You now have to wait 2 years as of last month!!

@MaloneMeadow Really! I was very lucky then a this happened late Jan!

I'm with Vitality

I pay about £60 a month

Had a health scare a few months ago and Altho I'm thankfully okay - it was absolutely horrific being dealt with through the nhs .
Shitty care and a 7 week wait to find out if I had cancer or not. And no one bothered to give me results I had to go to the gp as I was having constant panic attacks worrying, only to find the results had come through weeks ago and were normal. Fucking awful

Pretty much as soon as I got the all clear I took out vitality cover. X