Your health should always be your main priority, but with so many health cover and insurance options available, choosing one can be quite overwhelming. In this article I will explain 3 of the most common types of health cover.
Health cash plans
With healthcare costs on the rise, health cash plans are a simple way to reduce the expense of everyday health treatments by giving you money back. The amount of money you are eligible to receive back will depend on the provider and the amount that you contribute to it each month. In short, health cash plans are a cost effective way to help you spread the cost of health care that is not covered for free by the NHS.
For example, if you require urgent dental treatment or a new pair of glasses, the last thing you will want to worry about is how you are going to pay for it. The same can be said for a number of healthcare treatments and maintenance. This is why health cash plans are becoming so popular, because they allow you to focus on your medical treatment rather than how you are going to pay for them.
Most health cash plans also allow you to cover your partner and your children under the age of 18. With most health cash plan providers, making a claim straight forward. Simply ask for a receipt from your practitioner after you have received your treatment, then fill in a claim form and send it to the provider, they will then reimburse the claim into your bank account.
Private health insurance
The main benefit that private health care provides you with is control over where and when you are treated, as well as access to leading private hospitals, extra, benefits, useful help lines and very fast access to treatment. For many people, having private health insurance plays an integral role in giving them peace of mind.
The cost of private health insurance can vary quite significantly though, so it’s worth getting six or seven quotes and studying them. Take into consideration your requirements and the reasons why you’re considering private health insurance. A lot of private health insurance plans are expensive due to the fact they cover more than what’s needed. For example, an elderly man doesn’t need insurance that covers the costs of pregnancy.
There are numerous types of private health insurance plans ranging from packages where you have a fixed amount of cover but a limited amount of choice, to limited cover that only covers certain illnesses, to special cover for individual needs. A lot of private health insurance providers now allow you to build your own policy, giving you a lot more choice than in previous years.
Income protection insurance
Previously known as permanent health insurance, income protection insurance is an insurance policy that provides you with a form of income if you’re unable to work due to illness or injury. Most providers will pay out income protection until death, your return to work or retirement, although short term policies are also available for a lower monthly cost.
The amount that income protection insurance providers payout is usually based on a percentage of your earnings. Between 50 and 60 percent is the normal amount, these payments are tax-free. Astonishingly, just 12% of employers support their staff for more than a year if they’re absent from work due to illness or injury. Given that percentage, everyone who works should at least consider income protection.
There are three types of income protection insurance policies, these are guaranteed policies, reviewable policies and age related policies. A guaranteed policy guarantees that the premium you pay stays fixed for the duration of the policy term. Reviewable policies are regularly reviewed by the provider, usually annually, they then decide whether or not to increase your premium based on this.
Age related policies mean that your premium will increase annually to coincide with your age. Once they have been set up, age related policies are not affected by occupation or lifestyle choice, so they tend to be more popular with people who pay larger premiums as insuring them is a greater risk, eg people with dangerous occupations or heavy smokers.
This article was contributed by David at GHCF
