Life and protection
Private Health Insurance Quote
cover for prompt private diagnosis and treatment, alongside the NHS rather than instead of it
Cover that pays for private diagnosis and treatment of acute conditions, usually with a choice of hospital and a shorter wait. It sits alongside the NHS rather than replacing it, and the underwriting basis decides how existing conditions are treated.
- Acute conditions, not chronic
- Alongside the NHS
- Underwriting decides the rest
- FCA authorised and regulated
Quick answerPrivate health insurance pays for private diagnosis and treatment of acute conditions: the ones that respond to treatment and can be resolved. It buys speed and a choice of hospital rather than a different standard of emergency care, because accident and emergency stays with the NHS. The decision that shapes the policy most is the underwriting basis. Tell us who needs covering, and specialist UK brokers can come back with quotes.
More worried about your income? Our income protection insurance page covers that instead.
At a glance
Private Medical Cover: Six Things to Settle
Six things that decide what a private medical policy does for you.
- It covers acute conditions
- Ones that respond to treatment and resolve
- Long-term conditions are not covered
- Ongoing management stays with the NHS
- Emergencies stay with the NHS
- This is not an alternative to A and E
- Underwriting decides your history
- Moratorium or full medical underwriting
- The hospital list matters
- Check the ones you would actually use
- Premiums rise at each renewal
- Age and treatment costs both push them up
The basics
What Private Cover Is Actually Buying
Speed and choice, mostly. A private policy pays for diagnosis and treatment of conditions that can be put right, at a hospital from an agreed list, without waiting. What it does not buy is a different answer in an emergency.
Acute conditions
The whole basis of the cover.
Who is on the policy
One person, a couple or a family.
How much of the path
In-patient only, or out-patient too.
The underwriting basis
How your history is handled.
The hospital list
Where you can be treated.
The excess
What you pay towards a claim.
How it works
From the Enquiry to a Private Health Cover Price
Getting a private medical policy quoted takes a few minutes. The questions are about who is covered, how much of the treatment path you want included and which underwriting basis suits.
Tell us who is being covered
Yourself, a couple or a family.
Choose the level of cover
In-patient only, or out-patient as well.
Describe the work
Cover for yourself, a couple, a family or a group through your business.
Compare what comes back
Underwriting type, limits and hospital list.
What it covers
Where the Policy Picks Up the Bill
A private medical policy is assembled from sections rather than sold whole. Which ones you take, and how far each runs, is what separates two quotes with the same headline.
| Section | Where it sits | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| In-patient treatment | The core of every policy | Surgery and an overnight stay |
| Day-patient treatment | Included with it | Procedures with no overnight stay |
| Diagnostic tests | Check where they sit | Scans and tests, in or out of hospital |
| Out-patient consultations | A choice, often capped | Specialist appointments |
| Cancer cover | Varies more than anything else | Ask how far it runs |
| Mental health treatment | Optional on many policies | Often with its own limits |
| Therapies | An add-on | Physiotherapy and similar |
Out-patient cover is the section that varies most. Consultations, scans and tests happen before any admission, so a policy with a low out-patient limit can leave you paying for the part of the process you reach first.
What it leaves out
What a Private Policy Will Not Pay For
Private medical cover is written around acute conditions that respond to treatment. These are the points where a private medical policy does not answer, and the first two account for most of the misunderstanding.
Conditions you already had
Pre-existing conditions are excluded unless underwritten in.
Long-term condition management
Cover is for acute conditions that respond to treatment.
Emergency and accident care
That remains an NHS service.
Treatment outside the hospital list
Go off the list and the policy may not pay.
Anything above the section limits
Out-patient and therapy limits run out.
Treatment you arranged without telling them
Authorisation first is close to universal.
Levels of cover
How Far the Cover Is Built to Run
Policies are layered, and the layer you stop at decides how much of the treatment path is yours to pay for.
In-patient and day-patient only
The core, and the least costly.
Diagnostics added
Scans and tests before admission.
Full out-patient cover
Consultations without a cap, or a high one.
Enhanced cancer cover
Where policies differ most of all.
Mental health cover
Usually optional, usually limited.
Therapies and extras
Physiotherapy, dental, optical.
Cover for a workforce? See business protection insurance.
Who it suits
Who Takes Out Private Medical Cover
Private cover tends to be bought at a point of frustration or a point of change, and the reasons are fairly consistent.
Families wanting faster diagnosis
The commonest reason.
Self-employed people
Where waiting means not earning.
People who have waited before
And do not want to again.
People leaving an employer scheme
Continuing cover personally.
Business owners
Cover for themselves and staff.
Older applicants
Where the value of speed rises.
Cover if you cannot work? See income protection insurance.
Moratorium or full underwriting
Moratorium vs Full Medical Underwriting
This is the decision that matters most, and it is made before any price is quoted. Neither is better in the abstract; they suit different people.
| Moratorium | Full underwriting | |
|---|---|---|
| What you do at the start | Nothing, no forms | Declare your medical history |
| What is excluded | Recent conditions, automatically | Whatever is agreed, by name |
| When you find out | At claim stage | At the outset |
| Can an exclusion lift | Often, after a clear period | Usually not |
Already have a policy elsewhere? Ask about switch underwriting, which carries your terms across. Our life insurance page covers a different need.
Cost
Why Private Medical Cover Costs What It Does
Age, who is covered, the level of cover, the excess and the hospital list. We do not print average premiums.
Why the premium rises every year
Two things push in the same direction: you are a year older at each renewal, and the cost of private treatment rises. That makes this quite unlike life cover, where the payment is usually fixed for the term, and it is worth expecting rather than being caught by.
Why the excess and the hospital list are levers
Both are within your control at the quote. A higher excess and a narrower list of hospitals will reduce what you pay; whether they reduce it by enough to be worth it depends on the hospitals you would actually want.
What the quote is rated on
The main factors
- Who is coveredOne person, a couple or a familyBase
- AgeOf everybody on the policyRate
- Level of coverIn-patient, out-patient, extrasRate
- ExcessAnd whether it applies per year or per conditionRate
- Hospital listWider lists cost moreAdjust
Raise the excess deliberately
It is the clearest lever.
Check the hospital list first
Then narrow it if you can.
Take the sections you need
Rather than the full set.
The conditions
Four Things to Get Right Before You Claim
Private medical cover carries more day-to-day conditions than life cover does, and on a private medical policy these are the ones that decide whether a bill is met.
Get authorisation before treatment
Ring the insurer first, not afterwards.
Stay on the hospital list
Going outside it can leave you paying.
Understand your underwriting basis
Moratorium and full underwriting behave differently.
Keep to the hospital list
Treatment elsewhere may not be met.
Quote checklist
What to Have Ready Before You Compare
Have these ready and quoting a private medical policy takes minutes. The underwriting question is the one worth thinking about before you start.
Who is to be covered
Yourself, a couple, a family or a group.
Recent medical history
For whichever underwriting basis you pick.
The level of cover wanted
In-patient only, or the out-patient sections as well.
The excess you would carry
And how it applies.
Any existing policy
Switching can carry your history across.
Hospitals you would want
Lists differ between insurers.
Comparing
Two Private Health Quotes, Section by Section
Two quotes for a private medical policy can carry the same headline and cover quite different ground. These are the points that separate them.
How you are underwritten
- Moratorium or full medical underwriting
- Whether an existing policy can be switched across
- How pre-existing conditions are treated
What is actually included
- Out-patient cover and any cap on it
- How far cancer cover runs
- Mental health and therapies
On this cover specifically
- Out-patient limit and what counts towards it
- How far cancer cover runs
- Whether the excess is yearly or per condition
Ask how the excess applies across two unrelated conditions. Per year and per condition are very different. Unfamiliar terms are explained in our plain English jargon guide.
Cutting costs
Bringing the Cost Down Without Losing the Cover
The levers are the excess, the hospital list, the sections taken and reviewing at each renewal. We publish no savings figures.
Choose a higher excess
The clearest single lever.
Take a narrower hospital list
If it still has yours on it.
Drop sections you would not use
Rather than buying the full set.
Ask about a no claims bonus
Some insurers run one.
Review at every renewal
Premiums move more here than elsewhere.
Ask about switching
Your terms can often come with you.
Glossary
Private Medical Cover in Plain English
The words that decide what is covered and what is not.
- Acute condition
- A condition that responds to treatment and returns you to normal health.
- Chronic condition
- A long-term condition needing ongoing management, generally not covered.
- Pre-existing condition
- Something you already had before the policy started.
- Moratorium underwriting
- No forms at the outset; recent conditions are excluded, sometimes temporarily.
- Full medical underwriting
- You declare your history up front and know where you stand.
- Switch underwriting
- Moving insurer while carrying your existing terms across.
- In-patient and day-patient
- Treatment needing a hospital bed, with or without an overnight stay.
- Out-patient cover
- Consultations and tests without admission, usually capped.
- Hospital list
- The hospitals an insurer will pay for. Going outside it can cost you.
- Excess
- The part of a claim you pay, applied per year or per condition.
Why MyMoneyComparison.com
Why People Compare Private Health Cover Through MyMoneyComparison.com
MyMoneyComparison.com is an FCA-authorised UK comparison service that introduces families to specialist brokers. We do not sell insurance and we do not give advice: the broker you choose arranges the policy. Using us is free.
One form, one enquiry
Describe what you need once, instead of repeating yourself to each broker.
Advice given
We are an introducer, not a broker. We do not sell policies and we do not recommend one insurer or product over another. Read our editorial policy.
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MyMoneyComparison.com Ltd appears on the FCA register under FRN 916241.
Incorporated
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FAQs
Private Health Insurance Quote FAQs
Answers on acute and chronic conditions, underwriting, hospital lists, excesses and switching.
Does private cover replace the NHS?
No, and it is not designed to. Accident and emergency care, ambulances and long-term condition management all stay with the NHS. What a private policy changes is planned diagnosis and treatment of conditions that can be resolved.
What does acute mean here?
A condition that responds to treatment and returns you to the health you were in before. The opposite is a chronic condition, which needs ongoing management rather than a cure, and that is generally outside private cover.
Will my existing conditions be covered?
Usually not at first. On a moratorium policy, recent conditions are excluded and may come back into cover after a clear period. On full medical underwriting they are named and excluded, so you know where you stand from the start.
Which underwriting basis should I pick?
It depends on your history. Somebody with a clean recent record often finds moratorium simplest; somebody with a past condition may prefer full underwriting so there is no argument later. A broker will talk it through.
Why is out-patient cover treated separately?
Because it is where most of the money goes early on. Consultations, scans and tests all come before any admission, and a policy with a low out-patient limit leaves you meeting that part yourself.
Can I choose my hospital?
From the list your policy carries. Wider lists cost more and central London hospitals are usually the ones that lift the price. Check the hospitals you would realistically use before narrowing it.
Do I have to ring before treatment?
Almost always. Authorisation before treatment is close to universal, and arranging something privately and claiming afterwards is a reliable way to be left with the bill.
What happens when I leave an employer scheme?
You can usually continue privately, and doing it promptly matters. Some insurers will carry your existing terms across rather than treating you as a new applicant, which protects conditions that arose while you were covered.
What does private health insurance actually cover?
Acute conditions: ones that respond to treatment and can be resolved. It pays for diagnosis and treatment privately, usually with a choice of hospital and a shorter wait. It is not a replacement for the NHS and it is not designed to be.
Are pre-existing conditions covered?
Generally not, unless they are specifically underwritten in. How they are handled depends on the underwriting basis you choose, and on a moratorium policy a condition can sometimes come back into cover after a clear period.
What is the difference between moratorium and full underwriting?
Moratorium means no medical forms at the outset, with recent conditions excluded and reviewed later. Full medical underwriting means declaring your history now, so you know exactly what is covered from the start. Neither is better in the abstract.
Does it cover emergencies?
No. Accident and emergency care stays with the NHS, and a private policy is not an alternative to it. What private cover changes is planned diagnosis and treatment, not what happens in an ambulance.
Why do the premiums go up each year?
Two reasons pull together: you are a year older, and the cost of treatment rises. That is a real difference from life cover, where the premium is usually fixed, and it is worth planning for rather than being surprised by.
What is the hospital list?
The hospitals your insurer will pay for. A wider list costs more, a narrower one less, and going outside the list can leave you meeting the bill. Check the hospitals you would actually want are on it.
How does the excess work?
You pay the first part of a claim. What varies is whether it applies once a year or once per condition, which makes a considerable difference over a year with two unrelated problems. Ask which basis you are being quoted.
Can I switch insurer and keep my cover?
Frequently yes, through switch underwriting, which carries your existing terms across rather than treating you as a new applicant. It is the main reason to compare with a broker rather than simply starting again.
Ready when you are
Tell Us Who Needs Covering and Compare
Tell us who is being covered and how much of the treatment path you want. Specialist UK brokers can then come back with quotes. Free to use, with no obligation to buy.
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About this page
This page explains UK private health insurance: what a private medical policy pays for, how the underwriting basis decides which of your conditions are covered, and where the NHS remains the answer. It is general information rather than advice. Policies differ between insurers, so read your own documents and put the questions raised here to your insurer or broker.
How we approached this page
- Published UK private medical policy summaries
- Underwriting bases, hospital lists, out-patient limits and excesses
- Financial Ombudsman material on motor insurance complaints
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