How to compare health insurance plans
Private health insurance can give you timely access to diagnosis and treatment. Plus, support with your recovery and therapies that may not be available on the NHS.
Over 7.6 million adults1 hold a health insurance plan in the UK. But not every insurer offers the same level of cover. That's why it's important to carefully compare plans before you buy.
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This guide contains general information about the insurance market and related topics. Some content may not reflect Vitality’s specific products, features, or processes. |
Understanding private health insurance in the UK
Private health insurance provides access to private healthcare and helps cover the cost. If you have private health insurance, you can choose to use the NHS, go privately, or opt for a combination of both.
With private health insurance, all or some of the cost of your treatment is covered by the insurance company. When you set up the health insurance plan, you decide the type of cover you need. Insurance companies often offer a standard level of cover with additional cover for an extra cost.
You pay your premiums each month or year. Your premiums are based on several factors including your age, medical history, lifestyle, the level of cover you choose and your excess level. You need to tell the insurer if you already have any health conditions. These pre-existing conditions will usually be excluded from your cover.
When you need treatment, you can check with your insurance company to see if you can have that treatment privately. Before you start your treatment you may need to pay an excess towards your treatment. This is an amount that you pay towards your medical treatment before your insurance picks up the rest of the cost.
You can get health insurance as an individual, a couple, a family or as an employer for your employees. We take a closer look at these types of plans later in this guide.
Learn more: What is private health insurance?
Key factors to consider when comparing health insurance plans
Private health insurance differs between insurance companies. So, it's a good idea to compare plans carefully before you decide which health insurance is best for you. When comparing plans make sure you understand these key factors.
Cover options
Insurance companies usually provide a standard level of cover that you can enhance for an extra cost. At Vitality, our personal core cover includes all the services listed below, and more.
Vitality core cover includes:
- Private GP consultations – Access to video consultations with a GP and 24/7 access to Health Advice Line managed by clinical advisers.
- Hospital treatment – Including in-patient and day-patient hospital fees, consultant fees and surgical out-patient procedures. Cover also includes diagnostic tests and scans such as MRI and CT. But most core cover won't cover you as an out-patient. You'll need to take out additional out-patient cover for this.
- Cancer care including early risk assessments, discounted screenings and treatment.*
- Mental health support – Access to early interventions including up to eight Talking Therapy sessions, such as cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and counselling.
- Physiotherapy – Access up to six physiotherapy sessions.
- Menopause support – Support from a menopause practitioner plus access to trusted resources.
Insurers, such as Vitality, may also offer a range of optional extras you can add to your core plan. These could include:
- Optical, dental and hearing cover – can help pay for eye, hearing and dental care.
- Additional mental health cover – in addition to the limited sessions offered with core cover.
- Therapies cover – includes chiropractic and osteopathy treatments.
- Out-patient cover – covers you for treatment when you're not admitted to hospital.
- Choose where you're treated – access to a wider hospital list or panel of specialists.
Provider networks and hospital lists
When choosing your provider, you might want to make sure that they offer a wide choice of private hospitals and doctors. This means you're more likely to be able to find a hospital locally to treat you. Or if you need specialist care, a consultant who specialises in your condition. At Vitality, when you make a claim, we'll provide you with a choice of the most suitable consultants for your condition within your plan cover.
Excess and premiums
When you set up your plan, you'll be asked if you want to pay an excess. An excess is an amount you pay towards your medical treatment before your insurance company picks up the rest of the cost. You can also choose to pay the excess only once per plan year.
So, if your treatment costs £4,000 and you have an excess of £500, you'll pay £500 when you have the treatment. Your insurer will pay the rest of the bill. The bigger your excess, the lower your premiums.
Premiums are the regular monthly amounts you pay for your cover. As an example, our core cover starts from £1.45 a day**, but the amount you'll pay depends on several factors. These include age, medical history, lifestyle, the type of cover you choose and the excess you opt for. The type of underwriting you choose could also affect your premiums. We explain this below.
When comparing plans, make sure you compare like for like. As this can alter your premiums. To find a premium that suits your budget, you may need to balance the level of cover you want with the excess you're prepared to pay.
Learn more: How much does private health insurance cost?
Underwriting options
Underwriting is an insurance company's way of determining whether they can insure you and the cost of your policy. When you apply for health insurance, the insurance company needs to assess your past and current health. They do this by asking a series of questions that might cover:
- your age and occupation
- where you live
- your health and lifestyle.
As a new customer, you're likely to be offered the choice of Moratorium Underwriting or Full Medical Underwriting.
With Moratorium Underwriting, you don't need to tell the insurance company about your full medical history when you take out the insurance.
We exclude any conditions for which a member has had treatment, received advice, or experienced symptoms in the five years prior to the start of cover. However, some of these so-called pre-existing conditions may become eligible for cover after a certain number of years, provided they do not reoccur during that period. The insurance company will inform you whether you're covered when you make a claim.
With Full Medical Underwriting, you complete a questionnaire about your medical history when you set up your plan. In some cases, you'll also need to give the insurer access to your medical records. The insurer can then decide if they want to insure you or not for a pre-existing condition. And if you need to make a claim you'll already know whether the condition you're claiming for is covered.
Learn more: The different types of medical underwriting explained
Customer service and claims process
It's difficult to know before you make a claim just how good an insurance company is at managing their customer service. That's why it's a good idea to check their customer service record when choosing your provider.
Vitality health insurance has been recognised for its excellence and awarded with 5 Star ratings from Defaqto, an independent financial research company that offers unbiased ratings and insights on various financial products to help consumers make informed decisions.
Additionally, you can check client testimonials on Trustpilot, an independent platform where customers review their experiences with our service.
Types of health insurance plans in the UK
There are several ways you can take out your health insurance plan. As an individual, a couple or as a family. Health insurance can be bought at almost any age, provided you are between 18 and 79 at the plan start date. Let's take a look at your options
Individual health insurance
Individual health insurance plans are for one person only. Your premium is based on your age, occupation, health and lifestyle. And only you will be able to make a claim on the insurance.
You can choose the level of cover you want and whether to include any optional benefits, like additional mental health cover. This could be useful if you want a different type of cover to your partner for example.
Couples' health insurance
Couples' health insurance helps cover the cost of private healthcare for you and your partner. It's also known as joint health insurance.
You don't need to be married or in a civil partnership to apply for couples' health insurance. It's available to any two people living as a couple in the same household.
A couples' policy will provide the same cover for both you and your partner. You can't have different types of cover. But couples' policies are sometimes cheaper than two individual policies, which could make it more cost effective.
Learn more: Couples' health insurance explained
Family health insurance
Family health insurance provides access to private healthcare for you and your immediate family. This includes your partner and your children, but not siblings or parents.
You can have several family members all on the same policy. Children can be insured whilst they're still dependant on you. This is usually up until their 18th birthday, or until they finish further education.
As there's no need to pay for individual policies for each person, it can often work out cheaper. It also means the whole family benefits from the same access to treatment.
Learn more: Family health insurance explained
Health insurance in later life
Most insurance companies will impose an upper age limit for new health insurance policies. But it's often 70 or more. So, it's possible to still get cover even after retirement.
Many older people recognise the benefits of private health care in later life as they begin to feel the effects of ageing.
Like everyone taking out private health insurance, premiums are based on age, health and lifestyle. And as an older person, your premiums will likely be more expensive than a young person's. But the benefits of being treated quickly with private healthcare can make up for the cost of the cover.
Best health insurance for pre-existing conditions
You can still get health insurance if you have a pre-existing medical condition. But the insurance company will probably exclude these conditions from your cover. And any future medical conditions must not be linked to your pre-existing condition.
If you want your insurer to consider a pre-existing condition, you'll need to go through moratorium underwriting. The insurer can then decide if they want to insure you or not for a pre-existing condition. Otherwise, you may have to wait until you've been symptom-free for two continuous years after your cover start date before you'll be covered for the condition in the future.
Learn more: Medical underwriting explained
Health insurance for self-employed individuals
If you're self-employed and off work ill, you want to get assessed and treated as fast as possible. Then you can get back to work again. Private health insurance means you could get a timely GP appointment and treatment at a time that suits your schedule.
You can take out self-employed health insurance as a form of small business health insurance or as a personal policy, depending on how your business is set up.
Learn more: Health insurance for self-employed explained
How to choose the best health insurance plan for you
There are several ways to choose the type of plan that's right for you.
Comparison websites
These websites help you compare the plans of several providers at once. You put your details into the comparison site and it seeks out the insurers who can provide the cover you want. You can then compare plans and decide which one suits you best. While convenient, these sites often lack a personalised approach.
Financial advisers
For a more personalised approach, you can use a health insurance adviser to find a plan. If you have a complicated medical history or an existing medical condition, these specialists can help you find cover. You may have to pay for their advice.
Insurance providers
Getting a quote directly from health insurance providers is another option. By visiting their websites, you can get detailed information about their products, including cover options, benefits and costs. Also, speaking with their qualified experts allows a fully personalised approach to tailoring your quote, ensuring your cover is best suited to your needs.
Once you have quotes from your preferred providers, you can easily compare them to find the best option. This direct method not only provides clarity but also ensures you receive the most accurate and customised cover available.
Have a checklist to hand so you can compare:
- What each provider offers in their core cover.
- What additional cover options they provide.
- What hospitals you can choose from.
- The excess you want to pay.
- What extra benefits or rewards are available as part of the plan and how proactive they are in supporting their members to be healthy.
Common mistakes to avoid when comparing health insurance plans
- Looking solely at the cost. Some providers may appear more expensive but offer better cover in their core plan.
- Not checking hospital lists. Make sure you can access a hospital that's local to you and consultants who are specialists in their field.
- Overlooking the cover exclusions. Most insurers put a limit on the amount they'll pay out on treatment during a plan year.
- Not considering the underwriting terms. There will be a difference in price between the different types of underwriting.
- Not taking into account wider benefits. Some providers offer more than the insurance itself. For example, when you sign up with Vitality, you get access to Vitality Rewards.
Key takeaways
When comparing health insurance policies make sure you understand each providers':
- Cover options
- Hospital lists and consultant panel
- Underwriting requirements
- Customer service and claims process
Think carefully about the right type of plan for you and your family based on your needs and past health. Get a wide range of quotes but be sure to compare like with like. Not every provider offers the same level of core cover.
Why choose Vitality health insurance?
Want to know more about private health insurance or thinking about taking out a policy? Here are some of the benefits of taking out health insurance with Vitality:
- Get video GP appointment quickly
- Prompt access to hospital treatment
- Get specialist drugs and treatments
- See a consultant fast
- Refer yourself for physiotherapy
- Get mental health support fast and without a GP referral
- Get menopause support
- Get discounts from top brands. And rewards for getting healthy.
* The risk assessments will provide you with a personalised view of your risk. Depending on your age and assessed risk level, you may be offered a discounted screening with Check4Cancer
** Price is based on the following criteria: a 30-year-old based in Peterborough, plan start date Sept 2025, Full Medical Underwriting, Consultant Select hospital option, £250 excess and £500 out-patient benefit and includes Insurance Premium Tax (IPT)
Source:
1 - 14% of UK adults now have private health insurance, The Actuary, 2025
