Purchasing company health insurance policy/ business private medical insurance can be a daunting prospect. Especially true if you don’t know the market. Knowing the mistakes to avoid can save you valuable time and money.
There are many options when it comes to buying company private health insurance for your business. The trick is not to pay for benefits you know you won’t need.
The duty of care you have for your staff is important. Buying the right company health insurance policy could ensure that you have this covered for a minimal outlay.
Staff like to be valued, what better way to re-assure them by taking care of their health.
Don’t pay for benefits you are unlikely to use
You do not have to have full-refund cover for everything. A bells and whistles policy will be more expensive. Core cover will pay for in-patient and day-patient treatment so start from there and look at the add-on options carefully.
If your staff are “over the half a century mark”, it is unlikely that you will need cover for something like complications of pregnancy. There is a policy on the market that will allow you to exclude cover for claims of this type.
Look at your choice of hospitals
If your business is based in Glasgow and your staff live and work there too, take advantage of the providers who have different hospital lists where you pay a much lower premium for a localised hospital coverage.
Why pay for the higher charging London hospitals if you know you are never going to use them?
Be aware of your excess
The majority of UK private medical insurance providers will only quote you a policy excess per policy year however, there is still one provider who will offer “per year” or “per claim”.
The premium is less for the “per claim” option however, if you were to claim more than once within that policy year then the cost may negate the saving you made at the start of the policy.
Don’t just renew your company private medical insurance
Like any other insurance policy you buy it is important to look at the market when it comes to your renewal. You may be pleasantly surprised at the alternatives available to your business in terms of both cost and benefits. There are a variety of options available in the company health insurance market and sticking with a big brand name that you know is not always your best solution even if there have been claims in the past.
Don’t include people who do not work for the company
A company private medical insurance policy (sometimes just referred to as group scheme) is exactly that. It is designed to cover people who actively work for your business. When you ask for quotations you need to ensure that everyone you list is employed.
Sub-contractors who work closely with your business would not qualify as an employee as they would not be part of your payroll. The insurance providers can ask for proof of employment at any time throughout the policy year.
Ensure you provide as much information as you can
If you already have a company health insurance policy in place and are looking at the renewal of your policy the BEST way to obtain great feedback from the market is to give the alternative providers as much information as possible.
Let them have your previous premiums, tell them that your business has grown and you have employed 5 new staff in the last 12 months. Let them see the whole picture.
You need to help the underwriters to give you the best premiums available for a company health insurance scheme of your size and age profile.
Keep using an independent and specialist health insurance broker
Yes, you could buy your company policy on line and you could buy your policy direct from an insurer but would this really give you the best solution?
A computer cannot share with you its experience of the market or help you if you have a claim declined.
If you are insured directly, they cannot advise you on the other products available in the market. This would mean you would then need to make more calls or send more email enquiries.
A specialist broker can help you with every aspect of your company health insurance policy. From inception to renewal and everything in-between.
SMP Healthcare is an independent private medical insurance broker based in Chelmsford, Essex. We have clients all over the UK. From Ayrshire to Acton, Braintree to Bristol and everywhere in-between. Our team are here to help companies make an informed decision about their company health insurance options.
If you would like to know more, please contact lianne@smphealthcare.com or call the office on 01245 929129 where one of the team will be happy to help you.