Last updated: 23/07/2020 | Estimated Reading Time: 3 minutes
Joint health insurance
By taking out a joint health insurance policy to cover you and your partner, the two of you can benefit from peace of mind and prompt treatment from expert healthcare professionals.
Find out more about what kind of cover you could expect and how to get the best policies at the best prices by reading this short, helpful guide.
In This Guide:
- What is joint health insurance?
- Should I take out a joint health insurance policy?
- Types of cover
- Things to look out for
What is joint health insurance?
Here in the UK, we benefit from a comprehensive National Health Service that offers complete cover for any illnesses or injuries you might have.
However, when it comes to receiving treatment on the NHS, because of the huge demand, you may often find yourself low down on rather long waiting lists.
One of the key benefits of private medical insurance is being able to bypass waiting lists and get treatment quickly. Not only this, but you can often choose the hospital where you get treated and healthcare professionals who treat you.
A joint health insurance policy allows both you and your partner to benefit from this kind of cover, should either of you fall ill.
Should I take out a joint health insurance policy?
A joint health insurance policy provides you with peace of mind that comes with knowing that you have guaranteed prompt and expert treatment in the event that either you or your partner become injured or ill.
The main benefit of a joint policy over two individual policies administrative or logistical; in terms of cost there is not a huge amount of difference (as a general rule).
As such, joint health insurance policies are particularly good for couples who also have a joint bank account, as the whole process is vastly simplified and paperwork is halved.
Types of cover
Private medical insurance comes in various different shapes and sizes, with a range of costs to match – it all depends on what level of cover you wish to receive.
Typically, private medical insurance policies will cover you for things like inpatient tests and any treatment or surgery you receive as an inpatient or day patient. Some plans will also offer to cover you for any tests or treatments (like physiotherapy) you may receive as an outpatient.
You can also take out a more simple cash policy, which will pay out small amounts to cover less serious, more routine healthcare, like visits to the dentist for example.
The level of cover you receive will be reflected in the price of the monthly premiums that you end up paying for your policy.
Things to look out for
The cost of the policy will depend on the level of cover you require, as well as on the health status of both you and your partner. If either of you smoke, for example, the policy will be more costly than otherwise. Your age when you take out the policy will also affect the price of your cover – the older you are, the more it will cost.
Generally, with a joint policy, both of you will be assessed independently and then the cost will be combined into one monthly premium.
When you take out a private medical insurance plan, you’ll pay a regular monthly premium, and then in the event that you make a claim, you’ll pay a set amount of excess towards your treatment, with the insurance company footing the rest of the bill.
The higher the level of voluntary excess you choose, the cheaper your monthly premiums will be.
