Ten top tips to save you €2k on your health cover

Health insurance is more important - and more expensive - than ever before.

Yet most people are paying way over the odds for this already pricey family outgoing.

Older people are most likely to overpay - by an average €500 - €1,000 - on dated plans - expert Dermot Goode of Totalhealthcover.ie reckoned.

“At least three out of five people are on the wrong plan,”

This leads to people just letting their cover roll over for another year.  

“If you’re afraid of changing, seek independent advice or get a trusted friend or family member to assist you – the savings are too significant to ignore,” says Dermot.  

“Our cut-off point tends to be at  €1,800. Anything over this should be reviewed regularly to make sure your plan is fit-for-purpose.”

Here are ten top tips to ensure you won’t be ripped off on health cover this year.

1. Dump outdated plans

There are some plans still that have not been recommended to anyone in over 10 years, according to Dermot Goode.

“When we review these schemes, around 95% of people end up switching to a better value plan with similar cover,” saidDermot who has named and shamed the “worst value plans.” 

“Anyone on these plans must review their cover as a matter of urgency,” he said.

Outdated plans

Laya

VHI

Irish Life Health

• Essential Plus (€3,793),Essential Plus Excess (€2,852) • Flex 125 Choice (€2,395) • Company Health Plus no Excess (€2,421) • Health Manager (€4,917)

• Health Plus Choice (€2,948) • Health Access (€1,756) • Forward Plan (€3,271) • PremiumCare(old Plan E - €4,597) • Family Plan Plus Level 1 (€1,635)

• Level 2 Hospital (€2,821) • Level 2 Complete Health (€3,689) • Optimise Silver (€3,973) • OptimisePlatinum (€6,605)

Please check your needs are met by any new plan you pick.

2.  Corporate plans are usually best

Insurers are very keen to woo corporate customers. If they sign up a big company, they could rake in thousands of well-paid customers at once. But corporate customers are choosy and employ experts like Dermot to make sure they get only the best deals.

And so the insurers aim the best plans at the corporate market, leaving the dusty dregs for the rest of us, especially their most loyal customers on the oldest plans.  

The corporate plans are often the ones with the funny or confusing names like the VHI’s PMI 43 16. This seems designed to put off regular customers. But you are just as entitled to a corporate plan with all the bells and whistles as any company is.

Here are three that are worth a look.

Corporate plans worth a look

Irish Life Health

4D Health 2 

€1,315

Laya

 Simply Connect Plus

€1,330

VHI

PMI 3613

€1,317

3. But not always…

There are dated corporate plans as well which have been overtaken by lower-cost equivalents.

This is because insurers are constantly coming up with new plans to woo companies.

Dermot has named some of these plans that also need to be reviewed if you are on one:

VHI

Company Plan Extra Level 2 at €1,838 per adult

Laya

Company Care Excess at €1,943 per adult

Irish Life Health

Business Plan Select at €2,258

4. Ask the right questions

Don’t auto-nenew – but don’t switch either without looking into it properly. Insurers may penalise loyalty but their army of advisors are a great resource at your disposal. Insurers have to tell you the truth as they are monitored by the Central Bank as advisors. The trick is to ask the right questions.

Don’t just say “can you recommend a policy” or they may tell you about a pricey one.

Ask for one that is in a specific price range and ask how it compares with your existing policy. Identify your needs – for example for orthopaedic care – and ask about that too. Also don’t just ring one insurer. There are only three. There’s not much extra work in talking to all of them.

5. Don’t be afraid to switch

Given the complexity of health insurance and the myriad of terms and conditions that come with every policy, it’s understandable that change can be daunting for people, especially older people. So, they opt to stick with what they know.

“Our experience from dealing with people over 60 is that many believe that, if they try to change insurer, or even change plan type, they will be subject to pre-existing exclusions or even age loadings and they also believe that they can’t access these corporate plans – none of which are the case,” Dermot Goode advised.

6. Get what’s right for you

If you’re thinking of getting a sex change, freezing your eggs or getting IVF treatment, there’s no point being on the old dinosaur of a plan like the VHI’s Health Plus Extra. However, Laya’s Simply Connect Plus, for example, is bang up to date with new medicine and covers all of those things (up to a point).

However, if you are getting on in life and may need a hip or knee replacement, make sure there are no orthopaedic shortfalls in your cover.

7. Get cover for routine medical expenses

There’s no point in skimping on cover with a very low cost plan that doesn’t even give you private hospital cover. It will still cost you around €500 at least for which you get very little.*You’d be better off stumping up for a good mid-range corporate plan that gives you money back for such as GP visits, physiotherapy, travel vaccinations, counselling, free nurseline and video GP consultations and many other benefits. Claim even a portion of them and you’ll get back most of the difference in price while also enjoying the all-important private hospital cover.

8. Split your cover

Many people may mistakenly believe that you can’t split cover by putting children and teenagers on cheaper rates than adults. But doing so can save a family fortune.

For example, the Laya Flex 125 Explore costs €1823.65 for an 18-year-old. That’s €170 up on last year’s price.

But Simply Connect Plus charges a young adult rate of €685 –  up just €60 last year.

(The worse plans tend to keep getting even worse because the people on them never change while the better ones stay competitive because they are aimed at savvy switchers.).

That’s a huge difference in price compared to Laya Flex 125and the cover on the new plan is arguably better – but do check the details to make sure it is right for you.

You can even have your kids with different insurers, let alone different plans.

9. Avail of freebies

There are plenty of freebies offered by health insurers. This is because most people don’t bother to take them up. You can get money back for things like gym membership (Irish Life) or career advice and personal health coaching (Laya). Every insurer has nurse phone lines and GP video consultations for free if you’re on the right plan.

Claim for absolutely everything and your mid-range insurance policy will give great value. I make sure to get €400-€500 back every year on routine medical expenses and free consultations. You can even time your claims to make the most of your allowance. For example, if you want, but don’t need,new glasses, wait until your next year’s allowance kicks inbefore going to the optician.

10. Ask an expert

If you can’t be bothered, don’t have time, or all of this is simply too much for you, call in an expert like Dermot. You may have to pay a fee but it’s a fraction of the amount of money most people save. If there is no fee, be wary. And always ask how the advisor is remunerated and if they are authorisied to tell you about all three insurers.

*Cheap cover will at least spare you onerous penalties later in life that apply to new members with gaps in cover after age 35.