HealthFund - New Private Medical Insurance

HealthFund is a new private health insurance company which is offering cheaper premiums as well as a savings account. It launched in November 2008 and Hotbed, a business angel network has invested £1.45 million pounds in the company. HealthFund claim that they put their customers needs first and as they are not the insurers. They use Lloyds of London as their underwriters.

Customers can choose an excess of either £1,500, £3,000 or £5,000. The monthly premium they pay is dependant on the level of excess they pay. Any treatment that comes to less than the excess is paid for by the customer. Anything above that is paid by HealthFund. Yearly premiums are low at, £345 for a 42 year old woman paying a £1,500 excess. The excess amount only has to be paid once in any one year. If you need medical treatment again within that year, you do not have to pay the excess.

At the same time, you also open an account, a 'health fund' which is held with Bank of Scotland Corporate. It is a basically a medical health savings fund. This money can be used for any medical treatment, including cosmetic surgery (this is not to be confused with the 'insurance' part of the policy which has exclusions to its policy as all health insurance schemes do). It is a tiered interest earning account and all the funds are totally yours. If you wish to withdraw your money at any time, this is up to you. There are several options as to how you save into your account but their is no minimum amount and you can choose to put a lump sum in too.

All treatments are purchased by a team of doctors and nurses who work on your behalf (not the insurance company's). They also have a 24 hour helpline to assist you with any medical queries.

Gary Robins of Hotbed says, “The UK private health insurance market receives £3.2 billion in annual premiums from almost six million people. With its high quality management team and strong business partners, HealthFund’s unique offering will take advantage of this vast market, addressing many customers’ concerns that private medical insurance offers poor value for money and a lack of clarity of cover. We believe there is potential for this deal to deliver a high return for our members.”

It is important to note that this kind of health cover should only be considered by healthy people who have not already made mainly claims with previous providers.