Whether you are an international student coming into the UK, a UK national studying abroad or simply a UK student wishing to take out student health insurance there are a wide range of options available.
If you are a UK student in full-time education under the age of 25 and your parents have a medical insurance plan then there is a fair chance you can be covered on their policy. Else it is quite straightforward for you to take out your own policy. If you are a young, active student who regular exercises you are in a great position, with insurers quoting favourably for such individuals given the risk associated with your policy.
Like anyone considering a health insurance policy it is important to understand the product you are buying and compare a wide range of providers to ensure a competitive price. Health insurance providers have become truly innovative in the design of their policies tailoring products to specific demographics and student health insurance is just one example of this.
Student health insurance policy options
When deciding on a student health insurance plan it is important to be clear on your need for the cover, is it for inpatient or day patient treatments only or would you like the insurance to cover consultations, x-rays and other diagnostic tests as well.
A very basic plan will tend to cover inpatient treatment only, so if you were to require surgery for an acute condition then this would be covered however the consultations and diagnostics tests to ascertain the problem will not be. Where health insurance is designed around inpatient and day patient treatment you will find as you add extras to your policy such as outpatient cover and other additional benefits so the monthly premiums of your plan will increase.
Outpatient CoverOutpatient cover is one of the most significant options you will have to decide upon both in terms of cover and price. The difference in price between a plan with no outpatient cover and one with full outpatient cover can differ by as much as thirty-five percent.
ExcessIn addition to outpatient cover there are a range of other options which can help control your monthly premiums. Take adding an excess to the policy, an excess is essentially an agreement that you will pay the value of the excess towards treatment you require, an excess can either be per policy year or per claim. As you are agreeing to pay a proportion of any claim the insurer sees you as lower risk and thus rewards you with lower premiums. A two hundred and fifty pound excess could reduce your monthly premiums by as much as 10%.
Hospital ListDepending on the plan in question if you are a student based outside of London who would have no use for London hospitals you can opt out of cover for these hospitals and save on your premiums. Some insurers scale their hospital list due to London hospitals having higher running costs, it is always worth checking the policy terms to see what your options are as there could be considerable savings to be made by reducing your hospital list.
Next Steps
Although these are some useful hints and tips to consider when buying student health insurance to be honest we are only just covering the tip of the iceberg. If you would like to discuss further then please let us know, whether it is more information you require, some advice to point you in the right direction or health insurance quotes from the leading insurers then we would like to help.
For other useful insurance resources visit the insurance section of DirectGov or the Financial Services Authority’s Money Made Clear Site.
