Bupa cuts some policies by 10%: Older subscribers face swingeing increases
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Your support makes all the difference.BUPA, the largest medical fees insurer, has reduced some of its premiums. However, even with the reductions you can find cheaper cover elsewhere, writes Sue Fieldman.
And while the cost is on the way down on some policies, older Bupa subscribers are going to be hit by swingeing increases next month.
The two low-cost Bupa schemes, Healthchoice and EssentialCare, will see a reduction in rates of 10 per cent.
Healthchoice provides cover for private treatment if the NHS waiting list is more than six weeks. From 1 July, a single man of 30 will pay pounds 11.82 a month.
Jan Lawson, a partner in the Private Health Partnership, says: 'The reduction makes them more competitive but it is certainly not the cheapest. WPA is offering a very similar product, Spruce, which costs pounds 11.40 a month. My own preference is Prime Health Hospital Care, which has a premium of pounds 10.59 and broader cover.'
Bupa's EssentialCare provides full cover for hospital treatment but excludes out-patient consultation. The premium for a single 30-year-old is pounds 17.13 a month.
Norwich Union was first in the market with a similar in-patient policy. The premium is pounds 11.95 a month. The cover does vary slightly between the two so it pays to read the small print.
Miss Lawson says: 'In-patient-only schemes seem to work quite well. Norwich Union has probably got the edge with its contract. The Bupa premium of pounds 17.13 a month is pretty close to the cost you could pay for a proper comprehensive scheme if you live in a provincial area.'
The premiums on the two other Bupa lower-priced policies - LocalCare, which provides comprehensive cover but restricted to one local hospital, and Health Cash, which offers cash payments not reimbursement of medical bills - have been frozen at January 1993 levels.
With the BupaCare policy, which offers the standard comprehensive cover, members up to the age of 44 will have premium increases of less than 5 per cent.
However, it is the elderly who will pay the price for cuts elsewhere. For BupaCare subscribers aged 60-64 premiums will rise by 12 per cent for policies being renewed from July. The over-65s will see a hike of between 10.5 per cent and 11.5 per cent.
No doubt conscious that there are going to be some unhappy customers, Bupa has set up a special helpline to discuss the option of transfer to a lower-cost scheme.
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