Employees switching employer or retiring may be
losing out on the best private medical insurance deals, according to the
Association of Medical Insurance Intermediaries (AMII).
When any individual with company health insurance
leaves their job to go to a new one or retires, they should be given a group
leaver option enabling them to continue to have insurance cover in their own
right. This can sometimes be a very good deal.
Debbie Kleiner-Gaines from AMII warns, "For those
wanting to continue with medical insurance, they should most definitely use
this opportunity to shop around. Although cover for pre-existing conditions
should always be a major consideration, that aside they may find a better deal
elsewhere both in terms of cost and overall cover.”
For example, in one instance the group leaver
option quote was £320 per month for a man aged 40 with a family moving from his
engineering job in the Midlands to a new job in the same area, while by
shopping around he could get the same cover for £146 per month. And a man
taking retirement at aged 60 could get similar cover for £228 per month whereas
his group leaver option quote was £280 per month.
You should use the group leaver option when you are in the middle of
treatment and need continuation of cover.
Private medical insurance news: 10 February 2012
