Private medical insurance is a great way to ensure timely treatment for illnesses, injuries and other medical problems but because of this it does come at a price. Most providers of medical insurance base their quote on factors like your age, your gender, your current state of health, any ongoing medical conditions you’re suffering from and even the area that you live in. Because of this you’re going to want to reduce the premiums you pay by as much as possible and there are a few ways to help with this below.

Stay as fit and healthy as possible
Leading a healthy lifestyle reduces the risk of contracting illnesses somewhat and it is now thought that eating a healthy diet can afford some protection against major illnesses such as cancer, heart attack and stroke. Thus, if you can truthfully tell a medical insurance provider that you eat healthily, you exercise, you don’t smoke, you drink only occasionally and that don’t take part in any extreme sports or pastimes then there’s a good chance they will quote a slightly lower price.

Agree to Pay a Higher Excess
An insurance excess is the amount of money that you have to pay out before the policy starts to pay. So for example, if you specify a policy excess of £250 it means that you have to pay the first £250 of any and each claim you make. When it comes to medical matters the cost of treatment can grow to be very high so anything that you’re willing to pay towards it will help to bring down your quote and thus your monthly premiums.

Specifying a higher excess will mean that you may have to pay for minor treatments yourself but if this reduces the cost of your policy – which is really in place for the times when you require major treatment – then it is worth doing.

Ask your Employer about Starting a Group Policy
Group private medical insurance is always cheaper than a single person policy so if your employer is willing to set up a group policy through the company then this will reduce the cost for you and anyone else who joins the scheme. You will be charged for the cost of your personal premiums just like for an individual policy however the group factor will make them lower and you’ll still get the same benefits.

Exclude What you Don’t Think you’ll Need
Not all private medical insurance providers allow you to pick and choose what illnesses and injuries are covered by the policy but some do. If you can choose what to include and what not to include then you’ll need to think carefully about each illness before deciding whether you want it covered or not. It is worth doing a bit of research into prevalence and other statistics beforehand so you understand each illness thoroughly. The more factors you exclude from your policy the cheaper it may be but don’t exclude the major diseases just to save a few pounds now.