If you've been receiving private medical insurance through your employer, you might be wondering what happens to your cover when you leave. Whether you're changing jobs, retiring, being made redundant or starting your own business, losing your company health insurance doesn't necessarily mean losing access to private healthcare.
Many UK health insurers offer ways to move from an employer-funded scheme to a personal policy. In some circumstances, you may also be able to retain cover for existing medical conditions or continue treatment you've already started.
At Connect 2 Protect, we help people understand their options when leaving company health insurance schemes. The important thing is to explore those options before your existing cover ends, particularly if you've previously made claims or have ongoing medical needs.
Key Takeaways
- Your company health insurance will normally end when your employer's scheme stops covering you, but you may be able to arrange a personal policy
- Some insurers, including Bupa and Vitality, offer continuation arrangements for eligible company scheme leavers
- You may be able to retain cover for existing medical conditions, depending on your previous underwriting and the terms of your new policy
- Bupa currently requires eligible scheme leavers seeking continuous cover to start their new personal policy within three months of their previous cover ending
- If you're receiving ongoing treatment, it's important to establish whether your replacement policy will continue to cover it
- An independent broker providing fair market analysis can help you understand your continuation options and assess whether another provider could offer suitable cover
What Happens to Your Health Insurance When You Leave Your Job?
When you receive private medical insurance through work, your employer normally arranges and pays for some or all of the policy as part of an employee benefits package.
Once you leave the business, you will usually no longer be eligible for membership of that company scheme. The precise date your cover ends will depend on your employer's arrangements.
This could mean losing access to private specialist consultations, diagnostic tests, hospital treatment and other benefits included in your policy.
However, there is an alternative.
Many insurers provide a way for eligible employees to move from a company scheme to a personal health insurance policy, allowing them to continue paying for private medical cover themselves.
This is commonly known as a group leaver arrangement or continuation option.
Your new policy won't necessarily be identical to the one you had through work, but it may allow you to retain valuable benefits and aspects of your existing medical underwriting.
Can You Keep Cover for Existing Medical Conditions?
This is often the most important question for anyone leaving a company health insurance scheme.
When you take out a new private medical insurance policy, pre-existing medical conditions may be excluded depending on the insurer and the underwriting method used.
However, company schemes sometimes operate under different underwriting arrangements, particularly larger employer schemes that provide medical history disregarded cover.
This can mean employees have been able to claim for eligible conditions that might otherwise have been excluded under a newly underwritten individual policy.
If you're leaving such a scheme, a continuation arrangement may allow you to preserve cover for certain existing conditions.
For example, suppose you've received private treatment for a knee problem while covered by your employer. If you move to a suitable personal policy through your existing insurer's continuation arrangement, you may be able to retain cover for eligible treatment relating to that condition.
The same principle may apply to other previously covered medical conditions.
However, continuation is not automatic. The insurer will assess your eligibility, and the benefits, exclusions and underwriting terms of your new policy will determine what remains covered.
Adviser insight: One of the most valuable aspects of company health insurance can be the medical underwriting already in place. Before replacing that cover, it's worth establishing exactly what you're entitled to retain. The cheapest new quote may not be the most appropriate option if it changes the way an existing condition is covered.
Which Insurers Offer Company Health Insurance Continuation?
Several UK private medical insurers offer arrangements for employees who want to retain health insurance after leaving a company scheme.
The specific options depend on the provider, the type of company policy you've held and your individual circumstances.
Bupa
Bupa offers eligible employees leaving company health insurance schemes the opportunity to move to a personal policy.
The new policy will be different from the employer-provided cover, but Bupa states that some ongoing conditions and treatments may continue to be covered, depending on the level of cover selected.
To obtain continuous cover under Bupa's current published arrangement, you need to start your personal policy within three months of your company cover ending.
Bupa may backdate the new policy to the date your company cover ended, with premiums payable from that date.
This arrangement can be particularly useful for people who want to remain with Bupa and maintain continuity of eligible private medical treatment.
You can read the current terms on Bupa's company scheme leaver page.
Vitality
Vitality also provides continuation options for people leaving a VitalityHealth company scheme.
Eligible members can explore personal health insurance arrangements for themselves and any dependants covered under their employer's policy.
Vitality offers different cover options, allowing members to consider the level of private healthcare protection they need.
Vitality states that people leaving a company scheme may be able to continue with no change to the way their medical history is treated. This means that where a condition was previously covered and claimed for, ongoing treatment may continue to be covered, subject to the terms and conditions of the new policy.
Alongside its medical insurance benefits, Vitality offers a health and wellbeing rewards programme that encourages activity and healthier lifestyle choices.
For someone already familiar with Vitality through an employer, moving to a personal policy may provide an opportunity to maintain eligible healthcare benefits while continuing to use the provider's wider wellbeing offering.
You can find current information on Vitality's leaving a company scheme page.
Continuation options, eligibility and deadlines can change, so the current terms should always be checked before your existing policy ends.
Can You Move to a Different Health Insurance Provider?
Yes. Leaving a company scheme can also be an opportunity to explore individual health insurance policies from other providers.
You aren't necessarily required to stay with the insurer your employer selected.
However, moving to a different provider can introduce additional considerations, particularly around medical underwriting.
If you've had previous treatment or have an existing medical condition, a new insurer may assess your medical history differently from your current provider.
Some insurers may offer switching arrangements that recognise aspects of previous underwriting, subject to their eligibility rules. Others may require new medical underwriting or apply exclusions for certain conditions.
This is why comparing policies involves more than simply looking at the monthly premium.
You should consider whether the new policy provides suitable hospital access, outpatient benefits, cancer cover and protection for any existing conditions.
If maintaining medical cover for a particular condition is important, your existing insurer's continuation arrangement may be worth examining carefully before considering alternatives.
An independent broker can help explain the differences and establish which options are available to you.
What Happens If You're Already Receiving Private Medical Treatment?
If you're currently receiving treatment through your employer's health insurance, it's particularly important to establish what happens when your membership ends.
You might be seeing a private consultant, undergoing physiotherapy, receiving cancer treatment or waiting for a procedure that has already been authorised.
In some circumstances, an eligible continuation arrangement may allow treatment to carry on under a new personal policy.
However, an existing treatment authorisation does not automatically guarantee cover under a replacement policy.
You should check:
- Whether your existing condition will remain covered
- Whether the treatment you're receiving is included in the new policy
- Whether your consultant and hospital remain within the insurer's approved network
- Whether you need fresh authorisation before continuing treatment
- Whether any excess, benefit limits or other policy conditions will change
Even when you remain with the same insurer, your new personal policy may provide a different level of cover from your employer's scheme.
Adviser insight: If you're receiving ongoing treatment, the priority should be understanding what happens to that treatment before your company cover ends. Confirming the new policy's underwriting, benefits and treatment authorisations can help avoid unexpected changes to your healthcare arrangements.
Will Your Private Health Insurance Cost More After Leaving Your Company?
Your personal health insurance premium may be different from the cost of your employer's policy.
Company health insurance schemes are arranged under group terms, and employers often pay some or all of the premium.
When you move to an individual policy, you'll normally become responsible for the cost yourself.
Your premium can be affected by:
- Your age
- Your postcode
- Your medical history and underwriting arrangements
- Your chosen hospital access
- Your level of outpatient cover
- Your policy excess
- Cancer and mental health benefits
- Additional policy options
- The insurer and type of policy selected
That doesn't mean personal health insurance is necessarily unaffordable.
Individual policies can often be tailored to different requirements and budgets. For example, you might choose a different hospital list, adjust your outpatient cover, consider an insurer's guided treatment option or select a higher excess to manage the monthly premium.
The important thing is to understand what changes you are making and whether those changes affect benefits you want to retain.
How Long Do You Have to Arrange Continuation Cover?
There isn't one universal deadline across the UK health insurance market.
Each insurer sets its own continuation criteria, and the time available may depend on the specific company scheme and underwriting arrangement.
Bupa currently provides a three-month window for arranging continuous cover through its published company leaver process.
Other insurers may apply different deadlines or eligibility requirements.
You should therefore avoid assuming that you can leave your company scheme and arrange equivalent cover several months later.
If you miss the relevant deadline, you may still be able to purchase individual health insurance, but the underwriting terms available could be different.
The best approach is to start reviewing your options as soon as you know you'll be leaving your employer.
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What Should You Do Before Your Company Cover Ends?
If you're leaving an employer and want to continue your private health insurance, there are some practical steps worth taking.
- Confirm your policy end date. Ask your employer or HR department when your company medical insurance membership will finish.
- Identify your existing insurer. Find out which provider covers you and whether a continuation arrangement is available.
- Check your medical underwriting. Establish whether your current cover uses medical history disregarded, full medical underwriting, moratorium underwriting or another arrangement.
- Review any previous claims or ongoing treatment. If you've received treatment, establish whether the relevant conditions will remain covered.
- Check whether your family is included. If your partner or children are covered through your employer, establish whether they can continue under a personal policy.
- Compare your options. Consider the benefits, costs, hospital access and underwriting implications before selecting a new policy.
- Arrange cover within the relevant deadline. Where possible, organise your new policy before your existing membership ends.
Taking these steps can help you make a more informed decision without unnecessarily compromising the cover you've previously enjoyed.
Can Your Family Keep Their Health Insurance Too?
If your employer's health insurance scheme covers your partner or children, they may also be able to move onto personal or family cover when you leave.
Vitality specifically states that it can offer continuation options for eligible dependants who were included on the company scheme.
Bupa also states that family members can be included on personal health insurance policies, subject to the relevant policy terms and eligibility requirements.
If a partner or child has previously received treatment or has an existing medical condition, their underwriting position should be considered carefully when moving away from the employer scheme.
Preserving eligible cover for a family member may be just as important as protecting your own.
Is It Better to Stay With Your Existing Insurer?
There isn't one answer that suits everyone.
For someone with an existing medical condition, remaining with their current provider through a continuation arrangement may offer valuable underwriting advantages.
For someone whose healthcare needs have changed, exploring alternative individual policies could identify a suitable combination of benefits and cost.
The decision should depend on what you want your health insurance to provide.
It's worth comparing your existing insurer's continuation offer with other available options, while paying particular attention to any differences in medical exclusions and ongoing treatment.
The aim isn't simply to find a replacement policy. It's to make sure your next policy is appropriate for your circumstances.
You can learn more about individual cover on our personal health insurance page. If you're an employer reviewing healthcare benefits for your staff, you can also explore our business health insurance services.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I keep my private health insurance when I leave my job?
Yes, you may be able to move from your employer's health insurance scheme to a personal policy.
Many UK insurers offer continuation arrangements for eligible employees leaving company schemes. The available benefits and underwriting terms will depend on your existing insurer and the policy you choose.
Can I keep my Bupa health insurance after leaving my company?
Bupa offers eligible company scheme leavers the opportunity to arrange a personal health insurance policy.
Under its current published arrangement, you need to start your new policy within three months of your previous cover ending to obtain continuous cover.
Certain existing conditions and ongoing treatments may remain covered, subject to the new policy's terms.
Will my pre-existing medical conditions still be covered?
They may be, particularly if you're eligible for a continuation arrangement with your existing insurer.
However, this depends on your previous underwriting, the continuation rules and the terms of the new policy.
You should always confirm how specific existing conditions will be treated before changing cover.
What happens if I leave my company while undergoing treatment?
You may be able to continue eligible treatment under a new personal health insurance policy.
However, this isn't guaranteed. You'll need to confirm that the condition and treatment remain covered and whether any new authorisation is required.
Can I keep my private health insurance when I retire?
Yes, retirement is one of the circumstances in which you may be able to arrange personal health insurance after leaving an employer-funded scheme.
Your options will depend on your existing insurer, your medical underwriting and the eligibility criteria of the proposed policy.
Can I move to another insurer instead of staying with my company provider?
Yes, you can explore policies from alternative private medical insurers.
However, changing providers may affect your medical underwriting and the cover available for previous or existing medical conditions.
An independent broker can help compare the available options and explain any important differences.
Can a broker help me keep my company health insurance?
An independent health insurance broker can help you understand your existing insurer's continuation arrangements, review the benefits you want to retain and compare suitable personal insurance options.
This can be particularly helpful if you've received treatment, have existing medical conditions or want to include family members on your new policy.
Contact Connect 2 Protect to discuss your options before your company health insurance ends.