If high premiums are what are deterring you from taking out health insurance, here are our top tips on how you can reduce your premiums. It is important to keep in mind why you want private medical insurance and what is it about the NHS treatment that concerns you. These two questions will allow you to explore lowering your premiums, without compromising on the level of care you desire.

What to consider when trying to reduce your health insurance premium:

• The excess on your policy is the fixed amount you agree to pay towards your treatment. The higher the excess the lower your health insurance premium will be.
• Excluding certain conditions or treatments. For example, reducing your outpatient cover or excluding full cancer cover.
• Taking out a joint or family health insurance policy, can be cheaper than buying separate policies.
• Some insurers reward customers for living a healthy lifestyle. Aviva and Vitality offer discounts or cashback on renewal if you can demonstrate you have improved your health and fitness.
• Based on the hospital list you choose, this can affect your premium. Consider a shorter list to reduce your premium.
• Opting for a six-week option, will help discount your premium. A six-week option means that if you need treatment and the NHS waiting list is less than six weeks, then you would be treated by the NHS and not by your private medical insurance.
• Occasionally, some insurers may offer a discount if you pay your annual premium as a lump sum, as opposed to monthly payments.
• Most importantly, you should shop around. As an independent broker Switch Health will act on your behalf to gather quotes from the major insurers. Not only does this save you time but because Switch Health has access to exclusive offers, that are not available to the wider market, it is unlikely we wouldn’t be able to save you money.