Vitality Health Insurance

vitality-logo

VitalityHealth is a UK based company specialising in private medical insurance, with over 1 million UK customers. The company is a subsidiary of Discovery Limited, and forms their UK offering alongside VitalityLife and Vitality Corporate Services.

The Vitality brand is well-known for its incentive-based model - encouraging healthy living in exchange for rewards.

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The History of Vitality

Vitality was created in 2004 when Discovery and Prudential launched PruHealth to combine Prudential’s UK distribution with Discovery’s Vitality product which was already available in South Africa. In April 2010 Discovery acquired Standard Life Healthcare and merged it with PruHealth. In 2014, Discovery became the sole owner of PruHealth and rebranded to become VitalityHealth.

Vitality Health Insurance Policy Review

Vitality’s Personal Healthcare is their main health insurance policy for UK customers. The policy covers inpatient care in full and some outpatient care. There are a number of optional add on extras to enhance the policy. Vitality’s insurance rewards you for being healthy to encourage you to live a healthier life, as well as protecting you when things go wrong.

 

Vitality Health Key Benefits

Private GP service (in person) you can see a private GP with an in-person appointment for £20 if you’ve included London Care as your hospital list.

Digital GP service Online consultations with UK-registered GPs within 48 hours with the Vitality GP app. As well as a 24/7 GP telephone line.

Healthy Living Discounts and Rewards to encourage you to stay active and healthy.

Mental Health Cover as part of your core cover - including counselling and cognitive behavioural therapy.

5-star rating

with independent rating firm Defaqto 2012 - 2024

Nine times winner

of Moneyfacts: Best Private Medical Insurance Provider

Outstanding Individual Health Insurance 

Cover Customer Care Awards 2021

Over 38,000 reviews

and a Great rating on Trustpilot

Vitality Health Core Cover

Included as a base to your cover with Vitality Personal Health are the following benefits.

Benefit Details
In-patient and day patient treatment Including hospital fees, consultants’ fees, diagnostic tests and MRI, CT, PET scans.
Vitality GP Video consultations with a Vitality GP and 24 hour telephone access through the Vitality GP helpline. Up to £100 for investigations and private prescriptions when referred or prescribed by a Vitality GP. More on Digital GPs.
NHS Hospital Cash Benefit In-patient treatment £250 per night up to a total of £2,000, day-patient treatment £125 per day up to a total of £500.
Out-patient Surgery Full cover for out-patient surgery.
Childbirth Cash Benefit £100 benefit for each child (if you've had the plan for at least 10 months).
Home Nursing Full cover if recommended by a consultant.
Private Ambulance Full cover where medically necessary.
Parent Accommodation Full cover for one parent of children under 14.
Oral Surgery Full cover for specified procedures.
Pregnancy Complications Full cover in specified circumstances.
Lifestyle Surgery Up to 25% contribution to the cost of consultations and package treatment for specified corrective and weight loss surgeries.
Talking Therapies Up to 8 sessions per plan year of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy or counselling (this benefit does not apply if Psychiatric Cover is selected).

Vitality Health Optional Extras

Additional optional extras are available to enhance your policy to suit your individual requirements:

Optional Benefit Details
Out-patient cover In addition to the out-patient surgery covered in full in the core cover, you can add this benefit on to include: consultations, consultants' fees, out-of network physiotherapy (max £35 per session) and diagnostic tests such as blood tests and x-rays will be covered to the chosen cover limit. Limit options: £500, £750, £1000, £1250, £1500, full cover
Out-patient diagnostics Full cover for out-patient diagnostics can be added so that out-patient diagnostic tests, such as blood tests and x-rays, are covered in full.
Therapies Cover Chiropractic treatment, osteopathy, chiropody/podiatry, acupuncture, homeopathy, and two consultations with a dietician following GP or consultant referral. 
Psychiatric Cover In-patient, day-patient and out-patient psychiatric treatment up to 28 days per plan year. Out-patient psychiatric treatment is covered up to £1,500 within the limit, and in-network talking therapies are covered in full.
Cancer Cover Options Your plan automatically includes advanced Cancer Cover within the core cover. 
Advanced Cancer Cover The advanced cancer cover option includes full cover for: out-patient diagnostic tests and consultations, radiotherapy, chemotherapy and follow-up consultations, biological therapies, hormone and bisphosphonate therapies, cancer surgery and reconstructive surgery, stem cell therapy, end-of-life home nursing £1,000 per day, up to 14 days per plan year.
Dental Cover Cover for dental check ups and hygienist fees up to £100, dental treatment 80% of the costs up to £400, and emergency dental treatment following an accident 100% of costs up to £2,500 per claim (maximum of two claims each plan year).
Worldwide Travel cover Up to £10 million cover for emergency medical expense abroad plus benefits including lost luggage and cash benefits for delayed flights.

 

What isn't covered?

Like most leading insurers, Vitality health insurance is intended to cover acute conditions as opposed to chronic conditions, such as diabetes. All exclusions will be listed in your policy documents. As standard, Vitality does not cover:

  • Chronic conditions
  • Treatment for Alcoholism or Substance abuse
  • Pregnancy and childbirth
  • Infertility treatment
  • Organ transplants
  • Pre-existing conditions
  • Gender reassignment
  • Cosmetic treatment

Perks

In addition to your core cover Vitality provides further perks.

Childbirth Cash Benefit £100 for each child
Member Zone and online Health Review for understanding your health and setting your goals.
50% discount on gym membership with Virgin Active, Nuffield and PureGym.
Rewards such as 40% cashback on healthy food from Waitrose and monthly cinema tickets

 

Underwriting Options

Vitality Personal Health policy offers the below options for how your policy is underwritten:

  • Moratorium: you don’t have to disclose any medical history to Vitality until you make a claim
  • Full medical underwriting: you disclose your medical history to Vitality
  • Continued personal medical exclusions (switch): you switch cover and carry any current personal medical exclusions which apply to the existing policy across to a new policy

For more definitions of terms, please see our glossary. 

Excess Options

Vitality offer a number of excess options you can choose for your policy. An excess is the amount you agree to pay towards a claim. The higher your chosen excess, the more your premium will reduce. The following amounts are available with Vitality:

£0, £100, £250, £500 or £1000

Hospital Lists

Vitality Personal Health offers three choices for hospital lists:

Consultant Select, Local, Countrywide, London Care

View Hospital List

How to make a claim

step3

Step 1

Get an open referral from a GP
(Vitality GP app or NHS GP)
step_3

Step 2

Choose a specialist from
your selected lists
step_2

Step 3

Contact Vitality through Care Hub,
by phone or through Vitality GP.

Factors that Impact the Pricing of Vitality Health Insurance

At Vitality Health Insurance, numerous factors can influence the cost of your private health insurance. 

Firstly, the pricing of your premium depends on the treatment pathway, excess, and underwriting option you choose. In addition, there are other factors that will affect the ultimate cost of your Vitality Health Insurance, including:

  • Your age: Health insurance costs increase with age, and significantly more so as you enter retirement and later life. That’s why it’s critical to find cover early.
  • Where you live: Living in a major city usually means higher costs for private medical treatments, which can result in higher premiums compared to those who live in rural areas.
  • Cover level: The extent of your policy coverage is the most significant factor under your control. A basic policy will cost less, while a comprehensive policy with many additional options will be more expensive.
  • Your excess: The higher your excess, the lower your premiums. However, make sure it remains affordable, as you wouldn’t want to face an unmanageable bill when you’re unwell.
  • The consultant you choose: Leading insurers, including Vitality Health Insurance, usually offer choices regarding consultant access. You can opt for a restricted network that might offer cost savings or choose unrestricted access.
  • Hospital list: Some private hospitals are more expensive than others, especially those in central London operated by groups like HCA. Including high-end hospitals in your policy will increase your premiums.
  • No-claims discount: Vitality offers a no-claims discount that increases with each claim-free year, providing substantial savings over time. Vitality also offers a no-claims bonus guarantee, which means they will respect the no-claims bonus you’ve collected from other providers and take it into account when they process your application.
  • Adding extras: Adding things like mental health cover, dental care, therapy cover, and other add-ons will increase the cost of your premiums.
  • Inflation and increasing costs: Inflation impacts all goods and services, including the cost of private medical treatment, which contributes to the rising cost of health insurance each year.
  • Your medical history: Pre-existing conditions may impact your policy.
  • Dependents: Adding dependents, such as a partner or your children, to your policy will increase the costs.

Vitality Points Programme

As well as all the above, Vitality Health Insurance offers discounts for customers who take steps to look after their health. These are managed through the Vitality Points programme – a way of tracking and measuring healthy actions and their impact. Through this programme you can lower your premiums by doing things like having a yearly health check and monitoring your daily activity.

Average Vitality Health Insurance Pricing Across Various Age Groups in 2024

One of the key factors that influences pricing of health insurance is the age of the applicant. This is because our likelihood of suffering from a health issue is likely to increase as we get older, resulting in higher premiums.

In addition, the factors listed above are likely to impact older people more, with higher risks of pre-existing conditions and lower activity levels. So, how much is the average cost of Vitality Health Insurance by age in 2024? See the table below for more.

Average Cost of Vitality Health Insurance in 2024

Applicants' Age Monthly Premium
30-years-old £28.55
40-years-old £35.47
50-years-old £43.55
60-years-old £62.55
70-years-old £102.91
 

Vitality Health Insurance Cost For Families

For young or growing families, it makes sense to apply for family private health insurance to ensure that everyone—from the youngest to the oldest—has access to prompt and effective medical treatments without overwhelming costs. 

For young people, it’s also beneficial to have the management of healthcare benefits under one policy, including mental health care, therapy, and dental care for adults. 

Purchasing family health insurance is a wise decision that protects the health and financial stability of your loved ones, guaranteeing that high-quality medical care is readily accessible for your partner and your children when they need it.

So, how much does Vitality Health Insurance cost for a family of three? What about a family of four? Check out the table for our averages for the year 2024.

How Much Does Vitality Health Insurance Cost for a Family of 3?

Applicants' Age Monthly Premium
30-years-old £65.24
40-years-old £78.70
50-years-old £94.74
60-years-old £132.79
70-years-old £213.69

 How Much Does Vitality Health Insurance Cost for a Family of 4? 

Applicants' Age Monthly Premium
30-years-old £73.44
40-years-old £86.51
50-years-old £102.44
60-years-old £140.54
70-years-old £221.62

Vitality Health Insurance Cost For Couples

Choosing to combine health insurance with your partner is a great way to ensure that you both are protected against unexpected health costs. Plus, securing a joint health insurance plan from Vitality Health Insurance might mean receiving discounts and benefits not available with individual policies. 

But how much should you expect to pay for couples health insurance from Vitality Health Insurance for you and your partner? Our table below covers the average costs for couples in the year 2024.

How Much Does Vitality Health Insurance Cost for Couples?

Applicants' Age Monthly Premium
30-years-old £57.10
40-years-old £70.94
50-years-old £87.10
60-years-old £125.10
70-years-old £205.82
Disclaimer — *Prices based on a new moratorium policy mid-level 200 excess outside London, April 2024 start date.

 

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I still use the NHS if I have Vitality insurance?

Yes! The NHS is available to all UK citizens with or without insurance. Any treatment for pre-existing and chronic conditions will still be treated by the NHS, as well as any emergencies. If you choose to have inpatient or day-patient treatment on the NHS, that you would be eligible to claim on your health insurance for, Vitality will pay you an NHS cash benefit up to £2,500 per year. For more on how health insurance works alongside the NHS, check out our blog post on the subject.

Does Vitality cover cancer care?

All of Vitality’s plans include Advanced Cancer Cover, paying for both your in-patient and out-patient treatment in full. Should you wish to be treated at home, Vitality will cover the costs of at-home chemotherapy as long as your consultant agrees. If your cancer is no longer treatable, Vitality will pay for home nursing to relieve your symptoms up to a monetary value.

What are Vitality’s excess options?

Vitality’s excess options range from £0 to £1,000. Vitality give you the option of paying the once per year or once per claim. The excess options you choose will impact the premium you pay – the higher your excess, the lower the premium you pay will be.

 

Do Vitality offer Mental Health support?

Vitality’s core cover includes six therapy session per year and gives you access to 24/7 support service. Mental Health Cover can be added at an additional premium including unlimited therapy sessions, as well as inpatient, outpatient and day-patient up to 28 days per plan year.

Does Vitality offer Dental cover?

As part of their core cover, they will pay for surgical removal of impacted teeth and jawbone cysts. Should you wish to add Dental cover to your plan, you have the option of major dental treatment or major and routine dental treatment. Major dental treatment will cover you for root canals, dentures, crown and bridges. Major and routine dental treatment will cover everything included in major dental treatment, aswell as your routine check-ups, filling and dental x-rays.

Do I need health insurance?

We are blessed in the UK to have a National Health Service, so health insurance is not a legal requirement. Health insurance provides the peace of mind however that should you require treatment you can access private health services and avoid NHS waiting times. We believe there is a policy to suit everyone. To read more, see our Guide to Health Insurance.

 

Vitality Insurance Policy Documents

For all the Vitality Health Insurance policy Terms and Conditions see the policy documents linked below.

 

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