By Michael Cox
Redwood EBS
IT is often this time of year when businesses have a private medical insurance renewal due for review.
Is your experience along these lines – minimum increase of between 14 per cent or as much as 35 per cent? Feeling frustrated as you know you have not claimed or even used the scheme?
Clearly, any business in the current economic environment would love to achieve a 10 per cent uplift on their client costs, however we all appreciate this is not a realistic option, but how do the private medical insurers maintain these increases year after year?
The overall PMI market size stands at about 10.5 per cent of the UK population and has never been higher than 14 per cent and this was over 20 years ago.
Insurers say that overall claims spend is increasing and hide behind three ‘old chestnuts’ known in the industry as the three Is – Inflation, (medical inflation) Incidence (of claims) and Innovation (new technology) to justify increases to their clients.
The trouble with this argument, is that whilst all providers will quote an inflationary figure of between 10-14 per cent, they will not provide hard statistical evidence to that effect.
What businesses need do is ensure that their scheme is represented by an experienced intermediary, who knows how their scheme premium is calculated & ensures that:
* The holding provider is held to account
* A comprehensive review is conducted
* They recommend a through and well conceived Health & Wellbeing strategy which is affordable and deliverable for the company and their employees.
Redwood Employee Benefits Services Ltd are specialists in this field representing a host SME and larger corporate clients successfully for 20 years. Call us for a free review and an insightful explanation of how to develop a winning healthcare policy.
Contact Michael Cox, Senior Health & Wellbeing Advisor at Redwood Employee Benefits Services Ltd by email or call 01604 661144.