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Can I renew Health Insurance as a new customer for less than renewal?

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  • 27-02-2020 2:52pm
    #1
    CrankyHaus
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,281 ✭✭✭


    My Insurer offered renewal at a hefty mark-up this year.
    However I found the plan offered for far less on the Insurer's website.
    Can I simply buy cover through the website and save the difference?


Comments

  • Options
    #2
    Jim2007
    Moderators, Business & Finance Moderators Posts: 9,988 Mod ✭✭✭✭Jim2007


    CrankyHaus wrote: »
    My Insurer offered renewal at a hefty mark-up this year.
    However I found the plan offered for far less on the Insurer's website.
    Can I simply buy cover through the website and save the difference?


    Probably not if the offer was made only to new customers. Insurance contracts are a bit special in that context, you are required to disclose all information, even if not asked. A failure to do so means that the insurance company can walk away.


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    #3
    Paulzx
    Registered Users Posts: 1,967 ✭✭✭Paulzx


    CrankyHaus wrote: »
    My Insurer offered renewal at a hefty mark-up this year.
    However I found the plan offered for far less on the Insurer's website.
    Can I simply buy cover through the website and save the difference?

    Yes. I've done this for the last few years. It's generally an "online discount" thats applied to the policy when you take it out online. However, the renewal notice for existing customers doesn't include this. It's sneaky enough to be honest.

    For a couple of years i just took out the Health policy as a new policy and when they rang me to find out was i renewing i told them what i had done and they matched up the customer numbers.

    Another year i rang them to get the online discount and they told me they couldn't apply it and to do what i had done the year before!

    Last year they applied the discount when i rang up. With Health insurance they have to offer the same prices to everyone once you have completed the waiting periods etc and already have a policy.


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    #4
    Fann Linn
    Registered Users Posts: 7,771 ✭✭✭Fann Linn


    CrankyHaus wrote: »
    My Insurer offered renewal at a hefty mark-up this year.
    However I found the plan offered for far less on the Insurer's website.
    Can I simply buy cover through the website and save the difference?


    What's the plan and company, my renewal is up soon.


  • Options
    #5
    CrankyHaus
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,281 ✭✭✭CrankyHaus


    Fann Linn wrote: »
    What's the plan and company, my renewal is up soon.

    Explore 500. Laya.


  • Options
    #6
    CrankyHaus
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,281 ✭✭✭CrankyHaus


    Paulzx wrote: »
    Yes. I've done this for the last few years. It's generally an "online discount" thats applied to the policy when you take it out online. However, the renewal notice for existing customers doesn't include this. It's sneaky enough to be honest.

    For a couple of years i just took out the Health policy as a new policy and when they rang me to find out was i renewing i told them what i had done and they matched up the customer numbers.

    Another year i rang them to get the online discount and they told me they couldn't apply it and to do what i had done the year before!

    Last year they applied the discount when i rang up. With Health insurance they have to offer the same prices to everyone once you have completed the waiting periods etc and already have a policy.

    Cheers. Does this have any effect on cover?
    I thought with Health Insurance a long continous cover period is considered desirable.


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  • Options
    #7
    Paulzx
    Registered Users Posts: 1,967 ✭✭✭Paulzx


    CrankyHaus wrote: »
    Cheers. Does this have any effect on cover?
    I thought with Health Insurance a long continous cover period is considered desirable.

    If you already have Health Insurance and have served all the waiting periods you cannot be penalised when taking out equivalent cover once there is no longer than 13 weeks between your old policy lapsing and taking up a new one.

    If you upgrade your level of cover you will have to serve waiting periods on the extra benefits but not on whatever is equivalent to what you had before.

    Unlike motor insurance Health Insurance is the same price for everyone once you first take out a policy when you are young.

    Moving from insurer to insurer and changing policies has no detrimental effect on cover.


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