By Sam Leeder of Actus Insurance
The new year is often a time of renewal and review, which is equally the case in business. Given the last couple of years and the uncertainty in all our lives, businesses have become much more agile; having to react to very dynamic situations, particularly around staffing.
Staff have always been one of if not the most valuable asset in a business and this is certainly highlighted by the shortages in the current economy for certain industries such as hospitality, transport and the like.
In addition to the many challenges posed by CoviD-19, we now seem to be faced with a much longer period of uncertainty for the NHS, with routine appointments being cancelled and non-urgent surgeries being postponed – for how long nobody really knows.
As many businesses are now reviewing the benefits offered to their employees, we are seeing a sharp uptake in the numbers of clients requesting Private Medical Insurance (PMI) cover. This can provide a fantastic benefit to employees both for their own mental and physical wellbeing and also for the employer, helping employees return to work faster in the event of an illness that requires some kind of out-patient treatment.
PMI provides cover for a variety of out-patient treatments, as well as most insurers providing a virtual GP service, where ailments can be discussed and then referred onto private specialists where required. Cover is also included for diagnostic tests such as MRI scans within the cover, albeit up to a certain number in a policy period. In addition, these policies will generally also include advanced cancer cover, which can pay for these very expensive treatments on a private basis.
The majority of new PMI policies will usually have automatic cover for any new ailments, for which you have not received prior treatment within the previous five years of the new policy. If someone has received treatment for specific ailments that they would like cover for going forward these would generally have to be referred to the insurers for review.
Cover is available on a flexible basis and can be selected just for company directors, certain groups of staff or for all employees. This can be done for individuals or for families; the basis and the cover is very flexible depending on your individual requirements.
The cost of private medical cover is also not as expensive as many people think. If your team are generally fit and well the premiums can be as little as £15 per month per employee, although the more staff there are included the more competitive the prices become.
Finally certain insurers now provide additional benefits and discount schemes around the insurance to promote physical activity and wellbeing, which can obviously provide additional support to your team.
If you would like to know more about offering this to your team feel free to get in touch.
Sam Leeder ACII
Actus Insurance
samleeder@actusinsurance.co.uk
0114 290 3624
07718 189476