WPA health insurance review

WPA is an award-winning healthcare insurance provider that was initially founded in 1901 as a not-for-profit organisation. In 2020 they won the MoneyFacts consumer award for Health Insurance Provider of the Year. They offer several different healthcare products for you and your family if you’re looking for private medical insurance.

Types of health insurance available

There are four products available from the WPA, which also have varying levels of cover within them. Which product you choose depends on your own circumstance, essentially coming down to the level of dependents you would like to see covered, and if you’re looking for insurance cover only in emergencies or also for routine treatments and check-ups. The products are:

• Flexible Health
• Multi-Family Healthcare
• NHS Top-Up Personal
• NHS Top-Up Dental

Flexible Health

This is heath insurance geared towards yourself and your immediate family. If it is just individual healthcare insurance you’re looking for, this is the product for you. You can create your own custom health-insurance policy that works for you, and begins by choosing from the three different levels of cover within the program:

Essentials

This is the base insurance policy, covering inpatient and day-patient costs when you need non-emergency surgery for a diagnosed medical illness. It also pays out a small benefit towards dental care and optical treatment. This is WPA’s core cover, and does not provide payment for out-patient treatment, diagnostic testing or for cancer surgery. There is also a maximum annual benefit of £50,000 per policyholder.

Premier

This is WPA’s mid-range policy that will be more expensive than the essentials package, but offer enhanced cover in return. This pays for (in addition to the Essentials’ coverage offerings) diagnostic scans, out-patient procedures and pre-admission tests. You will also have the following policy benefits:

• Nursing at Home – four weeks
• Private Ambulance Transport
• Parent and Child – Up to 10 nights for hospital accommodation charges
• Out of Pocket Expenses – £10 per day
• Hospice Donation – £70 per day/night up to £700

Elite

Elite is WPA’s highest level of cover, and most comprehensive policy. Fundamentally it combines both the Essentials and the Premier insurance packages together (hence providing in-patient, day-patient, and out-patient benefits, but also offers higher cash benefits on things such as dental care and optical treatment, as well as overseas emergency treatment (excluding the USA) up to £500,000.

Multi-Family Healthcare

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If you have an extended family, then Multi-Family Healthcare could be the policy for you and them together.

This policy covers multiple generations, covering your immediate and extended family. We think this is a great option for big families looking for joint coverage since it has no age restrictions, some decent premium rates, and several different levels of cover to choose from (all of which include cover for cancer treatment). The three levels of cover for this product are:

• Standard
• Enhanced
• Comprehensive

And work much like the Essentials, Premier and Elite package of the Flexible Health Program.

It’s important to note however that whilst there is no medical required, or upper age limit to cover on the Multi-Family Healthcare Plan, coverage is subject to medical underwriting i.e. the decision of the insurance underwriter, based on the information made available in the application form.

NHS Top-Up Personal

This is a different kind of healthcare insurance policy, since rather than provide cash for just unexpected and emergency private healthcare, you are able to claim cash back from routine healthcare costs. Costs of prescriptions, trips to the dentist etc can all be reimbursed with this cover. How it works is every time you receive eligible treatment (on the NHS or otherwise), those costs will be paid straight back to you. Coverage includes:

• Optical: regular eye tests, plus prescription glasses and contact lenses.
• Dental: routine dental treatments.
• Parking: cashback on NHS car parking, and for staying in hospital or attending A&E.
• Specialists: money back on specialist consultations

NHS Top-Up Dental

Working in a similar way to the NHS Top-Up Personal product, this plan covers both routine and emergency dental treatments, for you and your family. It will provide reimbursements for:

• Routine Treatment
• Dental Emergencies
• Injuries to the jaw and teeth
• Restorative treatment: e.g. as a result of oral cancer
• Hospital stays: a lump sum after receiving treatment in an NHS hospital for a dental injury or restorative treatment

Conclusion

WPA offers a solid set of healthcare policies, with everything you would expect to see and be covered on such an insurance product. It is nothing out of the ordinary, and provides a standard offering. For example its core cover package in the Essentials does not cover cancer surgery, emergency treatment and non-surgical or diagnostic treatment, when some leeway might be given on other insurance providers’ basic packages. It does offer a different kind of excess however, with that of “Shared Responsibility”. You pay 25% of every claim, and they contribute 75%. This can work well if you have a small claim, thus reducing your excess, however larger claims will see this work to your detriment.