General
- Do Universal Provident policies have a cooling-off period?
- How long will my policy run for?
- Will I receive new documentation each year?
- Who can be covered on my policy?
- Do I need to be married to take out joint cover?
- How do I make a claim?
- Will I be advised when payments have been made under my claim?
- I work full-time and find it difficult to get to the phone during the day. What should I do if I have any queries?
- Can I submit my claim on-line?
Choices
- Does Choices cover out-patient treatment?
- I currently suffer from a medical condition. If I buy a Choices policy will I be covered for treatment of this condition?
- Why do I need to select a hospital scale for my Choices policy?
- When can I add new dependants to my policy?
- When can I change the cover under my Choices policy?
- Can I extend my Choices policy to include any other types of insurance such as travel or dental insurance?
- Is health screening covered by Choices?
- My GP has referred me for a CT/MRI scan – will I be covered?
- Will Universal Provident pay if my GP charges me for completing a claim form for private medical insurance?
- How will I know which physiotherapists or other therapists I am authorised to use?
- If I have an excess on my Choices policy, how will I know who and how much I need to pay?
TravellersCare
- On TravellersCare will my children be covered if they travel independently?
GENERAL
1. Do Universal Provident policies have a cooling-off period?
Yes. Under the terms of the Financial Services Authority all insurers must provide a cooling-off period for their personal customers. Therefore under all of our policies we include a 14 day cooling-off period during which you are free to cancel your new policy and receive a refund of premium.
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2. How long will my policy run for?
All of Universal Provident’s policies provide cover for one year and are renewable each year.
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3. Will I receive new documentation each year?
No. If there are no changes in the terms of your policy (apart from premium changes) we will not send you a new policy at your annual renewal. If we make changes to your policy at renewal we will provide you with a new policy or clearly explain what changes have been made.
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4. Who can be covered on my policy?
Under most Universal Provident policies you can include cover for yourself, your spouse/partner (see also question 8) and your dependent children (aged under 21 years, or 25 if still in full-time education).
The exceptions to this are:
MortgageCare –this is only available as either individual cover or joint cover (if you have a joint mortgage)
IncomeCare –IncomeCare is only available for individual cover.
TravellersCare –the age limit for children on TravellersCare is 18 years old. There is no extension in cover for those in full time education.
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5. Do I need to be married to take out joint cover?
No. For those products that allow joint cover, we do not insist that cover is restricted to married couples. Cover can therefore include a partner, including same-sex partners.
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6. How do I make a claim?
For further details of the claims procedure please refer to the Making a Claim page on this website or the How to Claim page of the relevant policy document.
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7. Will I be advised when payments have been made under my claim?
Each time we make a payment on a claim we will send you a statement of claim which will tell you to whom the payment has been made and the amount of the payment involved. We will also tell you if we have not been able to pay the invoice in full, the reason why, and who and how much you will need to pay.
We will keep you informed of all developments on your claim. If you have any queries you may call our helpline (open 9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. Monday to Friday) or contact us using a fax or e-mail – please refer to
Contact Us for details.
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8. I work full-time and find it difficult to get to the phone during the day. What should I do if I have any queries?
Our helpline is open from 9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. Monday to Friday. We can also handle your queries by fax or e-mail. If you prefer, we are happy to communicate with a family member or friend, provided that we have received your consent to do so prior to any communication.
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9. Can I submit my claim on-line?
There is currently no facility to advise us of claims on-line. Please refer to the How to Claim page for a further details of the claims procedure.
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CHOICES
10. Does Choices cover out-patient treatment?
Choices is a modular private medical insurance policy – that is, the various benefits available under the policy are grouped in to modules and you are free to choose which modules you wish to be included in your policy. Therefore if you require cover for out-patient consultations and treatment you must ensure that your policy includes either Modules B or Module C. Module B provides a full refund of eligible out-patient treatment costs whereas Module C provides cover for out-patient treatment costs up to a maximum cost of £500 per person per year.
Importantly Module A1 provides cover for out-patient MRI, CT and PET.
In addition Module D provides cover for out-patient physiotherapy and certain complementary therapies whilst Module E provides cover for out-patient psychiatric treatment to a maximum of £450 per person per year.
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11. I currently suffer from a medical condition. If I buy a Universal
Provident private medical insurance policy will I be covered for treatment of this
condition?
Under all of the various private medical insurance policies offered by Universal
Provident, there is an exclusion of pre-existing medical conditions. The exact nature
of this exclusion will depend on the type of application submitted. For a full explanation
of this exclusion and its implications please refer to Pre-existing Medical Conditions.
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12. Why do I need to select a hospital scale for my Choices policy?
A large proportion of the cost of private medical treatment is represented by hospital charges. These charges vary a great deal from hospital to hospital. We therefore allocate hospitals to one of three scales, based on their charges, not on the standard of care you can expect at the hospital. Therefore when you are considering buying private medical insurance you need to consider the type of hospital you wish to use and how far you are willing to travel for medical treatment.
A full explanation of how the hospital scales work is included on the Hospital List Explained.
Note: You only need to choose a Hospital Scale if you have included Module A1 within your Choices policy. No other modules of Choices are subject to hospital scales.
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13. When can I add new dependants to my policy?
You may add a new dependant to your policy at any time. If you are adding a newly born child, provided that we are advised of this within three months of the birth, the child will be added from their date of birth and will not be subject to the exclusion of pre-existing medical conditions. All other new dependants will be subject to this exclusion and will need to submit the appropriate application form – see Pre-existing Medical Conditions.
Cover for such new dependants will be from the date we receive the application form.
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14. When can I change the cover under my Choices policy?
Changes to your Choices cover (the modules included, the Hospital Scale, the level of excess etc) can only be carried out at the renewal of your policy. You should always call the Customer Care team on 0844 8730 902 to discuss the implications of any changes you wish to make.
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15. Can I extend my Choices policy to include any other types of insurance such as travel or dental insurance?
If you hold a Choices policy, you may take out additional covers such as TravellersCare and DentalCare at any time. Please note however that the additional policies if you wish the premium to be collected by the same Direct Debit, the policies will need to run concurrently with your Choices policy and your first period of cover under the additional policy may not therefore be for a full year.
If you wish to take out any other types of insurance we will need the appropriate application form to be completed and new policies will be set up.
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16. Is health screening covered by Choices?
No. In common with many other private medical insurance products, Universal Provident’s Choices policy provides cover for the diagnosis, relief or curing of medical conditions and does not include preventative medicine or procedures, such as screening.
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17. My GP has referred me for a CT/MRI scan – will I be covered?
Tests and investigations are only covered if they are required by a specialist. Tests for which a GP has referred you are not therefore covered under any of our policies.
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18. Will Universal Provident pay if my GP charges me for completing a claim form for private medical insurance?
Whenever you submit a claim under a Choices policy we will need a claim form to be completed by your GP, for which the GP is entitled to make a charge as it falls outside of the terms of his contract with the NHS. Under the terms of Choices we will pay a reasonable fee in this respect (up to £20).
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19. How will I know which physiotherapists or other therapists I am authorised to use?
Physiotherapists and other therapists (such as chiropractors, homeopaths and osteopaths) will be acceptable to us provided that they hold the relevant qualifications and belong to specified regulatory bodies. Full details of these are included within the definitions section of the policy. Please note that you will only be covered for complementary medicine/therapies and out-patient physiotherapy if your Choices policy includes Module D.
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20. If I have an excess on my Choices policy, how will I know who and how much I need to pay?
Whenever we pay an invoice that is subject to an excess we will advise you clearly of exactly how much you need to pay to each provider of services. Wherever possible we will simplify matters by deducting the excess from as few invoices as possible.
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TRAVELLERSCARE
21. On TravellersCare will my children be covered if they travel independently?
Yes, your dependant children are covered provided they are traveling:
a) with an adult known to you or your spouse/partner
b) with a teacher on an organized school trip or
c) as an unaccompanied minor on a scheduled air service
Independent travel by your children in any other circumstances will not be covered.
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