Individual health insurance, also known as private medical insurance (PMI), can ensure you get the treatment you need without being stuck on an NHS waiting list. It helps you access private healthcare more quickly, so you can focus on your recovery.

You’ll pay a monthly premium, and if you need medical care for a short-term condition, your policy covers eligible private healthcare costs. Whether it’s diagnostic tests, specialist consultations or treatment, you can get back to living your best life.

From avoiding the stress of waiting months for a scan, to getting quick access to physiotherapy after an injury, individual health insurance puts you in more control of your healthcare.

Individual health insurance plans typically cover one person, and whilst this might be all you need now, you might want to add a partner or children to your policy one day. The good news is that adding them to your policy could see you paying less overall than if you each have your own individual policies.

This is because many insurers offer discounts when you insure multiple people under one policy. Some even only charge for one child, no matter how many little ones you have running around.

Another perk to adding family members to your policy is that it's less hassle. Continuing to manage one policy is easier than keeping tabs on separate ones for each family member. This way, you’ll only have one application to make and one renewal date to remember. See our family health insurance page for more information.

While individual health insurance offers plenty of benefits, it doesn’t cover everything. For instance, ongoing or chronic conditions such as asthma or diabetes are not typically covered by private health insurance. If they did, the costs of premiums and excesses would skyrocket for everyone. That’s partly why health insurance sits alongside the NHS rather than tries to replace it altogether.

Regardless of which individual health insurance provider or plan you choose, your policy typically won’t include:

• Pre-existing conditions (although some might be covered after a symptom-free period).

• Long-term conditions like asthma or diabetes.

• Emergency care.

• Allergies and food intolerances.

• Pregnancy and childbirth (although some providers offer cover for complications of pregnancy).

• Cosmetic treatments, gender reassignment and injuries from professional sports.

• Routine dental or optician visits (unless you’ve added that coverage to your plan).

If you’re unsure whether a condition is covered, always check with your insurer or refer to your policy documentation.