Only £10.25 a month - everyone pays the same
No exclusions for pre-existing conditions on joining
We're currently not able to take Credit Card payments online. You can join and pay by Direct Debit.
While the NHS provides a great service, increasing pressure on NHS budgets means that demand for services can outstrip the resources. This can lead to significant waiting lists for both diagnosis and treatment and could impact on your quality of life and long-term health.
Most people have to rely on the NHS alone, not many can afford to pay for expensive private medical insurance. Benenden provides a third way because we complement the NHS, we can provide healthcare for just £10.25 a month - a low cost alternative to Private Medical Insurance.
We help our members to avoid the worry and complications that waiting can often bring complementing the good work of the NHS by providing our members with speedy access to medical experts, and when the need arises, opening the door to private medical care in cases where they would face a lengthy wait for an NHS diagnosis or treatment.
We are not a medical insurer and our services are offered on a discretionary basis. The services we offer are subject to the resources we have available through membership contributions. We manage these funds and the services we provide carefully to ensure that we can continue to provide our healthcare support.
As soon as you join, you have 24/7 access to our 24/7 GP Helpline and Mental Health Helpline. Then, once you’ve had membership for six months, our healthcare can help remove the need for an anxious or difficult wait. You can request our assistance if your NHS appointment is over 3 weeks for Medical Diagnostics or over 5 weeks for Medical Treatment and Surgery.
This is particularly helpful in cases where a quick diagnosis is required, or the wait for treatment might significantly affect your quality of life.
The NHS provide speedy care for cancer, brain and heart disease, which are among the areas we don’t provide treatment for. Instead we use our members’ contributions to pay for healthcare that complements the NHS, making our healthcare a much more affordable alternative.
Benenden Health offers an affordable alternative to private health insurance for just £10.25 a month. It couldn’t be easier to join Benenden Health because there are no exclusions for pre-existing conditions on joining, and no excesses to pay. Everyone is accepted with no medicals required.
The benefits and services of our discretionary healthcare product may differ to other providers.
If you decide at any point Benenden Health isn’t right for you, you can cancel at any time.
In 2018, Benenden Health was ‘Highly Commended’ in the healthcare category of the Moneywise Customer Services Awards. The last eight years have seen Benenden Health either winning or being highly commended in this category. These prestigious awards stem from one of the UK’s largest customer surveys that find out which providers are the most trusted in the country, and we’re proud to be consistently recognised.
From day 1 members have the reassurance of convenient access to medical experts through 24/7 helplines for concerns about their physical or mental health.
Then, after just 6 months, members are able to request private diagnosis, treatment and physiotherapy.
Round the clock reassurance knowing you can speak to a qualified UK-based GP day or night. Accessed by phone 24-hours a day, or online via a face-to-face eConsultation during the working week.
You may have seen this service referred to as the 24/7 Psychological Wellbeing Helpline.
Speak to an experienced therapist 24/7 for support in dealing with conditions like anxiety, depression, bereavement or relationship problems.
Information and advice about care issues including sourcing short or long-term care whether this is at home, residential, convalescent or respite.
Members receive our quarterly health and wellbeing magazine Be Healthy. In addition, members have access to discounts across a range of Benenden products and a wide range of discounts on holidays, shopping and other health and wellbeing products including Home, Travel, Cash Plan and Health Assessments.
We have a national network of over 500 facilities providing our members with access to diagnostics and tests. We can support your diagnostic costs up to the value of £1,800 when you proceed via one of the facilities or specialists that we propose.
Access to over 250 common procedures across medical specialities including orthopaedics and general surgery. All authorised treatment costs are directly settled in full by Benenden Health. We can provide treatment in one of our 27 approved hospitals.
We can offer self-managed exercises supported by on-going telephone support and up to six face-to-face physiotherapy sessions.
You may have seen this service referred to as Psychological Wellbeing Support.
Support ranging from guided self-help to face-to-face therapy for conditions such as stress, depression, anxiety and bereavement.
Financial support up to £1,500 to purchase a range of items that can assist members who have been diagnosed with cancer or tuberculosis.
As a mutual community we’re committed to treating every member fairly. We aim to provide a range of discretionary services that
will help our members and to deliver them with care, compassion and understanding. This guide has been created to help outline who’s eligible to request our help, the range of services you can currently request and those services we're unable to help with.
Benenden operates according to a rule book, which contains the Benenden Healthcare Society Limited’s memorandum and rules.
We are a friendly society providing benefits from a discretionary fund. This means that the provision of services is subject to the resources we have available through membership contributions.
To access our diagnostic and treatment services you must have been a member of Benenden for more than six months.
If you would like to make changes to the way you pay or add additional persons to your membership please complete the appropriate forms.
If you're already a member you can make changes to your membership via My Benenden
No quotes, no excess – The price to join us is £10.25 per person, per month
No exclusions for pre-existing medical conditions on joining – All UK residents can join us regardless of their medical history
No commitment or annual contract – Benenden Health is here to help take worry away. So if at any point you decide that Benenden Health is not for you, you can cancel at any time.
Price – The monthly cost won’t increase due to age or usage but is reviewed annually.
Benenden Health is an affordable alternative to private health insurance. We are not a medical insurer. Our services are offered on a discretionary basis which means that the services we provide are subject to the resources we have available through membership contributions. This discretionary approach has served our membership well for more than 110 years.
There are two main reasons why:
By not replicating some of the excellent services that the NHS provide.
The NHS already provides speedy care for cancer, brain and heart disease so we don’t replicate these services but we can provide support to help you achieve a diagnosis for any symptom which you have been referred for by your NHS GP practice.
All membership fees are paid into a communal pot for the benefit of all members.
We manage our funds and the services we provide carefully to ensure that we can continue to provide assistance to members who require our support.
In the table below you'll find numbers for GP 24/7 and Psychological helplines along with information on how to request our services for Medical Diagnostics and Medical Treatment and Surgery
Call 0800 414 8247 (Select option 1)
Call 0800 414 8247 (Select option 2)
If you have been a member for over 6 months, calling the helpline may allow you additional Psychological Wellbeing Support
Call 0800 414 8100
We can advise you on how to seek further support or information about help paying for care. Our service does not support paying any fees for care.
Call 0800 414 8100 if you have been referred by your NHS GP Practice and your NHS wait is over 3 weeks for Medical Diagnostics.
Call 0800 414 8100 if you have been referred by your NHS GP Practice and your NHS wait is over 5 weeks for Medical Treatment and Surgery.
Call 0800 414 8100
Call 0800 414 8247 (select option 2)
Call 0800 414 8100
Simple anyone is accepted for the same price, no pre-existing conditions are excluded on joining
Smart we complement the great work of the NHS
Affordable at the low monthly fee of just £10.25
The affordable alternative to health insurance including diagnosis, over 250 types of surgery, physiotherapy, GP and Psychological Wellbeing 24/7 helplines
The Benenden Health way we were founded on the vision of many people joining together to help pay for medical care to support those in need
The table below highlights how we may differ to other healthcare providers, making Benenden Health the affordable alternative.
| Benenden Healthcare | |
|---|---|
| How much does it cost? | |
| Does everyone pay the same? | ✔ Yes, the price is £10.25 a month for our healthcare product |
| Do you provide access to diagnosis & treatment? | ✔ Yes. After six months of membership we will offer private diagnosis and 250 types of surgery if the NHS wait is over three weeks for a diagnosis or over five weeks for surgery |
| Do you provide cover for cancer or heart treatments? | ✘ We provide diagnosis for any condition, but we exclude the treatment of these conditions as the NHS provides great care here |
| Do you accept pre-existing medical conditions? | ✔ Yes, everyone is accepted. All UK residents can join Benenden Healthcare regardless of their medical history |
| Will there be any excesses to pay to access services? | ✔ No, there is no excess to pay. But you will be responsible for funding any costs incurred over £1,800 for a diagnosis |
| Is Benenden Healthcare insurance? | ✘ No, our services are offered on a discretionary basis |
If you decide at any point Benenden Health isn’t right for you, you can cancel at any time.
In 2018, Benenden Health was ‘Highly Commended’ in the healthcare category of the Moneywise Customer Services Awards. The last eight years have seen Benenden Health either winning or being highly commended in this category. These prestigious awards stem from one of the UK’s largest customer surveys that find out which providers are the most trusted in the country, and we’re proud to be consistently recognised.
Join us on or before 17th December to be in with a chance to win a prize in our spectacular £5,000 Christmas prize draw. Plus receive a £20 M&S gift card when you join and add another person to your membership.
T&Cs apply.
Every new member added on or before the 17th December 2018 puts you in with a chance of winning one of our great prizes. Plus the more people you add the more chances you have to win!
Offer ends 17th December 2018
Offer ends 17th December 2018
No quote needed and all UK residents can join regardless of their medical history. You can join us online day or night, all year round. Joining Benenden Health is quick and simple. All you need to know about Benenden Health can be viewed here
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It takes only a few minutes to sign up, no quote needed and everyone is accepted.
