Improved accessibility also seems to represent a driver. Aviva has noticed an increase in individual consumers carrying out online quotes for PMI, with around 50 per cent more quotes made in December in comparison with June last year.
“This trend has continued in the first few weeks of this year. Calls have been around 25 per cent higher than we would normally expect for this time of year,” says Wright.
He adds that PMI popularity is also being played out in the corporate sector, with employers reportedly more focused than ever on investing in the health and wellbeing of their staff, with mental health a particular area of concern.
Post-Covid backlogs, claims and premiums impacts
We asked all our expert commentators whether the private sector had caught up now, after giving up their capacity to the NHS during the height of the Covid-19 crisis.
The response is mixed. While some say that the private sector has fully caught up and has capacity to take on more, others point to some areas of strain.
Association of Medical Insurers and Intermediaries executive chair David Middleton says: “I am not hearing or seeing any decline in service or speed of access because of the catch-up from Covid.”
According to Walters, though, waiting lists in the private sector are still impacted. “Although nowhere near as lengthy as NHS waiting lists, private waiting lists have lengthened, with waiting times of four weeks to see a consultant – unheard of prior to Covid – not unusual now.”
National Friendly sales and distribution director Oliver Jones adds: “PMI premiums have remained relatively stable. However, it will be interesting to see the impact of the backlog of claims across the industry and how providers will manage these.”
It sounds like insurers might be already under some pressure. “All insurers are experiencing high demand for claim pre-authorisation, leading to lengthy call waiting times with many providers,” says Walters.
However, right now premiums seem unaffected by post-pandemic related pressures or the cost of living crisis.
PMI premiums continue to rise in line with medical inflation, as they have always done, according to all our commentators.
Across the period 2020 to 2022, the average annual premium for an individual customer has continued to be around £1,000 to £1,100, “with individual variation dependent on claims history and customers’ product option choices,” says Wright.
“Any variation in premium has not been related to Covid-19 and we have maintained our underlying pricing approach.”
Middleton also points out that most insurers refunded a percentage of premiums after the pandemic due to the reduction in expected claims during that period.
