Optical, Dental & Physio Cover

Healthcare cash plans cover the cost of dental, optical, physio treatment & more

Even with the NHS it’s difficult not to spend money on healthcare; there are dental treatments, optical check-ups, alternative therapies and more. Yet, used correctly healthcare cash plans allow you to recover these costs and can pay you back over six times what you spend on the insurance cost each year.

You pay a monthly premium, depending on how much cover you want, and when you receive treatment, you pay upfront and then send the receipt to the insurer and it reimburses you.

If you chose a plan with £200 dental cover, for example, you can then claim up to £200 back per year on dental treatments – so a check-up costing £21, two fillings at £60 each, and a £21 visit to the hygienist would all be covered. It would also mean that you will have £38 of your dental allowance left to use if you needed additional dental treatment in the year.

There's usually no medical so they're great for those who usually aren't in tip top condition and can cover anyone up to the age of 99. Plus, you'll pay a flat-rate up to the age of 65 so whether you're 25 or 45 you'll usually pay the same for the same level of cover.

Different plans cover different things, so pick the right one for your needs

There are lots of plans available so don't assume they’re all the same. When choosing a cash plan it's important to pick one that's right for you – otherwise it's just a waste of money.

If you have perfect vision, you're not going to need a huge allowance for optical cover and similarly if your teeth are still pearly white then you won't need a policy with a big allowance for dental.

You may already be covered by your employer, so it’s worth checking

Cash plans are a popular staff perk so before you buy one check whether your employer already provides the cover for free, or for a small amount each month.

If your employer does pay for your cash plan, they're not entirely free as although you won't pay for the plan, you'll pay the tax on it. So, if it costs £20 per month, and you're on a tax rate of 20%, that's £4 per month which you'll have to pay for.

The reason for this is because the cash plan is a perk paid by your employer and known as a 'benefit in kind'. However, paying the tax – and not paying the full amount for the cash plan yourself – is clearly a much cheaper option.

It's all about the maths. How much you'll pay in and what you'll get back

As mentioned above, you need to pick a healthcare cash plan that meets your needs but it's also important to make sure you're getting the maximum cash payout from your plan.

For example, let's take a plan that costs £240 per year that includes £300 for optical costs and £300 for dental:

• If you've maxed out both you'd be paid £600. Take away what you've paid in the cost of insurance and you're £360 up at the end of the year.
• However, if you don't use the optical part and only £50 of dental – say two check-ups per year – you'd only get £50 from the plan and compared to the amount you've paid in (£240) you're now £190 out of pocket.

Therefore before you pick a policy, always check what you're likely to use compared to how much you'll be paying each month. Our best buys below have full details.

Only buy one if you’ll claim each time - otherwise they're a waste of money

Just because people can claim for the cost of healthcare through a cash plan, doesn't mean they do. Many people forget to send in their claim forms, so there's no payout at all.

Cash plan providers rely on apathetic customers with direct debits dripping from their bank accounts to keep the coffers healthy. So this is OUR CLARION CALL...

Cash plans are only great value if you'll make claims. If you won't, it's like throwing money down the drain.

Self-insuring means you'll still have the cash if you don't claim

If you're young and healthy (say you've got 20:20 vision and not a single filling in your mouth), a healthcare cash plan might not be for you. Self-insuring may be a better option. Instead of paying, say, £300 a year for a cash plan, pay £25 a month into a high-interest savings account or into an interest-paying current account.

Should you need any minor treatment or consultations, simply dip into your own insurance fund. If you don't touch it you'll get to keep your 'premiums' with the interest on top.

You could get free cover for your kids and partner but always check the limits

You can cover an individual or two adults on a policy and most policies then let you add children at no extra cost.

If you’ve added children to your policy, it effectively makes it a family plan. The level of benefits for the children on the policy either get their own allowance per child, have a shared allowance between children or share the adult allowance.

For example, each child may get £100 towards dental costs per year, all children on the policy may have a shared allowance of £300 for dental – or each parent has a limit of £500 per year for dental which the children can also use.

In addition, some policies won't protect children for certain things. Make sure you know what your family's needs are, then make sure the policy you're interested in matches up. And remember – as most children's treatments are free on the NHS the amount of cash you can reclaim is limited.

You could even claim for tooth whitening, pedicures or massages

Along with optical, dental and physio there may be complementary treatments included in your cash plan. This could be anything from an aromatherapy massage for stress, cosmetic tooth whitening or a medical pedicure. If yours includes these, and it's something you usually pay out for, make sure you're using the cash plan instead.

For example, if you choose a level one plan with Health Shield for £11.95 per month you'd get £65 per year towards what's called 'health and wellbeing' which includes an aromatherapy massage or even allergy testing.

On top of this you'd also get £125 towards 'physiotherapy, chiropractic, osteopathy, acupuncture and homoeopathy'.

Make a note of the policy end date so you don't miss out on cashback

When you sign up to a cash plan you'll be given an allowance of money per policy year to claim back to pay for your routine healthcare costs. This is a 'use it or lose it' policy so at the end you won't be able to access it anymore.

Therefore it's important to take note of when the policy comes to an end so you can make sure you've used up all the cash available. If it ends in June, for example, check your existing cash allowance in April and if you've still got money to claim on dental, for example, book an appointment and claim back the cash.