Free health insurance advice in the UK: where to get it and how to judge it

Health insurance advice means someone looks at your situation and recommends a policy, rather than handing you a list of prices. In the UK you can get that advice without paying a fee. The skill is telling apart the people who advise, the people who inform and the people who simply sell.

We are an independent, FCA-authorised broker based in Putney. Advising people on private medical insurance (PMI) is the core of what we do, for individuals, families and businesses across the UK.

This guide covers where free advice comes from and how a broker can offer it without charging you. It also sets out what a good adviser should ask. Then we cover where to turn for a renewal, a medical condition or a declined claim.

What counts as health insurance advice?

There are two ways to buy cover, and they give you different protection.

• Advised. A firm asks about your needs and recommends a specific policy. The recommendation must be suitable for you, and the firm is responsible for it.
• Non-advised, or information only. You get facts and prices, then make the choice yourself. Comparison sites and many direct sales work this way.

Neither route is wrong. If you want someone to stand behind a recommendation, ask at the start: “Are you advising me, or giving me information?” Keep the answer in writing if you can.

Good advice also looks past the price. Two quotes can look alike and behave very differently at claim time. The hospital list, the outpatient limit and how your medical history is treated all play a part.

Where to get free health insurance advice

Several organisations help at no cost to you. They do different jobs, so it pays to go to the right one first.

For most people choosing or changing a policy, a broker is the only free source that will compare insurers and make a recommendation. The others are valuable, but for different jobs.

How can a broker give advice for free?

Most health insurance brokers are paid commission by the insurer when you take out a policy. Some charge a fee instead, and some do both. A firm must tell you how it is paid, and disclose any fee before you become liable for it.

We charge no customer advice fee. If you arrange a policy through us, the insurer pays us commission. That commission is built into the premium, so buying the same cover direct is not automatically cheaper.

Free advice is not a promise of a saving. Sometimes the right answer is to keep your current policy, perhaps with a change at renewal. Before you go ahead with any broker, ask three things: which insurers they compared, whether any were left out, and how they are paid. Our guide to using a broker or buying direct goes into the trade-offs.

What a good adviser will ask you

Good advice starts with questions, not a quote. Expect to be asked about:

• Who needs cover. Just you, a partner, children or employees.
• Your medical history. Include anything you have seen a doctor about recently, because it decides how conditions are treated.
• The hospitals you want to use. Hospital lists are one of the biggest levers on price, especially in London.
• What worries you most. For example cancer care, mental health support or fast diagnosis.
• Your budget. That includes the excess, which is the amount you pay towards a claim yourself.
• Any cover you hold now. That includes a workplace scheme, because switching on the wrong terms can reset exclusions.

If someone quotes you in two minutes without asking any of this, you have a price, not advice.

The decisions advice should help you make

Five choices shape most of what you pay and what you get. An adviser should talk you through each one in plain English.

1. Underwriting. This is how an insurer treats your medical history. Our guide to moratorium vs full medical underwriting explains the two main routes.
2. Hospital list. This sets where you can be treated. A narrower list costs less, but check it includes hospitals you would actually use.
3. Outpatient cover. This pays for consultations, tests and scans before any treatment. A low limit can run out quickly, as our outpatient cover guide shows.
4. Excess. A higher excess lowers your premium, but you pay more if you claim.
5. Cancer, mental health and therapies. These differ most between insurers, and they are where cheap policies tend to cut back. See our mental health insurance guide.

Getting these right matters more than the brand on the policy. Our guide to comparing private health insurance shows how to line policies up like for like.

Health insurance advice for your situation

Advice looks different depending on where you are starting from. These are the first steps we would suggest.

Buying cover for the first time

Private cover is designed for new, short-term conditions that respond to treatment, not long-term ones. Buy while you are well, because symptoms you already have will usually be excluded. Start with what private health insurance covers, then decide whether it is worth it for you.

Your renewal price has jumped

Don't cancel in a hurry. Ask your insurer to explain the increase, then review the excess, outpatient limit and hospital list. If you compare other insurers, ask about switching on the same underwriting terms. Our health insurance renewals guide covers the options.

You have a medical condition

Cover is often still possible, although existing conditions are normally excluded, at least at first. Long-term conditions such as diabetes are usually left to the NHS. How you apply makes a real difference, so this is where advice earns its keep. See our pre-existing conditions guide.

You need treatment now

A new policy will not pay for a problem you already have symptoms of. If you need care now, paying for private treatment yourself or staying with the NHS are the realistic routes. Our guide to getting private healthcare explains both.

Your claim has been declined

Ask the insurer for its reasons in writing, including the policy wording it relies on. Then use its complaints process. If you are unhappy with the final response, or eight weeks pass without one, you can take it to the Financial Ombudsman Service for free. Our guide on how to claim on health insurance explains referrals and pre-authorisation, which help you avoid problems in the first place.

You run a business or work for yourself

Company-paid cover has its own tax and set-up rules, and group schemes can offer underwriting options you cannot get alone. Read our guides to business health insurance and cover for the self-employed.

Is there free health insurance in the UK?

Not in the way the question is often meant. There is no state-funded private health insurance, and no government subsidy towards a personal policy. The NHS is the UK's public health cover, free at the point of use.

Some people get private cover without paying the premium themselves, through an employer. That cover is usually a taxable benefit in kind, so you pay income tax on its value. If you buy your own policy, there is no tax relief on the premium.

In England, the NHS Low Income Scheme can help with costs such as prescriptions, dental treatment and travel to hospital. If affordability is the real issue, a health cash plan, a cheaper PMI structure or no policy at all may be the honest answer. Our health cash plan vs insurance guide compares the options.

How to check an adviser is genuine

Anyone advising on insurance in the UK must be authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), or work under a firm that is. A few quick checks protect you.

• Search the firm on the FCA's Financial Services Register and note its firm reference number (FRN). Ours is 785132.
• Make sure the phone number and website on the register match the ones you were given. Clone firms copy the names of real ones.
• Be wary of cold calls that promise large savings or “free” cover.
• Ask for the recommendation, and the reasons behind it, in writing.
• Never cancel an existing policy until the insurer has accepted the new one in writing.

We are also members of BIBA and AMII. In 2026 we were a finalist for Best Individual Health Insurance Advice Firm at the UK Health & Protection Awards.

Frequently asked questions