Medical insurance

Protecting your family may be cheaper than you think

The cost of medical insurance for your entire family isn't too high: in most cases, cover for a couple and two children is only slightly more than the cost of covering two adults. Independent specialists Essential Healthcare have analysed the costs and suggest prices from £86 to £115 per month.

Getting medical insurance for your entire family isn't much more expensive than insuring two adults: according to independent health firm Essential Healthcare (www.pmi-scot.co.uk), a family of two adults aged 35 and 37 with two children aged 6 and 8 could pay as little as £86.66 per month for a standard medical insurance policy that covers outpatient and inpatient treatment.

Figures do vary between insurers because no two packages are identical, but even the most expensive policy that the firm identified - Norwich Union Healthcare's Express Care 6 package - was £115.66 per month, or less than £30 per person per month. By comparison, a couple aged 33 should expect to pay around £76 per month for a similar package, while a couple aged 63 would pay anything from £144 to £228 per month.

As with all policies, the older you are the higher the premium, and if you or your partner smokes then premiums will increase further. However you can reduce premiums by opting for an excess, or by choosing a policy with a six or eight-week option where you would take NHS treatment if it was available during that time period.