As an FCA-authorised expert with over 900,000 policies issued, WeCovr provides a definitive guide to international private medical insurance. This article explores Allianz Care's global health plans for UK citizens and businesses, explaining their features, benefits, and suitability for those living or working abroad.
WeCovr explains Allianz's international policies and who they are best suited for in the current market
Moving abroad, whether for a new career, a business expansion, or a well-earned retirement, is an exhilarating adventure. Yet, it comes with a long to-do list, and right at the top should be securing comprehensive healthcare. Your UK NHS access won't follow you, and local health systems can be complex, costly, and difficult to navigate.
This is where International Private Medical Insurance (IPMI) becomes essential. It’s a passport to peace of mind, ensuring you have access to high-quality medical care, wherever you are in the world.
One of the leading names in this specialist field is Allianz Care. In this guide, we'll break down what Allianz Care offers, who their policies are designed for, and how to decide if they are the right choice for your global journey.
What Exactly is International Private Medical Insurance (IPMI)?
Many people are familiar with UK Private Medical Insurance (PMI), which supplements NHS care within the United Kingdom. International PMI is a different, more comprehensive type of cover designed specifically for people living and working outside their home country.
Think of it like this:
- UK PMI: Designed for UK residents to get faster access to treatment for acute conditions within the UK.
- IPMI: Designed for expats and global citizens to access healthcare anywhere in the world (within their chosen area of cover). It often covers a wider range of treatments and services, including routine care, which UK PMI typically excludes.
A Critical Point on Medical Conditions
It is vital to understand a fundamental principle of private medical insurance, both in the UK and internationally. Standard policies are designed to cover acute conditions — illnesses or injuries that are new, unexpected, and likely to respond quickly to treatment.
Crucially, standard private health cover does not cover chronic conditions (long-term illnesses like diabetes, asthma, or heart disease) or pre-existing conditions you had before your policy began.
Some policies may consider covering certain pre-existing conditions after a set waiting period (known as moratorium underwriting), but this is not guaranteed. Always declare your full medical history to ensure your policy is valid when you need it most.
Introducing Allianz Care: A Global Healthcare Giant
Allianz Care is the international health brand of Allianz Partners, which is part of the global financial services leader, the Allianz Group. Founded in 1890, Allianz has a presence in over 70 countries and serves more than 122 million customers worldwide. This scale and heritage provide a strong foundation of financial stability and global expertise.
When you choose Allianz Care, you are not just buying an insurance policy; you are tapping into a vast, worldwide network of medical providers, support services, and digital tools built over decades. Their focus is exclusively on the needs of the internationally mobile, from individual expats and their families to multinational corporations.
A Deep Dive into Allianz Care's International Health Plans
Allianz Care structures its plans in a flexible, modular way. This allows you to build a policy that perfectly matches your needs and budget. You start with a Core Plan and then add optional benefits.
The Core Plan: Your Hospital Cover Foundation
The Core Plan is the mandatory foundation of every Allianz Care policy. It provides comprehensive cover for essential, and often most expensive, medical treatments.
Key benefits typically include:
- In-patient and Day-Care Treatment: This covers costs for surgery, hospital accommodation, nursing care, and other treatments where you are admitted to a hospital bed.
- Cancer Treatment: Comprehensive cover for oncology, including chemotherapy and radiotherapy.
- Medical Evacuation: If the necessary treatment is not available locally, this covers the cost of transporting you to the nearest suitable medical facility. This is a critical benefit for anyone living in a remote area or a country with less-developed healthcare.
- Repatriation: In the unfortunate event of death, this covers the cost of returning the deceased's mortal remains to their home country.
- Nursing at Home: Covers costs for a nurse to provide care at home immediately following a hospital stay.
- Rehabilitation Treatment: Short-term therapies like physiotherapy needed to help you recover after a hospital stay.
Optional Add-ons: Tailoring Your Cover
Once you have your Core Plan, you can add extra layers of cover for everyday healthcare needs.
1. Out-patient Plan
This is the most popular add-on. It covers medical treatment that doesn't require a hospital admission.
- GP (General Practitioner) visits
- Consultations with specialists
- Prescribed medicines and dressings
- Diagnostic tests, X-rays, and scans
- Alternative therapies (e.g., osteopathy, chiropractic)
2. Dental Plan
Provides cover for a range of dental treatments, often with different levels available.
- Routine Treatment: Check-ups, cleaning, fillings.
- Major Restorative Work: Crowns, bridges, root canals.
- Orthodontic Treatment: Braces and other alignment devices (often subject to a waiting period).
3. Maternity Plan
For those planning to start or grow their family abroad. This plan typically has a 10-12 month waiting period, so you must have it in place well before conception.
- Covers costs for pre-natal and post-natal care.
- Covers costs associated with routine and complicated childbirth.
4. Repatriation Plus Plan
This extends the standard repatriation benefit. It allows you to choose to be medically evacuated to your home country for treatment, even if suitable care is available locally. This is a popular choice for those who would feel more comfortable receiving significant medical care back in the UK.
Example Plan Structures
To make this clearer, here’s how two different people might build an Allianz Care policy:
| Customer Profile | Core Plan | Out-patient | Dental | Maternity | Area of Cover |
|---|
| John, 30, a single software developer in Singapore. | Yes | Yes | No | No | Worldwide excluding USA |
| The Smith Family, moving to Spain with two young children. | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Europe |
As you can see, the modular system allows for significant personalisation. An expert broker like WeCovr can help you navigate these options to ensure you're only paying for the cover you truly need.
Who is Allianz Care IPMI Best Suited For?
Allianz Care's comprehensive and flexible plans are designed for a wide range of internationally mobile individuals and groups.
1. UK Expats and Their Families
This is the core market for Allianz Care. Whether you are moving for a corporate assignment in Dubai, retiring to the south of France, or taking a sabbatical in Thailand, their plans provide a safety net.
- Real-life Example:
- Sarah, a 45-year-old project manager, is relocating from Manchester to Toronto for a two-year contract. She knows the Canadian healthcare system is excellent but can be difficult for non-residents to access quickly. She opts for an Allianz Care plan with out-patient cover. Six months in, she develops a persistent cough. Through the Allianz Care app, she finds a local private GP, gets a referral to a specialist, and has a chest X-ray within a week. The costs are billed directly to Allianz. Without the policy, she would have faced long waits and significant out-of-pocket expenses.
2. 'Digital Nomads' and Remote Workers
The rise of remote work has created a new class of global citizen. These individuals often move between countries every few months and require a truly global, flexible health plan. Allianz Care's "Worldwide" cover area is perfect for this lifestyle, providing seamless protection no matter where their laptop is open.
3. UK Businesses with an International Workforce
For UK companies sending employees abroad, providing high-quality health insurance is a cornerstone of their duty of care. It's also a powerful tool for attracting and retaining top talent in a competitive global market.
Allianz Care offers a range of group schemes for businesses:
- SMEs (Small and Medium-sized Enterprises): Off-the-shelf plans for companies with as few as 3 employees.
- Large Corporations: Fully customisable plans that can be tailored to the specific needs of the workforce across different countries and risk profiles.
Benefits for businesses include a healthier, more productive workforce, reduced absenteeism, and the assurance that their employees will be well looked after in a medical emergency.
Beyond the core insurance cover, Allianz provides a suite of services designed to make life easier for expats.
| Feature | Description | Benefit for the Expat |
|---|
| Global Network | A vast, vetted network of hospitals, clinics, and doctors around the world. | You can easily find trusted medical care. Many providers offer direct billing, so you don't have to pay upfront. |
| 24/7 Multilingual Helpline | A dedicated support line staffed by a team speaking multiple languages. | In a stressful medical situation, you can get help and advice in your own language, any time of day or night. |
| MyHealth Digital Services | A secure online portal and mobile app for managing your policy. | Find doctors, submit claims by taking a photo of your invoice, view policy documents, and access your digital membership card. |
| Expat Assistance Programme (EAP) | A confidential support service included with many plans. | Offers 24/7 access to counselling for stress, culture shock, legal/financial worries, and other life challenges. |
| Health and Wellness Hub | An online portal with articles, tools, and risk assessments for managing your health. | Proactive support to help you stay healthy, not just treat you when you're ill. |
Understanding Costs and Underwriting
The price of your Allianz Care premium will depend on several factors:
- Age: Premiums increase with age.
- Area of Cover: "Worldwide" is the most expensive, while a plan covering only "Europe" will be cheaper. "Worldwide excluding USA" is a popular mid-range option, as US healthcare costs are exceptionally high.
- Plan and Add-ons: The more optional benefits you add (like out-patient and dental), the higher the cost.
- Deductible/Excess: Choosing to pay a higher excess (the amount you pay towards a claim) will lower your premium.
- Medical Underwriting: This is how the insurer assesses your health status.
There are two main types of underwriting for individuals:
- Full Medical Underwriting (FMU): You complete a detailed health questionnaire, declaring all your past medical conditions. The insurer may then place exclusions on your policy for those specific conditions. The benefit is clarity – you know exactly what is and isn't covered from day one.
- Moratorium Underwriting: You do not need to declare your full medical history upfront. Instead, the policy will automatically exclude any condition you've had symptoms of, or received treatment for, in the 5 years before the policy started. These conditions may become eligible for cover after you complete a continuous 2-year period on the policy without experiencing symptoms or needing treatment for them. It's simpler to apply for but creates uncertainty about what's covered.
For expert guidance on which underwriting option is best for your situation, it's wise to speak with a PMI broker like WeCovr.
Healthy Living Tips for Life Abroad
An insurance policy is there for when things go wrong, but staying healthy is the best strategy of all. Moving to a new country can disrupt your routines, so here are a few tips to keep your physical and mental wellbeing on track.
- Embrace Local, Healthy Foods: Explore the local markets. A new country offers a fantastic opportunity to try new fruits, vegetables, and lean proteins. While comfort food from home is nice occasionally, building a diet around fresh local produce is great for your health and your wallet.
- Find Your New Active: Your UK gym routine might not translate to a tropical climate. Look for new ways to stay active. Could you take up swimming, hiking in the cooler mornings, paddleboarding, or joining a local yoga studio?
- Prioritise Sleep: Jet lag and the stress of a new environment can wreak havoc on your sleep. Establish a regular sleep schedule, make your bedroom dark and cool, and avoid screens before bed. Good sleep is fundamental to both mental and physical resilience.
- Acknowledge Culture Shock: It's normal to feel overwhelmed, isolated, or even irritable after the initial excitement of a move wears off. This is culture shock. Acknowledge these feelings and use services like the Allianz Expat Assistance Programme to talk them through with a professional.
- Stay Connected: Make an effort to build a new social network, but also schedule regular calls with family and friends back home to maintain your support system.
Why Use a Broker like WeCovr?
The international private medical insurance market is complex. While you can go directly to an insurer like Allianz Care, using an independent, expert broker like WeCovr offers significant advantages at no extra cost to you.
- Impartial Advice: We are not tied to any single insurer. Our job is to understand your unique needs and search the market—including Allianz Care, Bupa Global, Cigna, and AXA—to find the policy that offers the best value and cover for you.
- Market Expertise: We live and breathe private medical insurance. We understand the fine print, the differences between policies, and how to navigate the underwriting process to get you the most favourable terms.
- Application Support: We help you complete your application correctly, ensuring all medical history is declared properly to avoid any issues with future claims.
- Ongoing Service: Our support doesn't stop once you've bought the policy. We are here to help with renewal, claims queries, or any other issues you may have.
- Exclusive Benefits: When you arrange your policy through WeCovr, you get complimentary access to our AI-powered calorie and nutrition tracking app, CalorieHero, to support your health goals. Furthermore, customers who purchase PMI or Life Insurance through us are often eligible for discounts on other types of cover.
Our high customer satisfaction ratings are a testament to our commitment to providing clear, friendly, and professional advice.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Does Allianz Care cover pre-existing medical conditions?
Generally, like most standard private medical insurance policies, Allianz Care is designed to cover new, acute medical conditions that arise after your policy starts. It does not typically cover pre-existing or chronic conditions. However, under 'moratorium' underwriting, a pre-existing condition may become eligible for cover after a 24-month waiting period, provided you have had no symptoms, treatment, or advice for it during that time. Alternatively, with 'Full Medical Underwriting', the condition will likely be permanently excluded. It is crucial to declare all conditions accurately.
Can I use my Allianz Care policy when I visit the UK?
Yes, you can. International Private Medical Insurance is designed to cover you within your chosen geographical area of cover. If your home country (the UK) is included in your area of cover, you will be able to access private medical treatment when you are visiting. This can be particularly reassuring for expats who spend significant time back in the UK each year.
What is the difference between medical evacuation and repatriation?
Medical evacuation is when you are transported from your location to the nearest medical facility that can provide the appropriate level of care, because local treatment is inadequate. Medical repatriation, often an optional add-on, gives you the choice to be transported back to your home country for treatment, even if suitable care is available where you are. Repatriation provides peace of mind for those who would prefer to be treated near family and in a familiar system.
How do I make a claim with Allianz Care from abroad?
Allianz Care makes claiming straightforward. For major in-patient treatment, you or the hospital should contact them beforehand for pre-authorisation. They can then arrange direct billing with the hospital. For smaller, out-patient costs, you typically pay the provider and then submit the invoice for reimbursement. This is easily done by taking a photo of the receipt and uploading it via the MyHealth app or online portal. Reimbursements are usually processed quickly.
Take the Next Step with WeCovr
Choosing the right international health insurance is one of the most important decisions you'll make when planning a life abroad. Allianz Care offers a robust, flexible, and well-regarded solution for UK expats and businesses.
However, the best policy is always the one that is right for you. Let WeCovr's team of independent experts help you compare all your options, understand the details, and build the perfect cover for your global adventure.
Contact WeCovr today for a free, no-obligation quote and discover the peace of mind that comes with world-class private medical insurance.