TL;DR
An in-depth look at how Expatriate Groups individual IPMI plans work, what they cover, what they exclude, and how limits and excesses affect you Navigating the world of international private medical insurance (IPMI) can feel complex, especially when you're planning a life-changing move abroad. At WeCovr, where we've helped arrange over 900,000 policies of various kinds for UK residents and expatriates, we understand the importance of clear, expert guidance. This guide demystifies one of the leading options for global health cover: Expatriate Group's individual IPMI.
Key takeaways
- Travel Insurance: This is designed for short trips and holidays. It primarily covers unforeseen medical emergencies, cancellations, and lost baggage. It is not designed for routine healthcare, managing long-term conditions, or giving you access to private medical facilities for non-emergency treatment while you live abroad.
- Domestic PMI (UK): This provides access to private healthcare within the UK, complementing the NHS. It is not designed to cover you comprehensively once you move overseas and are no longer eligible for NHS treatment.
- IPMI: This is your global health plan. It provides comprehensive cover for in-patient, out-patient, and emergency medical care in your new country of residence and often worldwide. It acts as your primary health cover, ensuring you can access high-quality medical treatment without facing crippling costs.
- Clarity and Simplicity: Their policy documents and plan structures are designed to be more straightforward than many competitors.
- Customer-Centric Service: They manage everything in-house from their UK headquarters, including policy administration, emergency assistance, and claims, ensuring a consistent service.
An in-depth look at how Expatriate Groups individual IPMI plans work, what they cover, what they exclude, and how limits and excesses affect you
Navigating the world of international private medical insurance (IPMI) can feel complex, especially when you're planning a life-changing move abroad. At WeCovr, where we've helped arrange over 900,000 policies of various kinds for UK residents and expatriates, we understand the importance of clear, expert guidance. This guide demystifies one of the leading options for global health cover: Expatriate Group's individual IPMI.
We'll break down exactly how their plans work, what you're covered for, and the crucial details about limits, exclusions, and costs. Our goal is to give you the confidence to choose the right protection for your health and peace of mind, wherever you are in the world.
What is IPMI and Why is it Essential for Expats?
International Private Medical Insurance (IPMI) is a specific type of health insurance designed for individuals and families living and working outside of their home country for an extended period (typically more than one year).
It's fundamentally different from a standard travel insurance policy or domestic private medical insurance (PMI).
- Travel Insurance: This is designed for short trips and holidays. It primarily covers unforeseen medical emergencies, cancellations, and lost baggage. It is not designed for routine healthcare, managing long-term conditions, or giving you access to private medical facilities for non-emergency treatment while you live abroad.
- Domestic PMI (UK): This provides access to private healthcare within the UK, complementing the NHS. It is not designed to cover you comprehensively once you move overseas and are no longer eligible for NHS treatment.
- IPMI: This is your global health plan. It provides comprehensive cover for in-patient, out-patient, and emergency medical care in your new country of residence and often worldwide. It acts as your primary health cover, ensuring you can access high-quality medical treatment without facing crippling costs.
For an expatriate, relying on a local state-run healthcare system can be a gamble. Quality, accessibility, and language barriers can vary dramatically. IPMI provides a crucial safety net, ensuring consistent, high-quality care.
Introducing Expatriate Group: A Specialist in Global Health
Expatriate Group is a UK-based insurer that specialises exclusively in providing insurance to the international community. This focus is their key strength. They aren't a general insurer who has added an expat product; their entire business model is built around understanding and serving the unique needs of people living abroad.
They are known in the industry for:
- Clarity and Simplicity: Their policy documents and plan structures are designed to be more straightforward than many competitors.
- Customer-Centric Service: They manage everything in-house from their UK headquarters, including policy administration, emergency assistance, and claims, ensuring a consistent service.
- Flexibility: Their plans offer various levels of cover and geographical options, allowing you to tailor a policy to your specific needs and budget.
As an independent, FCA-regulated broker, WeCovr works with leading providers like Expatriate Group to find the best fit for our clients. We value their specialist approach and positive customer feedback.
Deep Dive: Expatriate Group's Individual IPMI Plans
Expatriate Group structures their individual IPMI around a core plan with the option to add modules for more comprehensive cover. The foundation of every policy is In-patient and Day-patient treatment.
This covers the most significant medical costs, such as surgery and hospital stays. From there, you can build your plan.
Here's a typical breakdown of their plan tiers, designed to cater to different needs and budgets:
| Feature | Basic Plan | Choice Plan | Comprehensive Plan |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall Annual Limit | £1,000,000 | £1,500,000 | £2,000,000 |
| In-patient & Day-patient | ✅ Paid in Full | ✅ Paid in Full | ✅ Paid in Full |
| Cancer Treatment | ✅ Paid in Full | ✅ Paid in Full | ✅ Paid in Full |
| Medical Evacuation | ✅ Paid in Full | ✅ Paid in Full | ✅ Paid in Full |
| Out-patient Cover | ❌ Not Covered | ✅ Up to £25,000 | ✅ Paid in Full |
| Wellness & Preventative | ❌ Not Covered | ❌ Not Covered | ✅ Up to £500 |
| Maternity Cover | ❌ Optional Add-on | ✅ Optional Add-on | ✅ Optional Add-on |
| Dental & Optical | ❌ Optional Add-on | ✅ Optional Add-on | ✅ Optional Add-on |
This tiered structure allows you to balance your premium against the level of cover you feel you need. For example, a young, healthy individual might opt for a Basic plan focused on major medical events, while a family might favour the Comprehensive plan for its extensive out-patient and wellness benefits.
What Does Expatriate Group IPMI Cover? (The Inclusions)
Understanding the specifics of what's included is vital. While plan details vary, here are the core benefits you can expect with an Expatriate Group policy.
- In-patient and Day-patient Treatment: This is the cornerstone of the cover. It includes all costs associated with a hospital stay where you are admitted to a bed, including:
- Hospital accommodation
- Surgeon and anaesthetist fees
- Specialist consultations during your stay
- Diagnostic tests, X-rays, and MRI scans
- Prescription drugs and dressings
- Comprehensive Cancer Cover: This is a standout feature. All plan levels typically cover cancer treatment in full, up to your overall annual limit. This includes diagnostics, surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy.
- Medical Evacuation & Repatriation: If you suffer a serious illness or injury in a location without adequate medical facilities, this covers the cost of transporting you to the nearest centre of medical excellence. In the worst-case scenario, it also covers repatriation of mortal remains. This benefit alone can cost tens of thousands of pounds without insurance.
- Out-patient Treatment (Choice & Comprehensive Plans): This is a critical component for day-to-day healthcare. It covers:
- Consultations with GPs and specialists
- Diagnostic tests and scans that don't require a hospital stay
- Physiotherapy, osteopathy, and chiropractic care (often up to a set limit)
- Prescription medications
- Mental Health Support: Reflecting the growing importance of mental wellbeing, cover for psychiatric treatment is often included, particularly for in-patient care. Out-patient therapy may have sub-limits.
- Optional Add-ons:
- Maternity Cover: Covers routine maternity and childbirth after a waiting period (typically 10-12 months).
- Dental & Optical Cover: Provides benefits for routine check-ups, fillings, and new eyewear, as well as more complex dental surgery.
What is NOT Covered? (The Exclusions)
No insurance policy covers everything. Being aware of the exclusions is just as important as knowing the inclusions. This prevents surprises at the point of claim.
The Golden Rule of Private Medical Insurance: Standard IPMI policies are designed to cover acute conditions that arise after your policy has started. They do not cover pre-existing or chronic conditions.
- An Acute Condition: A disease, illness, or injury that is likely to respond quickly to treatment and lead to a full recovery (e.g., appendicitis, a broken bone, a treatable infection).
- A Chronic Condition: A disease, illness, or injury that has one or more of the following characteristics: it needs long-term monitoring, has no known cure, is likely to recur, or requires ongoing management (e.g., diabetes, asthma, hypertension, Crohn's disease).
Other common exclusions include:
- Pre-existing Conditions: Any medical condition you had symptoms of, received advice for, or sought treatment for before your policy start date. We'll discuss how insurers handle this in the underwriting section below.
- Cosmetic Surgery: Procedures that are not medically necessary.
- Self-inflicted Injuries: Including those resulting from drug or alcohol abuse.
- Fertility Treatment: Such as IVF.
- Professional Sports Injuries: If you participate in sports professionally, you may need specialist cover.
- War, Terrorism, and Civil Unrest: These are standard exclusions, although some policies may offer extensions for an additional premium.
Understanding Your Policy's Financials: Limits and Excesses
Two key financial elements of your policy are the annual limit and the excess.
1. Annual Limit
The annual limit is the maximum total amount the insurer will pay out for all your eligible claims in a single policy year.
- Expatriate Group's Limits: Their plans have high annual limits, starting from £1,000,000. This is designed to be more than sufficient to cover even the most expensive medical events, such as complex surgery followed by a long ICU stay in a country with high medical costs like the USA.
- "Paid in Full": When you see a benefit is "Paid in Full," it means it's covered up to your overall annual policy limit.
2. Excess (or Deductible)
An excess is the amount you agree to pay towards the cost of your eligible treatment in a policy year. The insurer pays the rest, up to your benefit limits.
- How it Works: Let's say you choose a £250 excess. You need out-patient treatment that is approved by the insurer and costs £1,500.
- You pay the first £250 of the cost.
- Expatriate Group pays the remaining £1,250.
- For any subsequent eligible claims in that same policy year, you pay nothing further, as you have already met your annual excess.
- Impact on Premium: Choosing a higher excess will lower your monthly or annual premium. It's a way of sharing a small part of the risk with the insurer in return for a lower price. Expatriate Group offers a range of excess options, allowing you to find a balance that suits your budget.
Insider Tip: When choosing an excess, consider what you could comfortably afford to pay out-of-pocket for a medical claim. A higher excess is a great way to make comprehensive cover more affordable, as long as you can manage the upfront cost if you need to claim.
How Underwriting Works: Moratorium vs. Full Medical Underwriting
Underwriting is the process an insurer uses to assess your medical history and decide on the terms of your policy. Expatriate Group, like most IPMI providers, offers two main options.
1. Moratorium Underwriting (Mori)
This is the most common and simplest option.
- How it works: You don't have to declare your full medical history on the application form. Instead, the policy automatically excludes treatment for any medical conditions you have had in the 5 years prior to the policy start date.
- The "2-Year Rule": This exclusion can be lifted for a specific condition if you go for a continuous 2-year period after your policy starts without experiencing symptoms, seeking advice, or receiving treatment for that condition.
- Pros: Quick and easy application process.
- Cons: Lack of certainty. You may not know if a condition is covered until you make a claim. This can be problematic for conditions with recurring symptoms.
2. Full Medical Underwriting (FMU)
This is a more detailed, upfront process.
- How it works: You complete a comprehensive medical questionnaire, declaring your entire medical history. The insurer's underwriting team reviews this information.
- The Outcome: The insurer will then issue terms, which could be:
- Accepted: The condition is covered.
- Excluded: The condition and any related issues are permanently excluded from cover.
- Loaded: The condition is covered, but you pay a higher premium (a "loading").
- Pros: You have complete certainty from day one about what is and isn't covered. There are no grey areas at the point of claim.
- Cons: The application process is longer and more intrusive.
Which is right for you? A specialist broker like WeCovr can provide invaluable advice here. Generally, if you have a clean bill of health, a moratorium is simple. If you have a complex medical history, FMU provides clarity and peace of mind, even if it results in an exclusion.
The Claims Process: Accessing Treatment with Expatriate Group
A smooth claims process is vital. Expatriate Group operates a 24/7 multilingual assistance line to help you wherever you are.
The process generally follows these steps:
- Pre-authorisation (The Most Important Step): For any planned treatment (e.g., a specialist visit, a scan, or surgery), you MUST contact Expatriate Group before it takes place.
- Assessment: They will confirm if the treatment is covered under your policy and issue a guarantee of payment.
- Direct Billing: In most cases, Expatriate Group will arrange to pay the hospital or clinic directly. This means you don't have to pay large sums out of your own pocket (apart from your excess, if applicable).
- 'Pay and Claim': For smaller costs, like a GP visit or prescription, you may be asked to pay upfront and then submit the receipt and claim form for reimbursement. Their online portal makes this process straightforward.
- Emergencies: In a genuine life-or-death emergency, seek treatment immediately and then contact the 24/7 assistance line as soon as it is safe and practical to do so.
Why Use a Broker like WeCovr for Your IPMI?
While you can go directly to an insurer, using a specialist broker offers significant advantages at no extra cost to you. Our fee is paid by the insurer, so you pay the same premium (or sometimes less) as going direct.
- Expert, Impartial Advice: We are not tied to one provider. We compare the market, including Expatriate Group, Bupa Global, AXA, and others, to find the policy that truly matches your needs.
- Application Support: We help you navigate the complexities of underwriting, ensuring your application is completed correctly to avoid future problems.
- Claims Advocacy: If you run into any issues with a claim, we act as your advocate, liaising with the insurer on your behalf.
- Ongoing Service: We're here for you at renewal to ensure your policy remains competitive and appropriate for your circumstances.
- Added Value: As a WeCovr client, you also get complimentary access to our AI-powered calorie and nutrition tracking app, CalorieHero, and can benefit from discounts on other insurance products like life or travel cover.
Frequently Asked Questions about Expatriate Group IPMI
Can I add my family to my individual IPMI policy?
What happens to my IPMI cover if I move back to the UK?
Is dental and optical cover included as standard?
Your Next Step to Global Peace of Mind
Choosing the right International Private Medical Insurance is one of the most important decisions you'll make as an expatriate. An Expatriate Group policy offers a clear, flexible, and robust solution, backed by a specialist in the field.
However, the best policy is always the one that is tailored to your unique health needs, destination, and budget.
Contact the friendly, expert team at WeCovr today. We'll provide a free, no-obligation review of your requirements and a personalised comparison of quotes from across the market, ensuring you and your family have the best possible protection for your new life abroad.
