TL;DR
As FCA-authorised experts who have arranged over 900,000 policies, we at WeCovr know that choosing the right private medical insurance in the UK can feel complex. A core policy is your foundation, but optional extras are what truly tailor the cover to your life, family, and health priorities. A guide to popular add-ons such as dental, optical, overseas cover, and physiotherapy, including coverage limits and situations where these extras are most valuable Private Medical Insurance (PMI) is designed to give you peace of mind, faster access to treatment, and more choice over your healthcare.
Key takeaways
- In-patient treatment: When you are admitted to a hospital and need an overnight bed.
- Day-patient treatment: When you are admitted to a hospital for a procedure but do not stay overnight.
- Out-patient diagnostics (often with limits): Consultations and tests to find out what's wrong, but surgery or procedures are often excluded unless you have an out-patient add-on.
- Cancer Care: Most core policies offer extensive cancer cover, including chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and surgery, as standard.
- Pre-existing Conditions: Any medical condition you had before your policy start date will be excluded, at least for an initial period (usually two years).
As FCA-authorised experts who have arranged over 900,000 policies, we at WeCovr know that choosing the right private medical insurance in the UK can feel complex. A core policy is your foundation, but optional extras are what truly tailor the cover to your life, family, and health priorities.
A guide to popular add-ons such as dental, optical, overseas cover, and physiotherapy, including coverage limits and situations where these extras are most valuable
Private Medical Insurance (PMI) is designed to give you peace of mind, faster access to treatment, and more choice over your healthcare. While a standard policy provides a robust safety net for significant medical events, optional extras, or "add-ons," allow you to build a comprehensive health plan that covers everyday wellness, from your teeth and eyes to your mental and physical wellbeing.
This guide will demystify the most popular PMI extras, helping you understand what they cover, their typical limits, and when they offer the most value.
Understanding Core Private Medical Insurance First
Before diving into the extras, it's crucial to understand what a standard UK private medical insurance policy typically covers and, just as importantly, what it excludes.
Core PMI is designed for acute conditions. An acute condition is a disease, illness, or injury that is likely to respond quickly to treatment and lead to a full recovery. Think of things like joint replacements, cataract surgery, or treatment for a hernia.
A typical core policy will usually cover:
- In-patient treatment: When you are admitted to a hospital and need an overnight bed.
- Day-patient treatment: When you are admitted to a hospital for a procedure but do not stay overnight.
- Out-patient diagnostics (often with limits): Consultations and tests to find out what's wrong, but surgery or procedures are often excluded unless you have an out-patient add-on.
- Cancer Care: Most core policies offer extensive cancer cover, including chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and surgery, as standard.
The Critical Exclusions: What PMI Doesn't Cover
Understanding the limitations of PMI is key to avoiding surprises. Standard policies will not cover:
- Pre-existing Conditions: Any medical condition you had before your policy start date will be excluded, at least for an initial period (usually two years).
- Chronic Conditions: Long-term illnesses that cannot be cured, only managed, such as diabetes, asthma, or high blood pressure. PMI is for curing acute conditions, not long-term management.
- Emergencies: For a life-threatening situation like a heart attack or stroke, you should always call 999 and use the NHS A&E. PMI is for planned, non-emergency treatment.
- Routine Care: Standard GP visits, routine pregnancy and childbirth, and cosmetic surgery that isn't medically necessary.
Optional extras are designed to fill some of these gaps, particularly for routine care like dental check-ups and physiotherapy.
A Deep Dive into Dental and Optical Cover
For many, dental and optical care are the most frequently used health services. With NHS dentistry facing unprecedented pressure and the cost of eyewear rising, these add-ons are becoming increasingly popular.
Dental Insurance Add-On
This extra helps cover the costs of looking after your teeth, from routine maintenance to unexpected problems. Cover is typically tiered.
What does a dental add-on cover?
- Routine Care: Check-ups, scaling and polishing, and basic X-rays. This is about prevention.
- Restorative Treatment: Fillings, root canals, crowns, and extractions. This is for fixing problems.
- Accidental Damage: Treatment needed to repair teeth damaged in an accident. This often has a higher financial limit.
- Dental Emergencies: Palliative treatment to relieve severe pain.
It's important to check the policy details, as cosmetic treatments like teeth whitening are almost always excluded.
| Coverage Type | Typical Annual Limit (Illustrative) | What It's For |
|---|---|---|
| Routine Care | £150 – £300 | Check-ups, hygiene appointments |
| Restorative Care | £400 – £1,000 | Fillings, crowns, root canals |
| Accidental Damage | £5,000 – £20,000+ | Repairing teeth after an accident |
| Orthodontics | Often excluded or a % contribution | Braces (more common on corporate plans) |
When is Dental Cover Most Valuable?
Recent data from the British Dental Association highlights a crisis in NHS access, with reports in 2024 showing that 9 out of 10 NHS practices were not accepting new adult patients. If you struggle to find an NHS dentist or prefer the service and flexibility of a private practice, this add-on can provide significant value and make private dentistry much more affordable.
Real-Life Example: Maria has a dental add-on with a £600 limit for restorative work. She needs an urgent root canal, which is quoted at £750 privately. Her policy covers £600 of the cost, leaving her to pay just £150, making the treatment immediately accessible.
Optical Insurance Add-On
An optical add-on provides a contribution towards the costs of maintaining your eye health, covering eye tests, and helping with the cost of glasses or contact lenses.
What does an optical add-on cover?
- Eye Tests: Covers the cost of a routine sight test at an optician.
- Glasses & Contact Lenses: Provides a set amount per year towards the cost of new prescription eyewear.
The financial limits are typically modest, often in the range of £150 to £250 per year. It won’t cover the full cost of designer frames but acts as a helpful subsidy.
When is Optical Cover Most Valuable?
This benefit is most useful for individuals and families who all wear glasses or contact lenses. If you have a complex prescription or prefer high-end lenses and frames, the annual contribution can make a noticeable difference to your budget. However, always weigh the extra premium against the benefit, as many high-street opticians offer free eye tests or other deals.
Expanding Your Cover: Therapies and Mental Health Support
Modern health is about more than just major surgery; it's about maintaining mobility, function, and mental resilience. Therapies and mental health add-ons are designed to support your holistic wellbeing.
The Therapies Add-On: Physiotherapy, Osteopathy, and More
Musculoskeletal issues are a leading cause of sickness absence in the UK, with the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reporting they accounted for 22.3 million lost working days in 2022 alone. A therapies add-on gives you fast access to treatment to get you back on your feet.
What therapies are typically covered?
- Physiotherapy: For rehabilitation after injury, managing joint pain, and improving mobility.
- Osteopathy & Chiropractic: For treating and managing back, neck, and other musculoskeletal pain.
- Podiatry/Chiropody: For assessing and treating foot and lower limb problems.
- Acupuncture: Often covered when administered by a qualified medical professional.
- Speech and Language Therapy: For post-stroke recovery or other diagnosed conditions.
Cover is usually defined by a set number of sessions (e.g., up to 8 or 10 sessions per condition, per year) or a total financial limit. Some insurers require a GP referral, while others now offer direct self-referral to a specialist, speeding up the process.
When is Therapies Cover Most Valuable?
- For Active People: If you play sports or have an active hobby, quick access to a physio can mean the difference between a swift recovery and a long lay-off.
- For Office Workers: Long hours at a desk can lead to chronic back and neck pain. Fast access to an osteopath can be invaluable.
- Avoiding NHS Waiting Lists: While the NHS provides excellent therapy services, waiting times can be long. This add-on lets you bypass the queue.
Mental Health Cover: A Vital Addition
While most core PMI policies include some level of mental health support, a dedicated add-on significantly broadens the scope of cover. With NHS mental health services seeing unprecedented demand—over 4.6 million referrals in 2023—private support offers a crucial alternative for timely care.
What does a mental health add-on cover?
- Out-patient Therapies: Access to psychologists and psychotherapists for talking therapies like CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy).
- Psychiatric Consultations: Specialist assessment, diagnosis, and treatment management.
- In-patient/Day-patient Care: Admission to a private psychiatric hospital for intensive treatment of acute mental health conditions.
Important Note: Like other aspects of PMI, this cover is for acute mental health conditions. Chronic, long-term conditions are typically excluded. It is vital to read the policy wording carefully to understand the limits, particularly regarding the number of therapy sessions and any caps on in-patient care.
When is Mental Health Cover Most Valuable?
This add-on is for anyone who wants to proactively manage their mental wellbeing and ensure that if they or a family member face a crisis, expert help is available without delay. It provides choice over the type of therapist and treatment approach, which can be critical for effective recovery.
Navigating the Options: How to Choose What's Right for You
With so many choices, how do you decide which extras to add to your private health cover? The key is to balance the cost of the additional premium against the real-world value it provides to you and your family.
Here’s a step-by-step approach:
-
Assess Your Personal & Family Needs:
- Lifestyle: Are you a keen runner who might need physiotherapy?
- Family History: Is there a history of eye conditions in your family?
- Dependants: Do you have children who wear glasses or may need dental work?
- Work: Does your job involve physical strain or, conversely, long hours sitting down?
-
Review Your Existing Benefits:
- Does your employer offer a health cash plan or other benefits that already cover dental or optical costs? Don't pay twice for the same cover.
-
Check Local NHS Waiting Times:
- A quick search on the NHS website for your local trust can reveal waiting times for services like physiotherapy or talking therapies. If waits are long, an add-on may be a wise investment.
-
Balance Cost vs. Benefit:
- Adding extras will increase your monthly premium. Be realistic about what you can afford and which benefits you are most likely to use.
Here is an illustrative table showing how add-ons can impact a premium. These figures are for demonstration purposes only.
| Policy Level | Estimated Monthly Premium | What's Included |
|---|---|---|
| Core Policy | £50 | In-patient & day-patient care, core cancer cover. |
| Core + Dental & Optical | £65 | As above, plus routine/restorative dental and optical benefit. |
| Core + Therapies | £60 | As above, plus physio, osteo, chiro sessions. |
| Comprehensive Cover | £85+ | All of the above, plus enhanced mental health or travel cover. |
- Speak to an Expert Broker:
- This is where a specialist PMI broker like WeCovr becomes invaluable. We can compare policies from all the leading UK providers—such as Bupa, AXA Health, Aviva, and Vitality—and explain the nuances between their optional extras. Our service is at no cost to you, and we work to find the policy that offers the best value for your specific circumstances.
The WeCovr Advantage: More Than Just Insurance
Choosing WeCovr for your private medical insurance UK needs means you get more than just a policy. As an FCA-authorised broker with high customer satisfaction ratings, we provide a complete service.
- Expert, Impartial Advice: We cut through the jargon to help you compare the market and build the perfect policy.
- Exclusive Benefits: When you take out a PMI or Life Insurance policy with us, you get complimentary access to CalorieHero, our AI-powered calorie and nutrition tracking app to support your wellness goals.
- Multi-Policy Discounts: We can also offer discounts on other insurance products, helping you save money while ensuring you're fully protected.
Our goal is to be your long-term health partner, helping you get the most from your private health cover year after year.
Do I have to add optional extras when I first buy my PMI policy?
Are optional extras like dental or optical cover subject to underwriting?
Can I remove optional extras at a later date to reduce my premium?
How do coverage limits for extras work?
Ready to build a private medical insurance policy that truly fits your life?
Contact WeCovr today for a free, no-obligation quote. Our expert team will help you navigate the options and find the perfect blend of core cover and optional extras for your peace of mind.











