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Look Towards A New Future

Aug 17, 2010

UK Private Medical Insurance 2010 now available at ReportsandReports

Dallas, TX: ReportsandReports announce Japanese UK Private Medical Insurance 2010 Market Research Report in its Store.

Browse complete UK Medical Insurance Market Report

This report gives a comprehensive analysis of the UK private medical insurance sector. An exclusive survey provides insight into customer trends and attitudes towards private medical insurance. The report also assesses the current market issues including a detailed look into innovations taking place and how insurers are responding to the changing customer needs throughout these testing times.

Scope

  • Detailed consumer research into individual trends, attitudes and future buyer interest.
  • New market innovations taking place and how providers are adjusting their propositions.
  • Data on the market share of the top groups as well as an analysis of the market spend of the top brands.
  • Forecasts for the market size and subscriber numbers split by individual and group business.

Highlights

As with previous recessions, the most recent downturn appears to have taken its toll on the PMI market. The most recent recession, which began in the second half of 2008, caused a 5% fall in both individual and group subscribers during 2009.

The average premium rates for both group and individual policies continued to grow, by 2.2% and 7.2%, respectively. Rising premium rates have been an important cause for the decline in subscribers in the individual PMI sector in recent years, with potential policyholders put off by these increases.

Average premium rates for both individual and group policies are forecast to continue to rise. This increase will primarily be driven by claims inflation, which means that insurers need to increase their premium rates in order to maintain the same level of margin.

Reasons to Purchase

  • Make informed decisions based on a solid understanding of customer attitudes and purchasing trends.
  • Understand which of your competitors pose the greatest threat and which competitors are gaining or losing market share.
  • Gain insight into the future direction of the sector, including market size and subscriber numbers and the major issues affecting this market.

Table Of Contents

Overview

Catalyst

Summary

Executive Summary

The group PMI market suffered significantly in 2009

Group PMI’s sensitivity to the wider economic climate was evident

Price inflation is a challenge for retaining individual PMI subscribers

Competition is high within the group sector, while employers are scaling back their PMI budget

Individual and group subscribers are falling

Individual and group PMI subscribers shrunk by 5% in 2009

The total number of people covered by PMI decreased by 4.6%

Product innovation will ensure the future survival of PMI

Cancer cash plans and hybrid policies are growing in popularity

Chartis entered the market with a £1m advertising campaign

Chartis spent £1m on marketing its new health insurance proposition

Total PMI GEP will continue to grow throughout the forecasting period

The PMI market is expected to grow in 2010

The group PMI market will continue to grow throughout the forecasting period

Table of Contents

Table of figures

Table of tables

Market Context

Introduction

PMI insurers have had a turbulent year as a result of the downturn

The recession appears to have taken its toll on the PMI market

The group PMI market suffered significantly in 2009

Group PMI’s sensitivity to the wider economic climate was evident

Price inflation is a challenge for retaining individual PMI subscribers

Competition is high within the group sector, while employers are scaling back their PMI budget

Competitive but realistic pricing within the group sector is crucial

UK PMI group business declined by 3% in gross earned premiums

Individual and group subscribers are falling

Individual and group PMI subscribers shrunk by 5% in 2009

The total number of people covered by PMI decreased by 4.6%

Rising claims costs are forcing price increases in order to maintain profits

The increase in group PMI premium rates was below the rate of claims inflation

Insurers are focusing on controlling medical cost inflation

Medical costs are shooting up every year

Insurers have adopted many ways to manage medical inflation

There are three main ways to lower claims costs

Insurers can also try to get a better deal by using hospital networks and managed care

Shared responsibility for claims bills could help manage costs

Attracting new customers via lower premium prices can be achieved by a variety of means

Healthy lifestyle options and targeted benefits can lower PMI rates

Modular policies are designed for customers seeking different levels of cover

Most of the big insurers offer online discounts to entice new customers

Market sentiment is that the NHS funding gap may prompt interest in alternative healthcare options

Market sentiment is that the 1% increase in IPT will not significantly affect PMI uptake

Only 15% of the adult population have a PMI policy

Providers should look to tap all age groups

High earners are the core market for PMI providers

PMI penetration is highest among customers in the A and B socioeconomic bands

25-35 year olds account for the majority of group PMI business

Product innovation will ensure the future survival of PMI

Cancer cash plans and hybrid policies are growing in popularity

Cash plans are becoming an appealing alternative to PMI

Marketing and Distribution

Introduction

Chartis entered the market with a £1m advertising campaign

Chartis spent £1m on marketing its new health insurance proposition

Most providers are using one of two clear media strategies

Simplyhealth is making a big push through advertising in 2010

Simplyhealth now includes the HSA, BCWA, LHF, HealthSure and Totally Active brands

Simplyhealth is successfully building brand awareness in the market

Aggregators are increasing their presence in the PMI market

PMIPartners introduced is new individual PMI aggregator website

MoneySupermarket.com also began comparing PMI policies over the past year

Most individual PMI policies are sold direct

PMI policies are predominantly arranged via an employer or direct with an insurer

A direct strategy is key to winning customers aged over 60

Interest in buying PMI declines with age

Consumers in the mid and upper income bands are the core market for PMI

Competitive Dynamics

Introduction

Bupa, PruHealth and Munich Re gained market share in 2009

Bupa’s market share increased by 0.3 percentage points to 44.7% in 2009

PruHealth’s business grew by over 18%

Munich Re’s market share grew by one percentage point

BUPA, AXA, Aviva, Standard Life and WPA remain the top five competitors

BUPA, AXA and Aviva controlled 81.2% of the market in 2009

Standard Life is the fourth largest PMI provider in the UK

All of the top 10 PMI insurers have a presence in the individual market

National Friendly and Chartis have a different PMI proposition from the mainstream

National Friendly’s PMI proposition combines PMI with cash plan benefits and a deposit account

Individual comprehensive medical cover for adults starts from just £40 per person

The business proposition also includes dental and optical treatments

Chartis Direct’s Health Choice offers a competitive premium rate

Aviva has led the way for innovation through its cheaper and more flexible product range

Aviva’s Healthier Solutions offers higher flexibility

Speedy Diagnostics is another example of a new low-cost PMI policy

Future Decoded

Introduction

Recovery in the PMI market will depend on the health of the economy

The base scenario assumes a slow but steady recovery in the UK economy

Total PMI GEP will continue to grow throughout the forecasting period

The PMI market is expected to grow in 2010

The group sector is expected to see higher growth than the individual market

The group PMI market will continue to grow throughout the forecasting period

The growth of the individual PMI market will still depend on premium prices

Subscriber numbers will fall for individual but increase for group

Premium rates are expected to increase throughout the forecast period

The number of individual subscribers is expected to fall throughout the forecast period

The number of group subscribers is expected to remain static in 2010 and resume growth from 2011

Appendix

Definitions

Further reading

Ask the analyst

Datamonitor consulting

Disclaimer

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