Short answer: Acute, curable conditions that arise after you join: private specialist consultations, diagnostic tests and scans, surgery, hospital charges and eligible cancer treatment, plus increasingly rich extras — digital GPs, mental health sessions, physiotherapy. The defining word is 'acute': conditions likely to respond quickly to treatment and return you to health (The Exeter's policy definition, July 2026).
For who: first-time buyers decoding what the premium actually buys.
Reviewed by: Ben Darke, PMI Experts · Last updated: 2026-07-17
Reviewed by: Ben Darke, PMI Experts · Last updated: 2026-07-17
Key facts
| Core cover everywhere | In-patient/day-patient treatment, surgery, hospital charges, diagnostics (verified across nine providers, July 2026) |
| Scans | MRI/CT/PET usually paid in full outside outpatient caps (Bupa, Vitality, WPA, The Exeter — July 2026) |
| Cancer | Standard at Aviva/Vitality/The Exeter/Bupa (option); optional extra at WPA; absent from Freedom Essentials and Benenden |
| Mental health | 8 sessions standard at Vitality; £2,000 outpatient standard at Aviva; add-ons elsewhere |
| Digital GP | Included by all nine providers in some form (July 2026) |
| Typical adjustable parts | Outpatient allowance (£500–unlimited), excess (£0–£5,000), hospital list, therapies, dental/optical cashback |
Sources
Provider policy documents and IPIDs: Bupa (Jan 2026), Aviva (2024–25), AXA Health, Vitality, WPA (March 2026), The Exeter, Freedom (April 2025), National Friendly (Aug 2025), Benenden (July 2025) — all verified July 2026.