In this article, we explain the different health insurance policies available to buy with Freedom Health Ltd and provide a detailed breakdown of its flagship health cover plan, Freedom Elite. We explain how Freedom health insurance works, what is covered, what isn't covered and how much it costs. We also explain how to get £100 cashback when you buy health insurance.
About Freedom Health
Freedom Health Insurance was founded in 2003 and provides health insurance to UK-based customers while Freedom Worldwide International Health Insurance provides health coverage to those who work or live abroad. As a small, family run business, Freedom Health Insurance looks to provide a personalised and tailored health insurance solution to its customers.
Being a relatively small health insurance provider means that Freedom Health Insurance focuses on delivering an excellent customer experience that puts service and claims handling at the forefront of its proposition and in 2023 Freedom Health Insurance received Feefo's Gold Trusted Service Award as a result of this.
What is Freedom Health insurance?
Freedom Health Insurance is a provider of private medical insurance plans available to individuals, families and businesses covering a range of medical needs as well as cash benefits when you use the NHS. Freedom's flagship health insurance policy is Freedom Elite which, in addition to its core cover, allows customers to pick and choose from a range of optional benefits tailoring the cover to suit their needs and budgets.
You can also choose between Freedom Elite, Freedom Essentials and Freedom Your Choice as well as a number of international and UK Worldwide cover options. The health cover provided by Freedom can be arranged by individuals, couples, families and businesses.
Freedom has been given a 4-star Defaqto rating for its Elite Health Plan and a 2-star Defaqto rating for its Essentials Health Plan. Both these plans can be bought online but it can also be useful to speak with a specialist health insurance broker* if you would prefer to compare health insurance policies and what they cost from across the health insurance market.
If you are comparing health insurance policies, you will find useful information in our reviews of health insurance provided by Bupa, Vitality, Aviva, Exeter and AXA Health.
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Freedom health insurance – Key features
Key benefits of Freedom health insurance plans include:
- Extensive hospital list
- 2-Year fixed premium guarantee
- No location-based pricing
- Cash benefit option with Freedom Essentials
- Optional mental health cover
- GP24 provides 24/7 Virtual GP service included with each plan
- Pregnancy complications covered under the Freedom Elite and Freedom Essential plans
- You only pay for one child and then every subsequent child can be added to your policy free of charge
Freedom health insurance plans
Freedom Health Ltd offers its customers a choice of 4 different health insurance plans including:
- Freedom Elite - a reasonably comprehensive health insurance plan that is comparable to other conventional private medical insurance plans
- Freedom Essentials - a cash benefit health insurance that provides you with cash towards self-pay medical treatment
- Freedom Your Choice - a limited plan that offers Gold, Platinum and Diamond tiers of cover to suit your budget
- Freedom Worldwide - four worldwide health insurance options that include Freedom Worldwide UK for people living or working abroad
How does Freedom health insurance work?
If you request a quote for personal private medical insurance with Freedom, you will be offered prices based on Freedom Essentials and Freedom Elite. We explain how each of these plans work below.
Freedom Essentials
Freedom Essentials health insurance pays the policyholder a fixed cash benefit which can help towards the cost of planned medical treatment for an acute condition. It is the cheaper of the two main health insurance policies provided by Freedom Health Ltd and as you may expect, provides limited benefits compared with the Freedom Elite plan.
This health insurance option does not pay the consultant or hospital treating you, directly - instead, it will pay you a lump sum of money in line with the consultation, treatment or tests that you need which you can use as you see fit towards your medical costs.
Importantly, the cash benefit may not cover the full costs of your medical treatment and if you choose to have treatment on the NHS the cash benefit could be as little as half of the overall cost of your medical treatment. On the other hand, the cash benefit is paid to you even if you are treated by the NHS and could be used for associated costs.
Freedom Elite
Freedom Elite health insurance is the most comprehensive health insurance plan offered by Freedom Health Ltd. It provides a good level of core cover that comes as standard and includes inpatient and day patient cover at a private hospital as well cover for the cost of specialist consultations, diagnostic tests, treatment of cancer (including radiotherapy and chemotherapy) and cash benefits for day or overnight stays in an NHS hospital. Of all the Freedom Health plan options, the Freedom Elite option is the one that is closest to most conventional health insurance plans. Like other similar private medical insurance plans, the policy offers a number of optional benefits that can be included at an extra charge such as cover for alternative therapies, dental and optical cover as well as cover for the cost of private GPs.
The article focuses on the Freedom Elite health insurance plan which provides the most comprehensive health cover of all the options.
Freedom Elite key features summary
| Benefit | Included as standard | How it works |
| Cost of inpatient and day patient treatment |  |
Full costs are covered as long as treatment is carried out at a hospital within the cover |
| Specialist fees | |
Full costs are covered as long as the charges are in line with Freedom's schedule of procedures |
| Cancer treatment costs | |
Investigations excluding MRI, PET and CT scans are not covered unless you include outpatient cover within your policy |
| Pregnancy complications | |
Cover for miscarriage, stillbirth, ectopic pregnancy, molar pregnancy, post-partum haemorrhage, retained placenta and any complications arising from these |
| Maternity cash benefit | |
Pays £150 upon birth as long as policy commenced 10 months prior |
| Home nursing | |
Full costs are covered for up to 13 weeks |
| Private road ambulance | |
For planned private ambulance use |
| NHS cash benefit | |
Up to £200 for each night or £100 for each day spent in hospital |
| MRI, CT & PET scans referred by a medical specialist | |
Scans referred by a GP covered up to £750 if the outpatient cover is selected |
| Cancer cover | |
Excludes experimental, unproven, unlicensed and preventative treatment as well as take-home drugs and medication. |
Where indicated, all benefits are subject to the policyholder paying the agreed excess amount once per cover period and per person covered. Optional benefits come at an extra cost
How does Freedom Elite cancer cover work?
Freedom Elite cancer cover is part of its core cover that is included as standard when you buy this plan but outpatient consultations are only covered if you have chosen the optional outpatient cover.
| Freedom Elite cancer cover | Details |
|---|---|
| Specialist consultations | Consultations with cancer specialists at a time that suits you |
| Cancer diagnosis | Investigation into and diagnosis of the initial symptoms of cancer (when option outpatient treatment is chosen) |
| Ongoing monitoring of health | You’ll receive financial cover for the continued monitoring of your health if cancer is diagnosed for as long as you have the policy with us |
| Surgical treatment | Covered in full |
| Chemotherapy/radiotherapy | Chemo or radiotherapy treatment to destroy cancer cells – covered in full |
| Genetic testing | Genetic tests designed to help the oncologist decide whether chemotherapy treatment is the most appropriate form of medical treatment |
| Targeted therapies | Therapies designed to stimulate the immune system, block the growth and spread of cancer cells or to overcome side effects of treatment |
| Hormonal therapies | Hormonal therapies used in the active treatment of cancer |
| Medical treatment | Medical treatment to combat the side effects of chemotherapy and radiotherapy |
| Bone-strengthening drugs (bisphosphonates) | Drugs that can, in certain situations, protect bones against some effects of cancer, such as pain and weakness |
| Reconstructive surgery | Surgery completed after cancer treatment to restore function or appearance |
| Stem cell therapy and bone marrow transplants | One complete procedure covered in full |
| Post-surgery services | (Such as a consultation with a dietician, a stoma nurse or a wig needed because of hair loss due to cancer treatment) |
| Advanced cancer | Full cover for primary and secondary cancers, if cancer spreads during treatment |
| Palliative care | This is sometimes called end-of-life care. It’s intended to support the patient, control the symptoms of cancer and relieve pain and other symptoms when active cancer treatment is no longer effective |
Freedom Elite optional benefits summary
In addition to the core cover provided under Freedom's Elite health insurance plan, you can select a number of additional benefits to include within your cover at an extra cost. These include:
Outpatient Cover
Outpatient cover will pay for consultations, tests, investigations and any other medical treatment you have as an outpatient. You can choose to have:
- No outpatient cover - you won't be able to claim for any outpatient consultations, investigations, tests or treatment
- Outpatient cover up to £1,500 - you can claim up to £1,500 of outpatient costs per period of cover
- Full outpatient cover - all outpatient costs are covered
Alternative therapies
You can include up to six sessions per period of cover for the following therapies by selecting to pay for the alternative therapies option:
- Acupuncture
- Osteopathy
- Chiropathy
- Podiatry
- Homoeopathy
Mental health cover
By adding mental health cover to your Freedom Elite plan you will get:
- Up to £2,000 outpatient treatment
- Up to 45 days of inpatient and day patient treatment
Dental, optical and private GP costs
This option allows the policyholder to claim:
- Routine dental costs up to £300
- Accidental dental injury treatment costs up to £600
- Cost of eye tests and prescription glasses and contact lenses if your sight has changed up to £200
- Private GP fees up to £300
Freedom Elite hospital lists
Freedom Elite health insurance will cover medical care accessed in over 240 private hospitals in the UK and the Channel Islands. The Freedom Elite hospital list extends to private hospitals in the BMI Healthcare, Nuffield Health, Ramsay Healthcare, Circle Health Group and Spire Healthcare networks as well as a number of independent hospitals and clinics. Where authorised, Freedom customers can also be treated in an NHS hospital.
Although a number of hospitals in London are included within Freedom's hospital list, there are some that are excluded and can be added to your health cover plan at an extra cost. You will have to pay for the London Plus hospital boost to access any HCA hospitals in London and elsewhere in the UK.
What isn't covered by the Freedom Elite health insurance policy?
Health insurance rarely covers you for pre-existing, chronic or emergency medical treatment and in this respect, Freedom Elite is no different. Alongside these common exclusions and those that may be specified in your particular policy details, Freedom Elite does not cover you for:
- AIDS / HIV
- Alcohol and substance abuse and addiction
- Allergies
- Appliances, devices, drugs and dressings
- Contraception and birth control
- Cosmetic and reconstructive treatment
- Congenital abnormalities and birth defects
- Dental treatment (unless you buy the optional dental cover)
- Experimental treatment
- Failure to follow medical advice
- Failure to take reasonable care to prevent disease, illness or injury
- Hazardous and dangerous activities
- Mental health care (unless you buy the optional mental health care cover)
- Obesity and weight loss surgery
- Pregnancy and childbirth (except for complications specified in the policy)
- Professional sports
- Screening, monitoring and preventative treatment
- Transplants
- Varicose veins (except under cover conditions)
- Warts and verrucae
How much does Freedom's health insurance cost?
The cost of Freedom Health insurance is based on your age, whether you decide to add additional cover to the core cover and whether you wish to add any family members to your health cover policy. Importantly, your location does not impact the premium you pay, unlike most other health insurance providers.
Below we have shown the cost of Freedom Elite health insurance monthly and annually if you are 30, 40 or 50 years old. We have outlined the price of individual cover, cover with a partner of the same age as well as cover for you, your partner and a child. The quotes assume that your voluntary excess is £250 and you have selected outpatient cover up to £1,500 and no other optional benefits.
Cost of Freedom Elite for 1 person
| Persons covered and age | Monthly premium | Annual premium |
| 1 Person - 30 years old | £53.86 | £607.54 |
| 1 Person - 40 years old | £67.84 | £765.24 |
| 1 Person - 50 years old | £94.92 | £1,070.70 |
Cost of Freedom Elite for 2 people
| Persons covered and age | Monthly premium | Annual premium |
| 2 people - 30 years old | £107.72 | £1,215.08 |
| 2 people - 40 years old | £135.68 | £1,530.47 |
| 2 people - 50 years old | £189.84 | £2,141.40 |
Cost of Freedom Elite for 1 person and a child
| Persons covered and age | Monthly premium | Annual premium |
| 1 Person - 30 years old + child aged 5 | £80.80 | £911.42 |
| 1 Person - 40 years old + child aged 10 | £101.76 | £1,147.85 |
| 1 Person - 50 years old + child aged 15 | £142.39 | £1,606.16 |
Cost of Freedom Elite for 2 people and a child
| Persons covered and age | Monthly premium | Annual premium |
| 2 people - 30 years old + child aged 5 | £134.66 | £1,518.96 |
| 2 people - 40 years old + child aged 10 | £169.60 | £1,913.09 |
| 2 people - 50 years old + child aged 15 | £237.71 | £2,676.86 |
Freedom's Guaranteed premium for 2 years
Unlike other insurers, Freedom will not change the cost of your health insurance for the first 2 years after you start your policy even if you make a claim in the first year. Most other health insurance policies are repriced at every annual renewal and a claim will usually increase the cost of your health cover in the following year.
How to reduce the cost of Freedom Health Insurance
To reduce the cost of your health insurance, you can tailor your health cover to include only those optional benefits that you want and consider the amount that you would be willing to pay towards a health claim before the insurer covers the rest of the cost.
These are the main ways in which you can tailor your cover to reduce your monthly health insurance premium:
- Choose a higher excess amount - remember this is the amount you will need to pay in the event of a claim
- Select only those optional benefits you think you will need
- Pay your premium annually for a 6% discount
Getting value for money is key and it can be difficult to decipher when it is worth paying more for certain benefits. So, we suggest you speak with an independent health insurance specialist* to take you through various health insurance options available from across the market - they will compare health insurance costs and the cover offered so that you can choose the best health insurance solution for you and your family.
Freedom health insurance excess
A policy excess is the amount of money that you will pay towards the health care costs that arise if you make a claim. The remainder of the cost is covered by the insurer.
Freedom offers customers a choice of excess levels that apply to their policy once per year. You only have to pay the excess once in a policy year even if you claim more than once.
You can choose between £0 and £1,000, the larger your excess, the cheaper your premium for your health insurance. Here are Freedom Health Insurance’s excess options and the percentage saving applied to your payment for each:
- £0 - 0% premium discount
- £100 - 10% premium discount
- £250 - 15% premium discount
- £500 - 22.5% premium discount
- £1,000 - 35% premium discount
The Freedom Elite plan is the most expensive plan within Freedom's choice of health insurance policies so you may wish to compare the cost of Freedom Essentials and Freedom Your Choice as these are likely to reduce your costs. The cheaper Freedom health plans may meet your needs but it would be useful to discuss your options with a specialist health insurance broker to weigh up your needs and budget before deciding to opt for private medical insurance that could fall short of your expectations.
Pros and cons of Freedom Elite health insurance
Pros
- 2-year guaranteed fixed premium even if you claim in the first year
- No location-based pricing is good for those in expensive parts of the UK
- An extensive list of hospitals covered as standard
- Additional children can be added at no extra cost
Cons
- No basic mental health support unless mental health cover is chosen
- Can be expensive when compared with similar health insurance plans
- GP referred scans not covered within the standard cover
Is Freedom health insurance any good?
Freedom Health Insurance is awarded 3.2 out of 5 stars based on 19 customer experiences on independent customer review site, Trustpilot. However, it's worth pointing out that the ranking of Freedom Health Insurance is arguably based on a very small number of reviews. Many of the negative reviews report delayed and declined claims and Freedom Health Insurance has responded to all of these citing to explain that some delays are due to delayed GP reports and declines may be due to the fact that the claimed condition preceded the start of the policy.
Where can I buy the cheapest Freedom health insurance policy?
Although you can get a quote for health insurance directly with Freedom, the customer service team are unable to provide you with advice. They are not able to guide you to the best options of cover for your needs and will tell you that you must make your own decisions based on the information that they share with you. However, you can get an indication of the cost Freedom health insurance online.
When buying complex insurance such as health insurance, it is wise to discuss your options with an independent health insurance specialist who will provide you with unbiased guidance around the advantages and disadvantages of choosing Freedom health insurance. You should ensure that the broker you speak with is independent and able to search the whole market so that they are able to present alternative options for you to compare the costs and cover.
At Money to the Masses, we have vetted the specialist health insurance service provided by an award-winning whole-of-market health insurance broker*. You can arrange a call with one of its health insurance advisers who will take the time to understand your needs, priorities and budget to provide tailored solutions for you to consider. There is no charge for the service you receive and you are under no obligation to buy a health insurance policy when you use this service. You will, however, receive £100 cashback if you choose to buy a health insurance policy - offer ends 31st July 2024.
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