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Comment by lclarkmichalek | Hacker News Reader

Do people regularly claim on insurance for NHS doctor's appointments? I know I never have. Regarding the smoking etc, I'm pretty sure that health insurance companies ask if you smoke (and yes, double the cost if you say yes), and giving a lying counts as insurance fraud. Due to that, I'm not too sure how relevant the NHS records would be, other than in cases where someone has lied, in which case I'm not too inclined to feel sorry for them.

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I don't think there are any UK health insurance companies which allow you to claim for NHS doctor's appointments.

Presumably if you have a health insurance plan which covers private doctor's appointments, they get a copy of the doctor's notes anyway.

Several insurance companies will pay a cash incentive to use NHS services rather than claiming on your insurance [1]. For example if you need to stay over night in hospital and choose an NHS hospital instead of a private one they will give you £50 or more per night.

[1] https://www.google.co.uk/search?q="NHS+cash+benefits"

Nice - my employers private health care insurance includes this and I had never noticed!

Mind you I wonder when it would ever apply - if you have a non-emergency then you will choose to go to a private hospital, if it is an emergency then you don't have any option but to go to an NHS hospital...

Maybe for people who are covered by private health care but aren't close enough to a private hospital to actually use it?

It's presumably the incentive of not using non-NHS facilities (which the insurance company would have to pay for as part of your cover). £50 to stay in an NHS ward vs a bit more to stay in an en-suite room in a private hospital.

If I had insurance, I know for sure which I would be choosing.

Exactly. If you are trying to hide such information from insurance companies that would help them better understand your risks, that is unfair to insurance companies. That is Insurance fraud.

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