Insurer disputes Quinn Healthcare ‘best value’ claim

A 30% reduction in rates on one of its most popular schemes will shave €77 off the cost of insuring a child or student with Quinn Healthcare, the private health insurer claimed.

The price reduction, which applies to its Essential Plus (Excess) (EPE) scheme, will cut €154 off the cost of insurance for a family of two adults and two children. Yesterday Quinn Healthcare said this would make its EPE scheme the “lowest priced comparable scheme on the market”.

“For example, Quinn Healthcare is €137 cheaper than Aviva and €114.75 cheaper than VHI when insuring a student under a comparable scheme,” a statement from the company said.

However the VHI claimed its equivalent plan (One Plus Plan) was cheaper by €102 for a family of two children and two adults.

In a statement, the VHI said Quinn had based their comparison “on Plan B Excess Parents and Kids which was introduced last year, but have chosen to ignore VHI’s latest low cost excess offering, One Plus Plan, which was launched brand new to the market from March 2010”.

The VHI also said because it does not charge for fourth and subsequent children, “large families on Plan B Excess Parents & Kids are still cheaper than Quinn Essential Plus”.

The VHI, which recorded operating losses of more than €40 million in its annual report for 2009, was in turn criticised by rivals Aviva who said “careful communication” of its operating loss “ignores the fact that VHI management continues to deliberately incur losses in an attempt to preserve market share at a very high cost to the Irish taxpayer”.

A statement from Aviva said despite the VHI’s efforts, “it continues to lose customers by the hundred thousand”.

Last year, the VHI lost 120,000 customers.

Quinn Healthcare claimed it was in “a very strong position with 500,000 customers” despite the appointment in March of an administrator to run the business.