Health Insurance Portability – How to Transfer Health Insurance Policy?

What is Health Insurance Portability?

Health Insurance Portability allows you to transfer your existing Health Insurance Policy to a new Health Insurance Company without losing accrued benefits, such as Waiting Periods and No-Claim Bonus. This enables the Policyholder to Insurance Company while maintaining his Health Insurance Policy’s Continuity and Coverage.

Health Insurance Policies are typically ported at the time of renewal, allowing the Policyholder to retain renewal benefits from existing Health Insurance Plan when moving to a new one. This includes retaining the no-claim bonus earned over claim-free years and any reduction in waiting periods.

TIP: TIP: With the Health Insurance Portability feature, you can even switch from a Group Health Insurance Policy to an individual plan.

Why do you need to Port your Health Insurance Policy?

As one progresses through life, health insurance needs may change. Perhaps, the current Health Insurance Plan no longer meets the Policyholder’s requirements, or he is dissatisfied with the service provided by the existing Insurance Company. Health Insurance Portability gives the flexibility to shift to a Health Insurance Plan that better suits the needs of the Policyholder without sacrificing the benefits accumulated over the years. Ideally, the Insured should consider porting his Health Insurance Plan under the following conditions:

1. Seeking Better Coverage: A Policyholder may want to explore Policies with better coverages or more benefits. Sometimes, a Health Insurance Company may discontinue the Policyholder’s current Health Insurance Plan and ask the Policyholder to shift to another plan with lesser benefits. In such cases, the Policyholder should consider Porting to a new Health Insurance Plan that better fits his requirements.
2. Seeking Better Premiums: In some cases, the Health Insurance Company may increase the Policy Premiums quite substantially, making it unaffordable for the Policyholder. In such cases, the Policyholder should consider switching to a new Health Insurance Plan with more affordable premiums.
3. Unhappy with the Health Insurance Company: Sometimes, a Policyholder has an unpleasant experience with the Insurance Company with regards to servicing of the Health Insurance Policy. Maybe the Insurance Company took substantial time to settle a claim or rejected an Insurance Claim unnecessarily. In such cases, a Policyholder should port his Health Insurance Policy.
4. Changing Jobs or Losing Group Insurance: Sometimes, a Policyholder may be covered under his company’s Group Health Insurance Policy and on changing or losing his job, the Policyholder loses access to Health Insurance Coverage. In such cases, a Policyholder might port his Corporate Health Insurance Policy to an Individual Health Insurance Policy while retaining all benefits. 0

How to Port Health Insurance Policy?

The Policyholder needs to follow the below mentioned steps to port his Health Insurance Policy:

1. Send a Health Insurance Policy porting request to the Insurance Company you want to switch to at least 45 days before the existing Health Insurance Policy is due for renewal.
2. The new Health Insurance Company provides the necessary proposal and portability forms, along with details of the various Health Insurance Plans available.
3. The Policyholder chooses the Health Insurance Plan he wishes to port to and submits the duly filled proposal and portability forms to the new Insurance Company.
4. The new Insurer approaches the previous Insurer to verify details like the Policyholder’s claim history and medical records.
5. After receiving all the information, the new Insurer decides on accepting or rejecting the portability request within 15 days.

Health Insurance Portability Rules and Guidelines

IRDAI has specified certain rules for Health Insurance Portability as listed below:

1. An Individual covered under an Indemnity based Individual or a Family Floater Health Insurance Policy has an option to migrate to Individual or a Family Floater Policy or to a Group Health Insurance Policy. The option to migrate the Policy is an explicit option which can be exercised by the Policyholder
2. Policyholders can port their Health Insurance Policy from any General Insurance or Standalone Health Insurance Company to any General Insurance or Standalone Health Insurance Company. Policyholder can also port to a different Health Insurance Plan of the same Insurance Company.
3. Policyholders receive continuity benefits on the Waiting Period for Pre-Existing Diseases under the new Health Insurance Policy. The Policyholder is subject to only the residual Waiting Period on migration to the new Health Insurance Policy.
4. Policyholders receive continuity benefits with respect to Waiting Period for Pre-Existing Diseases to the extent of Sum Insured and Cumulative Bonus under the previous Insurance Policy. Policyholder can opt for higher Sum Insured under the new Health Insurance Policy. However, he will be subject to a fresh Waiting Period for Pre-Existing Diseases to the extent of Increased Sum Insured.
5. A Health Insurance Policy can be ported only at the time of Policy renewal. The Policyholder must intimate the Insurance Company of his decision to port the Health Insurance Policy 45 days before the renewal date of the previous Health Insurance Policy
6. No charges are applicable for porting the Health Insurance Policy.
7. The Premiums for the new Health Insurance Policy will be as per the tariff rate of the new Health Insurance Plan

Benefits of Porting a Health Insurance Plan

1. Continuity Benefits for No-Claim Bonus: When the Policyholder ports his Health Insurance Policy, the previous policy’s No-Claim Bonus is carried over to the new plan, ensuring continuity of coverage.
2. No Fresh Waiting Period: When the Policyholder ports his Health Insurance Policy, he will not have to undergo a Fresh Waiting Period for Pre-Existing Diseases. The Insured receives continuity benefit when he ports his Policy and he is subject to only the residual Waiting Period which is left under the Previous Health Insurance Policy.
3. Increased Options: Porting allows the Insured to explore a wider range of Health Insurance Plans from different Insurers enabling them to opt for a Plan where the coverage best fits his requirements and budget.
4. Better Services: If a Policyholder is not satisfied with the services of his current Health Insurance Company, he can switch to another Insurer offering better services.

Things to remember before Porting a Health Insurance Policy

Policyholders should keep the following things in mind when Porting a Health Insurance Policy:

1. Health Insurance Policies can only be ported at the time of Policy Renewal
2. Policyholders need to apply for porting at least 45 days before the renewal date
3. When porting a Health Insurance Policy, the Waiting Periods from your previous plan will be carried over to the new Policy.
4. The new Health Insurance Company conducts fresh medical underwriting when porting a Health Insurance Policy. The Policyholder must disclose complete medical history when applying for porting his Health Insurance Policy by submitting a new proposal form with the required medical details.
5. A Policyholder must share the existing Health Insurance Policy Details with the new Insurance Company to facilitate the Porting process. The Ported policy starts from the due date of the old Health Insurance Policy
6. If the new Health Insurance Company denies the Porting proposal due to existing medical conditions, the Policyholder can continue with the current Policy.
7. The Premiums for the new Health Insurance Policy will be as per the tariff rate of the new Health Insurance Plan

When can the Porting of a Health Insurance Policy be denied?

There are a few scenarios where the request to port a Health Insurance Policy can be denied:

1. Pre-Existing Conditions: If the Policyholder has any Pre-Existing Conditions that were covered by the previous Health Insurance Plan, the new Insurer may refuse to port the Policy.
2. Lapsed Policy: If the previous Health Insurance Policy has lapsed for more than 30 days, the new Health Insurance Company will reject to port the Policy.
3. Claim History: Insurers may deny the Porting Proposal if the Policyholder has a history of frequent claims or if the claims made under your previous Policy exceed a certain limit.

It is important to remember that while the Policyholder has an explicit option to port the Health Insurance Policy, the Porting request is not binding on the Health Insurance Company. The Insurance Company can either accept or reject the Porting request.

What are the Documents Required for Porting a Health Insurance Policy?

The documents required for porting a Health Insurance Policy may vary across Insurers, but typically include the following:

1. Completed Porting Request Form
2. Copy of last 3 years’ Health Insurance Policy
3. Proof of Identity (Copy of your PAN Card/Aadhaar Card)
4. Proof of Address (Copy of Utility Bill/Passport)
5. Medical records or reports, if applicable

Port Your Existing Health Insurance Policy with Qian!

Qian is a licensed Insurance Broker with tie-ups with leading Insurance Companies. For more details on porting a Health Insurance Policy, you can reach out to Qian via email at insurance@qian.co.in or call us on 022-35134695. We would be glad to assist you.