Sir, – Your columnist Dr Muiris Houston confirmed what those of us who have health insurance already know, that the policy offerings of the insurance companies are constructed to make it as difficult as possible for us ordinary customers to compare the merits of the individual offerings (“My health insurer wanted an extra €900 to maintain my plan. Time to look for options”, Health, November 18th).
A major consequence of the comparison difficulty is that the majority of policy holders are inhibited from shopping around for better terms and value and end up staying with the same insurance company.
This difficulty for health insurance policy holders might be termed uncompetitive practice by the insurance companies.
In order to overcome these anti-competitive practices, I am suggesting that the regulator (if there is one) require that all the health insurance companies operating in the Irish market to offer two or three basic similar (in wording and content) health insurance policies that the average customer can trust to cover them for their basic health insurance needs.
Of course the individual insurance companies would then be free to also offer whatever add-ons they wish to provide enhanced cover for the customer who wants a higher standard of insurance cover.
While this proposal is unlikely to result in reduced premiums, the customer would have transparency in relation to their insurance policy. – Yours, etc,
MARTIN CROTTY,
Blackrock,
Co Louth.