Bupa has promised to give rebates to customers who have had to make payments to the company amid the Covid-19 outbreak.

Most treatments which are deferred will be delivered and funded as soon as possible later on. However, Bupa said it expects there will be an overall reduction.

Urgent care, such as cancer treatment, will continue, but non-urgent hospital procedures are being postponed. Meanwhile, Bupa has expanded its range of health support services and resources that customers can access from home to support them through the Covid-19 crisis. These include telephone and video consultations with nurses, GPs and consultants, as well as specialist help for physiotherapy and mental health, through to chemotherapy at home for cancer patients. 

The digital GP service that Bupa provides in partnership with Babylon is being made available to all insurance customers with a new Covid-19 care assistant feature.

  An online hub has also been developed to provide regular updates and health advice to help customers manage both their physical and emotional wellbeing. 

The company is to commission a third-party review to ensure that what it does is fair and reasonable across its different customer groups.

Alex Perry, chief executive of Bupa UK Insurance, said: “As an organisation without any shareholders our customers come first. At this point, no one can predict the full impact of this national crisis and we do not have all the answers yet. But we want to reassure our customers that we will do the right thing for them, and that any exceptional financial benefit ultimately arising from Covid-19 will be passed back to our health insurance customers. This will be by rebate or other appropriate means.”