Imagine this scenario: You were sold a health insurance policy promising it would cover all your needs – comprehensive coverage, minimal exclusions, on-time claim settlement, etc.
However, a few years after purchasing the policy, you discovered that it did not meet your expectations when it came time to make a claim. The coverage was insufficient due to a disease-wise sub-limit, the claims process was quite cumbersome, AND there were exclusions that were not explained to you, so you had to pay a portion of your hospital bill out-of-pocket despite having a health insurance policy.

Unfortunately, such a scenario was far too common, which is why the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) mandated health insurance portability about a decade ago.

What is Health Insurance Portability?

Think of health insurance portability like switching your cellphone network provider. Just like how you might want to switch to a new network provider because they offer better coverage, more data, or lower prices, you might want to switch your health insurance to get better benefits, improved service, or a more affordable premium.

Health Insurance portability is nothing but shifting your existing health insurance policy from one insurer to another while keeping the benefits you have earned over the years. But why would you want to do that?

Why Should You Port Your Health Insurance Policy?

Portability allows you to transfer your existing health insurance policy to another insurer without losing the benefits you have earned over time, such as waiting periods and coverage for diseases you may have gotten after purchasing the policy. While this may be one of the most common reasons you may want to port your policy, there are other reasons also:

  • Increased coverage: Your health needs may change over time. Porting allows you to switch to a policy that better suits your current health needs and provides more comprehensive coverage.
  • Better services: More competition leads to better products. Earlier, once you purchase a health insurance policy, insurers may become complacent because you cannot port it to a different insurer. But nowadays, insurers offer good retention benefits such as an excellent no-claim bonus, discounts on renewal, etc. Porting encourages healthy competition among insurers and allows you, as the customer, to choose the best policy in the market that suits your needs.
  • Lower premium cost: You may find a health insurance plan that offers similar features and coverage at a lower premium.
  • Unhappy with the current insurer: Most importantly, if you’re unhappy with your current insurer or dissatisfied with their services, porting allows you to switch to an insurance provider with better metrics, customer service, and a better hospital network.

However, portability doesn’t come without challenges and not all insurers allow you to port into their plans. So, if you plan to port to another health insurance policy, read along to find out the restrictions.

Can You Port Into Any Health Insurance Policy?

While most health insurers allow porting into or out of their policies, there are a few exceptions:

  • Policy Restrictions: Not all health insurance policies allow you to port into them. For example, you cannot port into HDFC ERGO Energy or Aditya Birla Activ Plus. In some cases, you cannot port from one policy into another. For example, you cannot port into Niva Bupa ReAssure 2.0 if you have Niva Bupa Aspire. If you want to port into Aspire, it entirely depends on whether the underwriter allows it or not.
  • Portability Window: Insurers usually open the porting window between 30 and 60 days after the policy renewal. If your porting request does not fall within this window, the insurer may reject it.
  • Insurer’s Discretion: Even if you apply within the porting window, the underwriter at the new insurance company will review your application and decide whether to accept the porting request based on their internal policies.

How Do You Choose the Best Health Insurance Plan to Port Into?

Here are the criteria for you to consider while porting into a new health insurance policy:

What are the Best Health Insurance Policies You Can Port Into in 2024?

The criteria mentioned above are some basic features to consider when purchasing a health insurance policy in 2024. Keeping this in mind, here are some of the top health insurance policies in India that you could consider porting to:

  • HDFC ERGO Optima Secure: Optima Secure is one of HDFC ERGO's top policies. It provides 2X coverage right from day one and includes coverage for AYUSH treatments up to the sum insured. It also allows the choice of any room and covers pre- and post-hospitalization expenses for 60 and 180 days, respectively. No copayments are required, and it even covers consumables. Although some restrictions exist, such as no maternity or international coverage, this is an excellent policy overall.

Drawbacks: One of the few drawbacks of HDFC ERGO policies is that they tend to be more expensive than other insurers.

  • Aditya Birla Activ One: This is Aditya Birla's flagship policy, and it has almost all the features you may require. Some variants of this policy even cover maternity and international treatments with no copayment, no room rent restriction, and high no-claim bonuses. It covers pre-hospitalisation expenses for 90 days and post-hospitalisation expenses for 180 days, along with annual health check-ups, coverage for AYUSH treatments, and more.

Drawbacks: The insurer has yet to meet industry standards with its overall operational efficiency benchmark. However, considering the improving numbers of the compliant volume (as seen in our comprehensive review of Aditya Birla), we are hopeful they will achieve it shortly.

  • Care Supreme: Care Supreme stands out as an affordable and comprehensive insurance policy that you can purchase until you are 99 years old. One of the most unique features of this policy is that it offers coverage to anyone without age as a barrier, provided you don’t have pre-existing conditions or benign PEDs, such as blood pressure, hypothyroidism, or hernia.

This policy does not impose copayments, room rent limits, or disease-wise sub-limits. It also offers coverage for day-care procedures, AYUSH, and domiciliary treatments. Another unique feature of this policy is that it covers air ambulance services up to ₹5 lakhs annually.

Drawbacks: However, the policy is not without drawbacks. It has a higher-than-average complaint ratio and a lengthy four-year waiting period for pre-existing diseases.

  • Niva Bupa ReAssure 2.0: Niva Bupa ReAssure 2.0 has three variants—Bronze, Titanium, and Platinum— with the main differences being the waiting period for pre-existing diseases and the limit for the no-claim bonus (Booster). The Family Floater Option is comprehensive, covering up to six family members, including parents and in-laws, in addition to the usual spouse and children. ReAssure 2.0 also offers extensive coverage with no copayments, disease-wise sub-limits, or room rent restrictions and includes daycare, AYUSH, and domiciliary treatments.

Drawbacks: While the policy boasts a strong network of over 10k + hospitals and a Claim Settlement Ratio (CSR) of 56%, it has a significantly higher complaint ratio than its peers. If you prioritise the policy’s features and are okay with the higher complaint volume, this policy may be an appropriate choice for you.

How to Port to a New Health Insurance Policy?

Now that you’ve selected the best policy for your needs, here’s how you can port into it:

  1. Inform your new insurer that you are interested in porting into one of their policies.
  2. Fill in the proposal and portability form provided by your new insurer.
  3. Keep certain documents handy (claim declaration or no claim declaration and last insurance policy copies) and stay prepared to submit them to the new insurers' underwriting team if required.
  4. The new insurer approaches the IRDAI or your existing insurer to verify specific details, like your claim and medical history, with your last insurer.
  5. Your portability request is either accepted or rejected by the new health insurance company within 15 days of applying.

Things to Keep in Mind While Porting Your Health Insurance Policy

  • Waiting Period: If the base amount of your new health insurance policy is equivalent to the base sum insured + no claim bonus of your previous policy and you have not completed the waiting periods, then the waiting period of the earlier policy is carried forward to the new plan. If you have completed the waiting period, it is not imposed on the new policy.

Suppose you have opted for a sum insured in your new policy that is higher than the previous policy’s sum insured + no-claim bonus. In that case, the waiting periods are imposed on the amount over and above the previous policy’s sum insured + no-claim bonus.

  • Porting Period: You should ensure that you apply for porting when the porting window opens. Depending on the insurer, this window usually opens 30-60 days before your policy renewal date.

Conclusion

Porting your health insurance policy is a great way to enhance your health coverage without losing the benefits you have accrued over time. It allows you to switch to a better policy and receive the best healthcare for your needs.

When you port your policy, feel free to use our free health insurance comparison tool to compare the new policy’s benefits, premiums, and insurer’s reputation to make an informed decision.

If you still need help, you can always contact our IRDAI-certified insurance advisors for honest, spam-free insurance advice.