Money For Nothing: How To Land The Best Deals On Your Insurances, Cards, Super, Tax And More

Week 3: Health check your health insurance

This one is a bit more complex, but there are potentially hundreds of dollars in savings to be made by gritting your teeth and getting on with it. According to a June 2011 comparison report by the Australian Consumers Association, people with family cover could, by shopping around, save:

• $559 to $1529 per annum on top hospital cover with no excess

• up to $1320 per annum on top extras.

So let’s do it.

From a low of about 30 per cent in 1997 to 45 per cent today, membership of private health funds has been steadily increasing, thanks largely to some carrots and sticks that the government has introduced. These include:

• The Medicare levy surcharge. In 1997 the government introduced the Medicare ...