Apart from the ones already mentioned (reduced waiting times, private rooms, and treatments unavailable on the NHS) the key benefits are the ability to get specialist referrals, meaning you can ask your GP to refer you to an expert to get a second opinion or specialist help, getting the scans you want, when you want, choosing your surgeon or hospital, and comprehensive access to therapies.

Private Medical Insurance providers are also embracing technology. As an example, some schemes include remote access to a GP, meaning you can actually see a GP via a video link on your phone 24-7, choose your GP by gender and language and even order repeat prescriptions, without the usual three week wait to get an appointment at your GP surgery.

Of course the primary benefit is that having access to specialist treatment from an expert at a location of your choosing with a private room can help aid the recovery process.

Businesses have also found that it is an essential tool in the recruitment and retention of staff as well as helping employees return to work sooner following mental health illness, or injury.

It depends on the exact policy you take out. Usually PMI will exclude any pre-existing conditions and will also have general exclusions such as alcohol and/or drug abuse. There are some exceptions to this rule, however.

In some cases, for groups with a minimum of ten members, you can have your medical history disregarded, although this is not common. More likely for inclusion is cases when there has been no reoccurrence of the condition for a few years. For example, if you’ve had problems with your back in the past – but had no issues for two years you may find this is covered by your insurer.

Therapies, including physiotherapy, chiropody, and acupuncture to name a few, are usually core benefits of PMI. Dental and optical cover are generally not included as standard but policies can be tailored to include such benefits to best suit your needs.

Absolutely not! Long gone are the days when you need to have a 50-point check-up before you can get healthcare. There are a couple of ways in which the insurer will work with you to get you covered. Completing a detailed application form (known as ‘full medical underwriting’) will outline your exclusions at inception and will stand for the life of the policy or through a ‘moratorium’. A moratorium excludes all pre-existing conditions from the last five years for a set period, (usually two years) but can then include them after that.

That’s a difficult question to answer as there are many factors that are taken into account when preparing a quote such as age, address, and the cover options you choose. But the average cost, in the UK, is less than £4 a day. Less than the price of a coffee and cake!

It’s important to get to know the claims process. You can’t just assume you’re covered. When you purchase PMI you will receive your policy certificate outlining your cover and any limitations set out as well as a guide on how to make a claim – but the simplest thing to remember is to speak to a GP first and call the appropriate claims helpline for authorisation before you receive any treatment.