When you have an appointment with your GP or other health professional, inform them that you have private medical insurance and ask them for a referral to Benenden Hospital.

 You may have already chosen the Consultant you wish to see. If you let your GP know this, they can add it to the referral letter, along with details of your recommended treatment.

Following your visit to your GP, call your insurer to activate your insurance, making sure you have your referral details to hand. It’s advisable to ask your insurance company the following questions:

• Is my specific condition covered?
• Is each stage of my treatment covered?
• Am I covered for the planned treatment at Benenden Hospital, including my first outpatient appointment?
• Does my insurance company recognise the Consultant I've chosen?
• Is there an excess payable on my policy?

Once you have a GP referral, and have contacted your insurance company for authorisation, you can book your appointment with us by calling our Private Patient Team on 01580 363158.

What we’ll need from you

Before admission, we’ll write to you asking for the following details:

• Your claim form, if it is already with your Consultant, GP or insurance company, just let us know
• The name of your insurer
• Your membership or policy number
• Confirmation of eligibility such as a pre-authorisation or claim number (some insurers give a different reference to the treatment, and authorisation of a consultation does not necessarily mean that they have authorised the treatment that results)
• Any excess applying to your policy (most insurers will ask you to pay that direct to us)

Please bring these details to your first appointment. It’s vital that we have this information before admission because insurers may refuse to make a payment, they haven’t pre-authorised. In that case, you’d be liable for the entire bill.