Consumer trust in private medical insurance (PMI) has remained broadly stable in Fairer Finance‘s latest Trust in PMI Index, with claims satisfaction continuing its sustained upward trajectory.
The Spring 2026 Index, based on Fairer Finance’s polling of over 10,000 PMI customers, shows trust has edged down by just 0.11 percentage points since Autumn 2025, settling at around 58.5% – broadly in line with levels seen since the Index high of 58.57% in Autumn 2024. The findings suggest the sector has reached a trust plateau, with scores showing little movement over the past 18 months.
Claims satisfaction continues its upward trend, but 46-64 year olds have lowest score
While overall trust has plateaued, claims satisfaction has continued to rise – increasing by 1.23 percentage points in the latest wave to reach 66.08%, and by more than 10 percentage points over the past three years.
Looking more closely at claim satisfaction by age, Fairer Finance found that policyholders aged 46-64 years have the lowest claims satisfaction scores, suggesting there may be some level of shock when they begin to use the policy more.
The data makes clear that good claims experience is one of the strongest drivers of trust in the sector. Customers who have made a claim in the last three years record trust scores almost 12 percentage points higher than those who have not. When a product delivers at the point it matters most, trust follows.
Looking at individual brands, Aviva recorded the highest trust score among customers who have made a recent claim (69.34%). AXA Health showed the largest gap between claimants and non-claimants, with trust scores for those who have claimed running more than 15 percentage points higher. Saga was the only provider in the market where this gap moved in the opposite direction.
Value for money and trust
Fairer Finance also tracks customer satisfaction with perceived value for money. Scores have risen from 44.22% in Autumn 2023 to 47.2% in Spring 2026, but the latest wave is the first to record a dip – a potential signal as to why trust levels have stagnated.
Value for money scores decline steadily with age. The gap between the youngest and oldest consumer groups is almost 19 percentage points – from 56.5% among 18–30s to just 37.6% among the over-65s – likely reflecting the impact of rising premiums on older policyholders.
Value for money and trust show a correlation of around 58%, indicating that perceptions of value play a meaningful role alongside claims experience in shaping overall confidence in the market. If customers feel premiums are rising faster than benefits, improvements in claims handling alone may not be sufficient to lift trust.
Trust by brand
Freedom Health Insurance and WPA continue to lead the market on trust. Freedom held the highest trust score in the Spring 2026 wave despite a fall of 4.36 percentage points from Autumn 2025. Vitality recorded the largest increase in trust of any provider, with scores rising 2.3 percentage points.
James Daley, managing director of consumer group Fairer Finance, said: “The sustained rise in claims satisfaction is genuinely encouraging – particularly at a time when the sector has been growing. However, a deeper look at the data shows that claims satisfaction falls markedly among customers in the 46-64 age bracket – with many not testing the limitations of their policies until they get more complex medical problems in mid-life.
Private medical insurers still have work to do to ensure that customers understand exactly what is and isn’t covered – and also have a clearer idea of how premiums will rise as they reach the time in their life where they’re most likely to need to claim.”
Fairer Finance launched its PMI product ratings in 2023, which are designed to help consumers choose a good quality product. Fairer Finance awards a 5-star rating to the products with a set of features that most customers will need and expect. It sets a high bar, so the ratings have real value – no more than 15% are awarded 5-star ratings at the start of each year, and often far fewer.
For more information about Fairer Finance and to read more about its Customer Experience and Product Ratings, visit https://www.fairerfinance.com/.
