Dental insurance UK and private health insurance

Dental insurance helps pay for dental treatment. With most policies you pay your dentist first, then claim money back up to set limits. Cover can include check-ups, hygiene visits, fillings, crowns and dental accidents. It is sold as standalone insurance and as an optional benefit on some private health insurance policies.

There are other routes too. Dental payment plans, such as those from Denplan, spread the cost of agreed care through a monthly fee arranged with your dental practice. Health cash plans give money back on everyday costs, including dental treatment.

Some standalone policies only pay towards NHS treatment, while others cover private treatment as well. Limits, waiting periods and exclusions vary, so it is worth reading the detail before you choose.

Partly. Most health insurers cover surgical dental procedures carried out in hospital as standard, but routine dentistry such as check-ups and fillings is usually only covered if you add a dental option or your policy includes a dental benefit. What is included varies noticeably between insurers.

As examples at the time of writing, Bupa says everyone on its health insurance can have 1 appointment a year at a Bupa Dental Care practice, plus a £300 allowance each towards restorative treatment such as fillings or crowns. Vitality's optical, dental and hearing option covers emergency dental care, accidents and dental injury at 100%, up to £2,500 per claim, for eligible treatment in the UK.

These benefits can change, so we confirm the current details before you apply. Our health insurance FAQs answer other common questions about what policies include.

Not as a standalone product. Morehealth specialises in private medical insurance, so we arrange dental cover as an optional benefit on a health insurance policy rather than as a separate dental plan. If dental cover on its own is all you need, a standalone dental plan may suit you better.

Combining dental benefits with health insurance gives you one policy for consultations, scans and hospital treatment, with dental and optical cover alongside. We compare the dental benefits each insurer offers and show you how they affect the overall price.

Our advice is free, and our commission is not added to your premium. You can call us on 0800 028 5540 or message us on WhatsApp. Our advisers are available Monday to Thursday, 9am to 6:30pm, and Friday, 9am to 5pm. Find out more about Morehealth.

It depends on whether you are treated on the NHS or privately. In England, NHS dental charges are set in 3 bands: £27.90 for Band 1, £76.60 for Band 2 and £332.10 for Band 3. Urgent treatment costs £27.90. Private dentists set their own prices, which vary between practices.

Band 1 covers an examination, X-rays and scaling where clinically needed. Band 2 adds treatment such as fillings, root canal treatment and extractions. Band 3 adds crowns, dentures and bridges.

Some people get free NHS dental treatment, including children under 18. Charges are different in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. You can check the current charges in England on the NHS page explaining how much NHS dental treatment costs.

It can be, but only if the benefits you are likely to use outweigh what you pay. Compare the annual cost with what you normally spend on check-ups, hygiene and treatment, then check the claim limits, any waiting periods and what is excluded before deciding.

If you see an NHS dentist and usually only need routine appointments, the value may be limited. Cover may be more useful if you see a private dentist, expect restorative work, or want protection against the cost of a dental accident.

For a health insurance dental option, weigh the extra premium against the benefits. With some insurers, such as Aviva, you can add or remove routine dental and optical cover at renewal. Our guide to how much private medical insurance costs explains what affects the overall price.

Most dental policies exclude treatment a dentist had already identified before you joined, cosmetic work such as tooth whitening, and orthodontics that is not clinically necessary. Many also have waiting periods before some benefits can be claimed, and annual limits on how much you can claim back.

As an example, AXA's standalone dental plans cover some treatment only after you have been a member for 1 month, with some Premium benefits starting after 3 months. Some policies also exclude sports injuries where a mouthguard was not worn.

Dental options on health insurance have their own limits and conditions too. We explain these clearly before you buy. Our glossary explains common insurance terms.

Often, yes. Where an insurer offers a dental option, it can usually be added for the people on the policy, and some insurers include a dental benefit for everyone covered. Because NHS dental treatment is free for children under 18, it is worth checking whether adding them is good value.

Bupa, for example, includes children in the annual dental appointment that comes with its health insurance. With other insurers, dental cover for children is an optional extra that adds to the premium.

If your children see a private dentist, family dental cover may be more useful. Read more in our guide to what family health insurance covers.

Dental insurance pays money back towards treatment up to set limits. A dental payment plan is a monthly fee, arranged with your dental practice, that covers agreed routine care. A health cash plan gives money back on everyday costs such as dental, optical and physiotherapy. Private health insurance can include dental benefits too.

Dental payment plans are tied to a particular practice. Dental insurance can usually be used with NHS or private dentists, depending on the level of cover. Cash plans tend to cost less and cover a wider range of everyday healthcare, but not major medical treatment.

A dental option on private health insurance makes most sense if you want cover for consultations, scans and hospital treatment as well. That is the area Morehealth specialises in.

Yes, with some insurers. Certain business health insurance plans offer dental and optical cashback as an optional extra, and some insurers also sell separate business dental plans. Adding dental benefits to a company scheme can be a simple way to widen your employee benefits package.

AXA, for example, offers a dentist and optician cashback option on its small business health insurance. Bupa sells business dental insurance as a separate product for businesses of 2 to 249 employees.

We compare business health insurance schemes, including their optional dental and optical benefits, although we do not arrange standalone business dental plans. Find out more about business health insurance.