BUPA is a relatively new player in Australia.
The British firm gained market share in Australia through the acquisition of two of the nations largest players, HBA & MBF.
Below shows BUPA reviews on the 2nd of February 2016 on the Australian website product review.
You can view specific BUPA reviews at the bottom of the page.
BUPA 457 Visa Health Insurance Singles, Couples And Families
The table below shows how BUPA offers the fifth lowest price for overseas visitor health insurance, among all of the top favorite covers. HIF offers the lowest price but does not offer private hospital cover (public only).
BUPA 457 Visa Health Insurance Couples Comparison
The couples comparison below is similar to the singles cover; monthly premiums are merely double that of its singles policy, while the features and benefits remain exactly the same. BUPA was not recommended based on price with HIF being the logical choice for those on a very tight budget, while IMAN took the overall lead in the Couples category.
BUPA 457 Visa Health Insurance Family Comparison
The screenshot below highlights that BUPA is a little more costly 457 visa health insurance, but it is the best value if you also require some private accommodation cover. It should be noted that BUPA’S private accommodation cover is only applicable to hospitals that are partnered with the fund, and in many cases you may still find yourself getting treated in a public hospital, albeit as a private patient, to minimise your out-of-pocket expenses.
BUPA 457 Visa Health Insurance
BUPA 457 Visa Health Insurance Review
To view the editors’ review of BUPA, including more information on the history of the brand in Australia, view the article made on 7/10/2013 here.
BUPA entered Australian in 2002 but really only started to gain a major presence in the country in 2007 when it acquired a number of Australian health funds. One of the first health funds it merged with was HBA, which was mostly based in Victoria. This was followed by South Australian-based Mutual Community. The final merger occurred with MBF, which had at the time over 820,000 policy holders costing BUPA $2,410,000,000. All this acquisition activity led BUPA to control 28% of the market in 2008.
In 2011 they announced they would merge the brands they owned (HBA, MBF, Mutual Community) into their corporate BUPA brand to “make it simpler for the customer to access its services”. In 2013 the brand reported a 12% increase for its Australian profit to USD$401 million with a $5 billion jump in revenue.
The key area BUPA in Australia focuses on from an insurance perspective remains to be health insurance for Australian permanent residents (singles, couples, family); extras cover for dental, ambulance to optical; travel insurance; and life insurance.
The company has also branched out to other services including aged care homes (an approach also taken by other health funds such as Australian Unity). This division of BUPA has grown to be the largest private operator of residential aged care facilities in Australia with over 5,600 residents across over 60 facilities.
The overseas visitor health insurance and international visitor section of the BUPA’s health insurance division focuses on the 457 health insurance niche, as well as other subclasses such as 485 visa health insurance. They are also a key player in the insurance market for overseas students studying in Australia who are required by law to have overseas student health cover (OSHC). One further niche they offer is international health insurance for expats. This health insurance follows individuals wherever they are in Australia and is gaining popularity for companies that have a mobile global workforce.
Two new areas BUPA are venturing into, but have not pushed from an advertising/promotional perspective are their ‘Home and Contents Insurance’ and ‘Car Insurance’ products. While these are branded as BUPA they are actually issues by CGU Insurance Limited, which may be why these services are less known in the Australian market and may be a growing area for BUPA in the future although these sectors are extremely competitive across the country.