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Cancelling and switching
In general, health insurance policies are 12-month contracts. All insurers must provide a 14-day cooling-off period from the start of the contract. During these 14 days, you can cancel and get a full refund. No claims will be paid for these 14 days.
If the policyholder has died, you can cancel the policy mid-contract without any charge. You should confirm this directly with the insurer.
Current Market Practice
Irish Life Health
Irish Life Health has a 14-day cooling-off period from your joining/renewal date where you can cancel, get a full refund, and switch to an alternative policy or insurer. If you have made a claim and you want to cancel your policy from the start date, the cost of any outpatient claims that you have made will be deducted from the refund due and you will be liable for paying any inpatient charges.
On certain policies, Irish Life Health will allow you to switch your policy mid-contract to another Irish Life Health policy. However, you can’t switch from Irish Life Health to another insurer mid-contract without penalty.
If you cancel your policy mid-contract, you will have to pay a mid-term cancellation charge. The cancellation charge consists of the health insurance levy（https://www.hia.ie/regulation/risk-equalisation） calculated on a pro-rata (proportional) basis for each person on the policy based on the time left in the contract, along with an administration fee of €25 for each policy that you are cancelling.
You can cancel your policy by phone, email or post（https://www.hia.ie/useful-addresses） .
Laya Healthcare
Laya Healthcare has a 14-day cooling-off period from your joining/renewal date where you can cancel, get a full refund, and switch to an alternative policy or insurer. Laya Healthcare will allow you to switch your policy mid-contract to another Laya policy. However, you can’t switch from Laya Healthcare to another insurer mid-contract without penalty. You will have to pay the full cost of the 12-month policy if you cancel mid-contract.
You can cancel your policy by email or post（https://www.hia.ie/useful-addresses） .
Level Health
Level Health has a 14-day cooling-off period from your joining/renewal date or from when you receive your policy documentation, whichever is the latter. During this cooling-off period, you can cancel, get a full refund, and switch to an alternative policy or insurer. Level Health will allow you to switch your policy mid-contract to another Level Health policy. However, you can’t switch from Level Health to another insurer mid-contract without penalty.
If you cancel your policy mid-contract, or if Level Health cancels your policy mid-contract due to non-payment, you will have to pay a cancellation charge. The cancellation charge consists of the health insurance levy（https://www.hia.ie/regulation/risk-equalisation） calculated on a pro-rata (proportional) basis for each person on the policy based on the time left in the contract, along with a €25 administration fee for each policy that you are cancelling.