Health Insurance Cooperatives: How Can We Explain the Differences in Premium Increases?
Health insurance premiums are rising this year, but the figures vary depending on the source. Here's why.
While the Mutualité Française cites an 8.1% increase, UFC Que Choisir points to increases of up to 25% or even 30%. On average, according to the association, individual policies are seeing an increase of about 10%. But what explains these discrepancies?
UFC Que Choisir has criticized excessive management fees—which account for an average of 20 percent of the premiums collected—as well as excessively high profit margins at certain insurers. These two factors explain the differences in payout rates among companies, with some taking advantage of policyholders.
An analysis of payout ratios conducted by UFC Que Choisir on 23 insurers reveals that Axa is the mutual insurance company that returns the most to policyholders, with a payout ratio of 83 percent, followed closely by Harmonie Mutuelle (82 percent) and Aésio (81 percent). In contrast, Gan Assurances, MNT, and GMF have the lowest payout ratios, all below 70%. According to the study, low payout ratios reflect high margins, highlighting the extravagant spending of certain mutual insurance companies.
To reduce insurance costs, shopping around is an option worth considering. You can cancel your policy after one year to take advantage of a better deal. In short, it would be a shame not to explore all your options for optimizing your insurance budget.
