William Russell Wins Best Individual International Healthcare Provider

William Russell wins at UK Health & Protection Awards 2022

William Russell have been named “Best Individual International Healthcare Provider” at the 2022 UK Health & Protection Awards.

The awards celebrate excellence in professional standards and innovation shown by intermediaries and providers to individuals and corporate customers across the disciplines of private medical insurance, wellbeing and financial protection.

Other big names in the category shortlist included Allianz, AXA and Bupa.

Winners were announced on 12th October 2022 at the London Hilton Park Lane.

What makes us the Best Individual International Healthcare Provider?

There are just so many providers and policies out there, each with different benefits, coverage options, insurance jargon, and service promises.

At William Russell, our members benefit from our outstanding customer service and contact centre. Our members speak to the same account manager all the time, so they do not have to go through a call centre, and they get highly personalised support during the time they need it most.

Within their health plan, they also get a complementary access to the Solace Secure app. This added value service provides near real-time alerts for civil unrest, natural disasters and security incidents. It also gives 24/7 country intelligence reports. It has been particularly useful to our members in Ukraine and affected countries during the war in the Ukraine.

At William Russell, we think our members deserve more. From prevention to cure, we’re here to give you a better insurance and claims experience.

1/ Fair and transparent renewals

No-one likes rising insurance premiums, but they’re a fact of life. But we help you understand exactly what’s happening with your premium.

• Comparison with your current premium
• You’ll have one of our team dedicated to your renewal
• We explain changes to your premium in full
• We make suggestions on how you can reduce your premium without greatly compromising your cover

2/ Single digit average premium inflation

From 2022 to 2023, the average premium inflation for members is 6.39%. In conjunction with our New Member Discount, which we’ve extended until the end of 2023, the single digit average premium inflation makes our pricing remain competitive over the next 12 months.

3/ We get more personal

It seems almost everyone these days, from multinational corporations to tech and entertainment companies, sees the importance of more targeted, personal communications. With the notable exception of our industry.

Meanwhile insurance customers put up with generic renewal invoices, and no explanation of premium increases or product benefits, all issued automatically on ‘no-reply’ emails. We think insurance providers should do better, and start to catch up with other sectors.

William Russell has always had an excellent reputation for member satisfaction, and now we’re taking steps into the age of personalisation.

4/ We’re transparent

Over recent years, our pricing model has become increasingly sophisticated. Now, hundreds of factors contribute to the final premium that members see on their renewal invitations. Most importantly, we’re in an excellent place to explain to members how we arrive at their renewal premium and why it might have increased.

We highlight every change, explaining the thinking behind it, and quantify its impact. And we put this information front and centre—not hidden in swathes of small print.

5/ We want to help you save money

It’s the empathy on top of this transparency that sets us apart from our competitors.

We don’t relentlessly upsell to our members. Instead, we show them ways in which they might reduce their premium without significantly reducing their insurance cover.

6/ We make insurance easy to understand

Explaining renewal premiums to members in plain language is vital. Not everyone is an insurance expert, and not everyone speaks English as their first language. We avoid insurance jargon that requires a dictionary or glossary, we adhere to our tone of voice guidance, and we pull apart every phrase and sentence in search of clarity.

We mean different things to different people

We mean a better healthcare experience for people living and working abroad. We mean financial security for people with futures to safeguard. We mean healthy and happy staff for international businesses. We mean progressive thinking for insurance partners.

But one thing everyone knows us by is the way we work. By putting our members at the heart of everything we do, we’re creating an insurance experience that’s personal, sustainable and transparent.

That’s why we’re the international health insurance partner of choice for many people living and working abroad.