Ending a National Friendly My PMI policy is simple to start and unforgiving about money: the policy conditions give you 30 days to cancel for a full refund, and after that they return nothing for the time already covered. If you are weighing up whether to stop, or move to another insurer, it helps to know where you stand before you ring. Weigh up a replacement before you cancel anything. An FCA-authorised broker, reached through the form on this page, calls back without charge to explain how a new policy would treat your medical history.

The first 30 days: a full refund, unless you have claimed

National Friendly's My PMI Policy Conditions (section 5; print code PMI PC 08.26, the version on National Friendly's website on 29 October 2026) start with a short cooling-off right: "You have the right to cancel your policy within 30 days of receiving your policy documents." The 30 days run from the day the documents reach you, not from the day you applied.

The refund comes with a condition, and it is the one most likely to catch a new policyholder: you "will receive a full refund of any premiums paid, provided you haven’t made a claim in the meantime".

Clause 5.1 spells out the other side. Make a claim inside the 30 days and you are "deemed to have accepted the policy", with no refund of premiums for the period before the cancellation date. To use the right at all, clause 5.3 says to contact National Friendly with an instruction to cancel within the 30 days. Clause 5.2 adds that closures are not backdated, so the date your instruction reaches National Friendly is the date that matters.

After 30 days: what happens to the money you have paid

Past the cooling-off window, the wording is blunt. Clause 5.4 says that if you close the policy after 30 days of receiving your documents, you "will not receive a refund of your premiums paid that relate to the period before the cancellation date". Nor does the five-year term lock you in: the My PMI Policy Summary (PMI PS 08.26) says that, with terms set five years at a time, you are "still free to cancel at any time without penalty". Premiums here are paid monthly, so what the no-refund rule usually costs you is the month already under way: "All payments are due for a period of 1 month", and are payable in advance of the dates on your Direct Debit confirmation.

Two further clauses shape the timing:

  • "We will not backdate closures or refund payment of part months" (5.6). If you ask on the 5th for a policy that was paid for until the end of the month, expect to have paid for the month.
  • "When a policy ends, we will pay no further claims and there will be no cash in value" (5.7). Clause 4.7 also ends your entitlement to benefits on the final day of the period your last premium paid for, so treatment booked after that date falls outside the policy.

That last point is the reason to line up the next step first. If you have an open claim or treatment planned, the sensible question is what National Friendly will still pay once the closure date is set; a broker can also help you think through how a replacement policy would treat a condition you are already receiving care for, and the call-back is free. Why a new insurer may exclude it is covered in our page on pre-existing conditions.

Other ways a My PMI policy can end

Cancelling is only one of the routes. Clause 4.26 lists the circumstances in which the policy, and the cover under it, could end:

  • you tell National Friendly to cancel;
  • you do not pay premiums for 3 months and the policy is closed;
  • you stop living in the UK and the policy is closed;
  • National Friendly is notified of your death and closes the policy; or
  • the policy is no longer available for renewal, in which case National Friendly may invite you to apply for an alternative.

Missed payments deserve a closer look because they feel less final than they are. A missed premium leaves you until the end of the month to pay it; after that you cannot claim while it is in arrears (4.4). If premiums fall "3 full months in arrears, the policy will lapse which means that it will end and cannot be reinstated" (4.6), and a lapse carries no surrender value (4.8). Falling behind is not a gentle way to cancel: a policy that lapses cannot be brought back, whereas a cancellation you choose can at least be timed.

The conditions also say that National Friendly "will not automatically cancel the policy if the policyholder dies" (4.25). Instead it transfers to the spouse, partner or eldest child over 18, if they agree to continue and accept its terms, which could be altered to reflect the change (4.25). So a household where the main policyholder has died is not necessarily facing an automatic end of cover; this one is for National Friendly to confirm directly.

A five-year contract: the other time you can walk away

The cancellation clauses sit alongside an unusual structure. Each My PMI policy is "a five-year contract that will be renewed every five years" (4.17), with premiums reviewed on each anniversary in between. Why premiums move inside the term is the subject of our page on National Friendly premium rises, so it is not repeated here.

For cancellation, the fifth anniversary is the clean exit. National Friendly writes before it with the proposed renewal terms, and the conditions say you "are under no obligation to accept the renewal terms and can choose, if you wish, to end your policy instead" (4.23). Clause 4.22 adds that you should consider carefully whether the renewal terms are acceptable. That point is also when the premium "may at that point reflect your claims history" (4.18), which some policyholders find a reason to compare. Clause 4.20 says the renewal goes ahead on your existing choices unless you tell National Friendly otherwise before it takes effect, so if you mean to leave at that point, say so before the renewal date; once the policy ends, no further claims are paid (5.7). If you are asking when to compare insurers, switching private health insurance provider sets out what to look at.

Before you give notice, line up what comes next

Because the policy ends on an instruction and cannot be backdated, the order of events matters more than the paperwork. A sensible order is to have the replacement confirmed in writing before you cancel: once the National Friendly policy ends it pays no further claims (5.7), so any days between the two policies are days without cover. The new insurer also sets its own terms for your history, and in the wordings compared on our pre-existing conditions page a condition you already have stays out of cover unless the insurer agrees to include it. If you are still deciding whether to leave at all, our overview of My PMI and our review of its terms are worth reading first.

A broker can compare quotes from several insurers in one conversation and explain how each would treat your history, without you having to cancel anything first. Asking costs nothing: whenever you are ready, ask for a call on the form on this page, then talk it over before you give any notice.

Smaller questions about ending a My PMI policy

Will National Friendly refund the rest of the month?

Not on the wording quoted above: clause 5.6 says closures are not backdated and part months are not refunded. How a particular closure date lines up with your Direct Debit is something National Friendly can confirm when you contact it.

Can I cancel by letter, phone or online?

Clause 5.5 says you can "close your policy by contacting us and giving us instruction to cancel", without naming one method. The contact page at the back of the conditions lists a phone line (0333 014 6244, weekdays 8am to 6pm, bank holidays aside), an email address (info@nationalfriendly.co.uk) and a postal address (11-12 Queen Square, Bristol BS1 4NT). Whichever you use, ask for written confirmation of the closure date.

Can I rejoin later at the same price?

Do not assume so. Coming back means a new application, and premiums are set by age among other factors (4.10); a policy that lapsed through missed premiums cannot be reinstated at all (4.6).

What happens to my unused benefit allowance if I cancel?

Clause 3.22 says unused cover cannot be carried forward to later policy years, and a closed policy pays no further claims (5.7). How a part-finished course of treatment would be handled is a question for National Friendly before you give notice.