Paying for private treatment without insurance means you are the customer: you book the consultant or hospital, agree a price, and settle the bill yourself. In the UK that is usually done through a hospital's self-pay team, either one operation at a time or as a fixed-price package. Weighing self-pay against a policy is a decision an FCA-authorised broker can talk through with you; to ask for that call, use the form on this page.

Getting a referral: through your GP or by booking yourself

There are two routes in. The first is a GP referral. Your GP writes to a consultant or hospital, and you choose to be seen privately. Your GP may write a letter for you to send or take to the provider, and some providers want one: Nuffield Health, for example, tells self-paying patients they may need a GP referral to book a consultation.

The second is self-referral: you contact a private hospital or clinic directly and book a first appointment. This is a normal route in, often chosen for quicker access, but whether you need a referral letter depends on the hospital and the service, so ask when you book. It is also worth asking how you will be billed: PHIN says self-pay patients usually get three bills, from the hospital, the surgeon and the anaesthetist, because the doctors often work independently of the hospital.

Fixed-price package or pay as you go

For most common planned operations, hospitals quote a package price; the alternative is a bill item by item.

  • Fixed-price package. One fixed price bundles the main costs: the surgeon's and anaesthetist's fees and the hospital's charges for the room, nursing care and standard medication, according to the Private Healthcare Information Network (PHIN). It warns that the first consultation is almost never included; you usually pay for that on the day.
  • Pay as you go. Each part is billed as it happens: scans and tests, theatre and surgeon fees, the bed, medication, then follow-up. The same guide calls this itemised billing and says it is far less common for self-pay patients, because the total is hard to predict, though it may be needed for less common procedures.

A package is easier to budget for. Either way, you are typically quoted once the consultant has recommended a procedure, and the quote is for the planned treatment only: a complication can push the price up. Prices are set by each hospital, so a figure you read elsewhere is only a starting point. For published cash prices of a few common operations beside NHS waiting times, see how NHS and private treatment compare on cost.

What a package usually includes, and what to ask about

What counts as "included" is the hospital's own definition, so get it in writing before you book. These are the lines worth checking:

  • The surgeon's fee, the anaesthetist's fee and the hospital's theatre and bed charges: are all three in the price?
  • Tests and scans before the operation, and pathology on anything removed.
  • Medication to take home, dressings and equipment such as a brace or crutches.
  • Follow-up appointments, physiotherapy and how long after the operation they remain free.
  • What happens if there is a complication, you need a longer stay or a return to theatre: is that charged on top, and at what rate?
  • Whether a different or additional procedure found during surgery changes the price.

PHIN singles out tests and pathology as costs that often catch patients out, and a complication can take the bill past the package, which is why a quote that says "from" a figure deserves a follow-up question about what sits above it.

Paying for one procedure: how to fund it

People paying for private surgery out of their own pocket generally use savings, a finance plan arranged through the hospital, or a loan taken elsewhere, and PHIN notes that self-pay patients may need to arrange payment, including schedules or financing, before a date is set. Nuffield Health, for example, takes card details when you book the first consultation without charging them then, accepts debit and credit cards, and offers to spread the cost through a finance company. Whether a hospital offers finance, over what period and at what interest rate is up to the hospital and the lender, so get the total you will repay, not only the monthly amount. If any money is taken on booking, ask whether it is refunded if you cancel or the operation is postponed.

Whichever you choose, keep the quote, the list of what it covers and any terms about cancellation. If the final invoice differs from the quote, those are the documents you will point to.

Hospital private treatment: a private hospital or a private wing of an NHS hospital

Private treatment happens in two kinds of place, as PHIN's guide to the patient journey sets out: a private hospital or clinic, or a private patient unit inside an NHS hospital, where the hospital treats paying patients on its own premises. Prices and the consultants available differ from one to the next, so compare the quote rather than the building. For how a policy decides which hospitals are open to you, see private hospital prices and hospital lists; for paying with no policy, the quote is the price list that matters.

Pancreatitis and other conditions where the bill is hard to predict

Pancreatitis private treatment is not like a planned operation. PHIN points out that UK private healthcare is mainly for planned care, and that anyone seriously unwell or facing an emergency should always use the NHS: their GP, out-of-hours services or 999. Nothing here is medical advice; where to be treated is for your doctor. What a self-paying patient may buy is the planned part, such as a consultant's opinion, scans or follow-up, and its cost cannot always be quoted as one fixed sum in advance. On the money side, paying as you go for something open-ended means the bill follows the length of the stay and the number of tests, so ask the hospital for the daily rate, what a consultant visit is charged at and whether a ceiling can be agreed. A condition you already have is also the kind that a new insurance policy often leaves out; pre-existing conditions and private cover explains how that works.

When insurance makes more sense than paying yourself

Self-pay suits a single, known, planned procedure, and a condition you have already, where a policy would probably not pay. Insurance tends to make more sense when the risk is something unexpected and large: you pay a premium every month whether or not you need treatment, and in return the insurer pays eligible bills that arise from conditions starting after you join. The trade is that policies have excesses, limits and exclusions, so cover is not unlimited. How a claim works in practice is on what you can claim back on private health insurance.

If you cannot tell which side of that line you are on, a broker can lay out what cover for your age and circumstances would involve, so you can set a premium against the self-pay quote you have been given. The quote costs nothing and takes a few minutes; it is priced on your age, health and the choices you make, so nobody can promise a figure in advance.

Questions people ask about paying privately

Can I get a private appointment without seeing my GP?

Often, yes: you can contact a private hospital or consultant directly. Some services, such as scans, may still need a referral from a doctor, so check first.

Is private treatment cheaper if I pay it all at once?

That depends on the hospital. Ask for the package price and, if you are considering finance, the total you would repay, so you can compare the two on the same footing.

Can I use the NHS for part of my care and pay for the rest?

People do move between them. PHIN describes patients who start on the NHS and go private because of waiting times, and private consultants normally send a summary your GP can use afterwards. Ask your GP and the hospital how the handover will work before you start.

What if the final bill is higher than the quote?

Go back to the written quote and what it listed as included. If it does not cover the extra charge, ask the hospital to explain it in writing, and raise it with the hospital's complaints process if you are not satisfied.

To see what insurance would cost beside your self-pay quote, put your name and number into this page's form; a broker rings back and goes through it with you.