On a Simplyhealth cash plan you pay the practitioner first, then claim part of the money back by uploading your receipt in the Simplyhealth app or your online account. Cancelling is more restricted: the plan is a 12-month contract, so when you give notice decides whether you pay anything further. If it is hospital bills a cash plan is not built to pay that worry you, an FCA-authorised broker can go over private medical insurance (not your Simplyhealth plan) by phone at no cost; leave your number using the form on this page.
The rules come from the Simplyhealth Plan policy document (code T&C-SHPCONSUMER2-0926, effective from 1 September 2026) and the company's Help & Support pages, both checked on 29 October 2026. Your own table of cover and renewal letter are what apply to you.
Claiming step by step: pay first, then upload the receipt
The order matters. Simplyhealth's policy document says "The first thing you need to do is pay for the costs of the treatment or service to the person providing them", and you then claim money back towards the cost. Simplyhealth will pay only for treatment you have already paid for and received, and only after the date of treatment.
The online route, as Simplyhealth's Help & Support pages describe it, runs like this:
- Sign in to the Simplyhealth app or your online account and choose "Make a claim".
- Add your receipt: take a photo in the app, upload an image, or upload a file such as a PDF.
- Let the system scan the receipt, then check what it has pulled through and correct anything wrong.
- Submit the claim. Simplyhealth emails to confirm it has arrived, and you can follow its progress under My Claims online or the Claims tab in the app.
On the review screen you give the treatment date, the policy, who the claimant is and the type of treatment. If you are the policyholder you can claim for anyone named on the plan by changing the claimant field. Simplyhealth accepts .pdf, .jpg, .gif and .png files, up to 10 megabytes in total and at most 6 images.
The policy document calls the app or online account the easiest way to claim and asks you to complete every section of the online claim form. If you are unsure how to do that, it gives Customer Services on 0300 100 1020.
What the receipt must show, and what Simplyhealth refuses
The policy document says the supporting document should be an image of the original and should show:
- the name of the patient;
- the details of the practitioner or establishment;
- the service or treatment provided;
- the date of the service or treatment;
- the amount paid for it.
Three things are refused outright: unpaid invoices, credit or debit card receipts, and receipts that have been altered. The Help & Support page repeats the card point: "Credit/Debit card receipts alone will not be accepted." So a card slip from the till is not enough on its own; send the practitioner's receipt showing the details above.
If the information is not enough, Simplyhealth may ask the provider for more, and it says it will not pay if the provider charges for that information. It may also ask for the original receipt, and, if it has asked for further information, it may hold back your other claims until it has it.
How long until the money reaches your bank
Simplyhealth's help pages time two stages separately, assessing the claim and then paying it, and give one figure for the whole journey:
| Stage | What Simplyhealth says |
|---|---|
| Assessing the claim | "Claims usually take up to 2 working days to process" (claiming help page); "around 2 to 3 days to process from the date we receive it" (its payment answer); up to 5 working days (the online-account walkthrough on the main help page) |
| Paying an approved claim | In your bank account "within 3 to 5 working days"; the claim status guide adds that, depending on your bank, it can take up to 3 working days to arrive |
| Submitting to money in your account | "Claim payments typically reach your account within 10 days after your claim has been submitted." |
Plan around the 10-day figure; the shorter ones cover a single stage. Simplyhealth says higher claim volumes can make things slower, and a claim marked "Additional Information" waits until you upload what is asked for. It pays only into a UK bank account, and giving those details is your responsibility.
The six-month guideline and the claiming year
Simplyhealth frames its timing rule as a recommendation: "We recommend that you send us your claim as soon as you can (within 6 months of the treatment date)." It goes on: "The longer the length of time between the date of treatment and submitting your claim, the more difficult it may be for us to process it." Claim as you go rather than saving receipts up.
Timing also matters in a second way. Each benefit has an allowance that resets at renewal, and Simplyhealth assesses a claim by the date of treatment, which may differ from the date you paid. A claim is paid from the allowance available on the treatment date in the policy year when you had the treatment. Waiting periods at the start of a plan are covered on the Simplyhealth qualifying period page.
Why a claim pays less than you expected, or is declined
Simplyhealth's claiming page names three reasons a payment can fall short: you have used up the yearly entitlement for that benefit, the benefit pays only a percentage of the cost (it gives 75% and 50% as examples), or, on a dental plan, there are limits on particular treatments. If nothing is left in the allowance the claim can be declined. A declined claim shows its reason under the claim details in My Claims or the app. The limits are in your table of cover; the main levels and what each pays are on the Simplyhealth cash plan levels page, and dental treatments on the dental plan page.
The policy document lists further rules that catch people out:
- You can claim under only one benefit for each treatment, and if you hold more than one Simplyhealth policy, a claim goes under only one of them.
- Treatment from a member of your immediate family (a parent, child, brother or sister, or your partner), or from a business you or your partner own, is excluded.
- If you paid with vouchers or loyalty points, the claim is judged on the amount you actually paid.
- A refund for treatment you claimed for must be reported, and Simplyhealth can ask for the money back.
Whether a cash plan is worth the premium once these rules bite is the question on the page on whether a Simplyhealth plan is worth it.
Cancelling a Simplyhealth plan: the windows
Simplyhealth says most of its plans are 12-month contracts that renew each year. The policy document lets the policyholder cancel for any reason, and the cost of leaving depends on the timing:
| When you cancel | What the policy document says happens |
|---|---|
| Within the 14-day cooling-off period | The period starts on the start date, or on the day you receive your policy documents if that is later. If you have paid, the premium for that period is refunded, minus the cost of any claims paid in the meantime. If those claims cost more than you paid, there is no refund. |
| After the cooling-off period, inside the 12-month term | "you will be required to pay the remaining premiums for the policy year in which you have cancelled." |
| Telling Simplyhealth before your renewal date, or within 14 days of it, that you will not renew | The policy does not renew: cover ends and no further premiums are collected. |
The help page names only cooling-off and the 14 days around renewal; the policy document, which is the contract, also lets you give notice not to renew any time before the renewal date. To cancel, call 0370 908 3481 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm).
Not renewing is the cleanest exit. Simplyhealth writes to the policyholder at least 30 days before the renewal date with the terms for the next 12 months, including changes to benefits or premiums, and renews automatically unless you act. If you do not want to accept a change Simplyhealth has made, the document gives you the right to cancel from the renewal date.
If you are leaving because you want help with private hospital treatment rather than everyday bills, that is a different product, private medical insurance; a broker will explain how it works if you ask for a ring-back on the form on this page. Cancelling the Simplyhealth plan itself is still done with Simplyhealth.
What happens if you just stop paying
The policy document warns that cancelling your Direct Debit without telling Simplyhealth breaches your contract, that you must still pay the remaining premiums for the policy year, and that Simplyhealth reserves the right to take legal action to recover them. Meanwhile, if premiums are not received, it will not pay claims and may suspend or cancel the policy.
Simplyhealth can also end the policy. The document lists cases such as a decision to stop offering the policy at your next renewal, the policyholder's death, and a member who is no longer a UK resident. A plan paid through an employer is different again: the help page says changes to the level of cover, or to who is on a plan your employer pays for, go through your HR department, and that if you are leaving the employer, Simplyhealth's team can talk through staying covered.
Odd claiming and cancelling situations
What if another policy covers the same treatment?
You must tell Simplyhealth. The policy document says it may contact the other company so that it does not pay costs they have already paid, and it will take action to recover any overpayment from you.
Can I claim for glasses or contact lenses?
Optical is a benefit on Levels 2 to 5 only. The policy document lists sight-test fees, prescription lenses with frames, contact lenses and repairs as covered, and non-prescription eyewear and laser eye surgery as not covered. A claim sent under the wrong benefit is moved to the right one.
Can I claim for a hospital stay?
On Levels 2 to 5 the hospital admission benefit pays a set amount for each night in a bed, or each day-patient day, towards incidental costs such as travel and visitor meals. A discharge summary or written hospital confirmation is needed.
What if I cannot afford the premiums any more?
Phone 0370 908 3304 before you cancel. Simplyhealth says it has alternative plans and premium levels so people can stay covered, which is a better first step than stopping the Direct Debit.