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What Do Different Generations of Australians Value in Their Health Insurance?
Health insurance is a personal matter, but generational trends do happen.
So, are you following the herd or breaking the mould of your generation?
Is there a perfect policy for each generation?
Probably not. What’s important for different Aussies and their health insurance will vary depending on their individual needs. However, we wanted to know if there were preference trends for each generation (Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X and Baby Boomers). So, we surveyed 1,532 Aussies as part of the iSelect Health Pulse to see what matters to them when it comes to their health and health insurance.1iSelect commissioned YouGov Galaxy Pty Ltd to conduct a national online survey between 15 and 21 July 2024. The sample is n=1,532 Australians aged 18 years and older who have private health insurance and are the main or joint decision maker for their cover. The survey results were weighted by age, gender and region to reflect the latest ABS population estimates.
With members of Gen Z starting to age out of their family’s health cover, many of them are starting to get their own policies, with 88% of surveyed Gen Zers having their own extras cover and 89% having their own hospital cover.
Which health insurance extras are important to different generations?
Baby Boomers are the least likely to want dietetics or psychology (only 1% and 5%, respectively, of our boomers cared about these), while Gen Z were the most likely to want cover for alternative and natural therapies (20% of our Gen Zers wanted this extra).
What each generation wants covered by their extras can vary. These preferences could be the result of generational upbringing or simply the life stage each generation is at.
Helpful tip
Making the most of your extras cover can help you get more value out of your health insurance. Keep an eye out though for any limits, particularly if you share a policy with your partner or family. If you’re all claiming for the same services, you might hit that limit ceiling sooner than you’d like. Getting a separate extras policy for that benefit instead might be the way to go.
Does your age affect whether you’ll switch health insurance?
Moving out of home, starting a family, and even retiring – as the lives of Aussies change, their health insurance will often change with them.
However, our survey shows that budget will also play a big role in the decision. With younger generations earning the least while being the most concerned about their finances, it’s no wonder we’re seeing more Millennials and Gen Zers opting to switch when compared to Baby Boomers and Gen Xers. Every cent counts after all.
Of our surveyed Australians who switched health insurance in the past 12 months, the top reasons to do so were to get better value or a cheaper deal.
But there are barriers to switching
Despite these barriers though, almost a quarter of Australians switched health insurance in the last 12 months.
Switching can be a smart way to save; no matter your generation
The cost-of-living crisis doesn’t care whether you remember what dial-up internet sounded like, or how it felt to legally drive a car without a seatbelt on. Each generation is feeling the pinch; but switching health insurance could be one way to sneak some savings back into your budget while also finding a policy that better suits your needs.
Using a comparison service also appears to make a difference. Doing so may have even helped these Australians overcome perceived barriers like not having enough time or energy to get a switch underway.
And do Aussies plan on spending their savings?
Our surveyed Aussies had a few ideas in mind for where that extra cash could go. Unsurprisingly, given the cost-of-living crisis, a large percentage wanted to put that money into their groceries, or invest or save it.
When it came to putting those savings to work, Millennials had three main areas: groceries, investing and savings, and rent or mortgage payments.
Each generation has their own definition of value
From wanting cover for general dental to looking to save some cash to pay off the mortgage, each generation desires something different from their health insurance. Whether you follow the trends of your generation doesn’t matter though. It’s about you getting value out of your health insurance. If that’s not the case, it could be time to switch.
iSelect Health Pulse 2024 – Full Report2iSelect commissioned YouGov Galaxy Pty Ltd to conduct a national online survey between 15 and 21 July 2024. The sample is n=1,532 Australians aged 18 years and older who have private health insurance and are the main or joint decision maker for their cover. The survey results were weighted by age, gender and region to reflect the latest ABS population estimates.
Discover more insights from iSelect’s Health Pulse 2024
iSelect Health Pulse 2024
Is loyalty a virtue when it comes to health insurance? We surveyed 1,500 Australians to learn how long they’ve stayed with their current health insurer or policy, and the kinds of savings they could expect if they switched.
Men vs. Women
Forget who takes the longest to get ready to go out or who is the safer driver; iSelect’s Health Pulse sheds light on men and women’s differences when it comes to health insurance, including cover preferences, switching behaviour and expected savings.
iSelect does not compare all health insurance providers or policies in the market. The availability of policies will change from time to time. Not all policies available from its providers are compared by iSelect and due to commercial arrangements, your stated needs and circumstances, not all policies compared by iSelect are available to all customers. Some policies and special offers are available only from iSelect’s contact centre or website. Click here to view iSelect’s range of providers.
iSelect commissioned YouGov Galaxy Pty Ltd to conduct a national online survey between 15 and 21 July 2024. The sample is n=1,532 Australians aged 18 years and older who have private health insurance and are the main or joint decision maker for their cover. The survey results were weighted by age, gender and region to reflect the latest ABS population estimates.
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- 1.iSelect commissioned YouGov Galaxy Pty Ltd to conduct a national online survey between 15 and 21 July 2024. The sample is n=1,532 Australians aged 18 years and older who have private health insurance and are the main or joint decision maker for their cover. The survey results were weighted by age, gender and region to reflect the latest ABS population estimates.
- 2.iSelect commissioned YouGov Galaxy Pty Ltd to conduct a national online survey between 15 and 21 July 2024. The sample is n=1,532 Australians aged 18 years and older who have private health insurance and are the main or joint decision maker for their cover. The survey results were weighted by age, gender and region to reflect the latest ABS population estimates.