I am with AIA, aged 70, and my plan has not increased in the last 3 years! Same for my wife and son.

Mine no claim, no increase. Is it a good company? No idea, never had a claim yet

On 1/26/2026 at 7:20 AM, brewsterbudgen said:

I'm 65 and have had WRLife health insurance for 3 years now, also covering my wife and kid. There are no premium increases, if no claims are made.

https://www.wrlife.net/

that's correct ! I am 71 and no increase if no treatments in the last 12 months with WR Life !

On 1/26/2026 at 7:20 AM, brewsterbudgen said:

I'm 65 and have had WRLife health insurance for 3 years now, also covering my wife and kid. There are no premium increases, if no claims are made.

https://www.wrlife.net/

My ACS insurance went through the roof over the last two years. I looked at WRLife as a replacement, but that 'no premium increase' didn't seem to add up for me so I gave it a miss.

Had to drop to a lower plan with my current insurer ACS. If they keep increasing at the rate they are, I will cancel and take the chance on self insuring, because its getting ridiculous now. They quoted me (male 67) USD 6,300.

I was with April for 4 years -

1st year increase was about 15% - reason: costs accrued due to Covid pandemic (I didn’t claim)

2nd year increase was about 20% - reason: moved to new age band (65), I didn’t claim

3rd year increase was about 16% - reason: many false claims made my customers increased their costs

This year increase by 12% - reason: change in coverage and policy l, coverage increased to 30M from 16M etc. (I didn’t request any increases or policy changes for maternity etc and I asked repeatedly for a reduced coverage)

This years premium for me was 158,000 including an 80,000 co-pay, including my wife.

I asked the broker repeatedly for alternate quotes with 5M coverage and they ALL came out more expensive or with medical exam risks

I’m 67 and healthy.

My wife is actually an agent for AIA and she created a modest life insurance policy with a medical rider and 5M inpatient coverage for 80K

My friend has also had similar increases with April

I wouldn’t touch April with a long sharp stick!

I'm also with April and therefore the yearly double digit increases are very very upsetting. Thinking now to cover inpatient only, which would cut the premium more than half but its still a difficult decision make for me.

I'm 71 and have an April International Comfort inpatient policy with $500 deductible. My premium due April 2026 is $7,644, a 23% increase over last year's $6,215 premium.
I have written April for the Essential premium (their website no longer provides such information to people over 65), but have not gotten any response despite sending 3 messsages during the past month. My broker (who is based in France) similarly cannot find out the Essential premium.

He's strongly pushing a Now Health policy (which he also pushed last year). The premium for Now Health's Simple Care Core $500 deductible is $6,657 for coverage in Southeast Asia (which includes many less countries than April's Zone 3, which Thailand belongs to). The Now Health premium, incidentally, is 26% higher than it was in 2025. Incidentally, April's overseas emergency coverage allows for trips up to 90 days vs Now's 30 days.

I don't have any pre-existing conditions, so switching to Now probably wouldn't be a problem. But I feel April is a better known quantity so I hesitate to change. Would appreciate hearing any opinions on the matter and the experiences of anyone who has dealt with Now.

2 minutes ago, Pawpal said:

I'm 71 and have an April International Comfort inpatient policy with $500 deductible. My premium due April 2026 is $7,644, a 23% increase over last year's $6,215 premium.
I have written April for the Essential premium (their website no longer provides such information to people over 65), but have not gotten any response despite sending 3 messsages during the past month. My broker (who is based in France) similarly cannot find out the Essential premium.

He's strongly pushing a Now Health policy (which he also pushed last year). The premium for Now Health's Simple Care Core $500 deductible is $6,657 for coverage in Southeast Asia (which includes many less countries than April's Zone 3, which Thailand belongs to). The Now Health premium, incidentally, is 26% higher than it was in 2025. Incidentally, April's overseas emergency coverage allows for trips up to 90 days vs Now's 30 days.

I don't have any pre-existing conditions, so switching to Now probably wouldn't be a problem. But I feel April is a better known quantity so I hesitate to change. Would appreciate hearing any opinions on the matter and the experiences of anyone who has dealt with Now.

I emailed April on Feb. 11th about any options to lower my annual premium, which is now around $10,000 for hospitalization only. Haven't heard anything yet. They used to be quicker to reply to inquiries.

My story is more for any younger members thinking of moving here and taking the self insurance route. I had company provided global expat insurance coverage, through Bupa and then Cigna, my entire working life. When I retired here in 2018 at 52, I continued with my global Cigna policy, as they covered a pre-existing condition. I'm insured for up to USD2M per year globally, except for my home country - unless I spend less than 6 months there a year, and the US. The premium has increased by around 8% per year, with some fluctuations, which they told me were due to inflation and changes in average health care costs in my country of residence (Thailand).

The 2026 premium will be due in April, so I'm still waiting to see how much it is, but I have spent around USD20k on premiums in the 8 years I've had the policy, up to 2025. In 2020 I had an accident that left me in intensive care for two weeks, ten days of that in an upcountry government hospital until I was able to be transferred to a private one, and then a private room for another two weeks, followed by months of physiotherapy and follow up visits and operations. Total costs were USD36k which was paid by Cigna without question, so I'm ahead of the game. There was also no additional increase in premium following this claim.

The way I see it is that, sure, I could have self insured when I retired and easily covered the $36k, while saving the $20k I've spent on premiums. I'd be $16k down, but probably won't have another accident, or require hospitalisation for any other reason for a while, so I'd probably be back to even in a few more years. BUT I would have had to sell some investments to fund that $36k in 2020. A quick look at my investment spreadsheet shows that $36k has more than doubled in the intervening years, so I'm actually $16k + $40k ahead of the game. As someone said in an earlier post, the annual compounding of that $36k is also far greater than any future premiums will be, so I'll continue to be ahead of the game, even if I never make another claim.

Of course, not everyone will be lucky enough to have a major, life threatening, accident within three years of taking out a medical insurance policy (ha), so the vast majority may well be better off beginning to put aside money annually at a young age in order to build up a larger self insurance amount for later life. But are you sure? That's the whole point of insurance. You're effectively making a bet with the insurance company that you will require high cost medical treatment at some point over the term of your coverage, all the while both sides are hoping you lose the bet. By self insuring, you're making a bet with yourself that you won't require high cost medical treatment, at least, until you have built sufficient funds to cover the costs while maintaining your self coverage fund. All the while fervently hoping you win the bet.

On 1/25/2026 at 11:46 PM, lossantos said:

how much did it increase compared to last year

Premium increase might be nominal compared to higher deductibles and coinsurance for certain services that in effect increases overall cost of your medical health insurance.

2 hours ago, ballpoint said:

All the while fervently hoping you win the bet.

Fingers crossed.

On 1/28/2026 at 3:31 PM, Woke to Sounds said:

It an evil addiction.

A good friend been trying to quit for 7 years. He just can't quit no matter what.

End of the day it's a death sentence that you pay for literally.

Cigs in Australia are what, $22 a packet now? Imagine it's similar in other CW countries.

Closer to $40 for a pack of twenty.

On 1/27/2026 at 2:12 PM, Tazmo said:

I never had Private Insurance until I moved to Thailand aged 62.

A friend introduced me to his Agent and I took out a policy but the following year they increased the premium even though I didn’t make a claim! So I cancelled it.

At 70 I got another policy in error. Thinking that I needed it for my retirement visa, but later found out that I didn’t. The Agent was dishonest.

But I kept renewing it for 2 years and again as the premiums kept increasing. I cancelled.

I then found another company, cheaper and got a 10% reduction in my premium when I renewed it for the first time last October.

I have since had a hospital admission in last December and they paid the bill for 25K THB.

The policy covers me for Emergency Admissions only.

Company is Coris. D.O.O. Ages 0-100 years old they cover. There is no ‘ deductible’ unlike the previous Company (Axa)

Next year I will see how much increase there is! In my late 70,s now.

I'm with Axa UK. Had a heart attack recently. They refused to cover the inpatient bit. Only had one claim in 10 yrs for case of food poisoning. Pay them 4000€/yr now ( group policy). No doubt they will increase in May by at least 15% going on past history. I will not renew as I can assume they will wriggle out of any claim from now on.

On 2/19/2026 at 4:03 PM, Pawpal said:

I'm 71 and have an April International Comfort inpatient policy with $500 deductible. My premium due April 2026 is $7,644, a 23% increase over last year's $6,215 premium.
I have written April for the Essential premium (their website no longer provides such information to people over 65), but have not gotten any response despite sending 3 messsages during the past month. My broker (who is based in France) similarly cannot find out the Essential premium.

He's strongly pushing a Now Health policy (which he also pushed last year). The premium for Now Health's Simple Care Core $500 deductible is $6,657 for coverage in Southeast Asia (which includes many less countries than April's Zone 3, which Thailand belongs to). The Now Health premium, incidentally, is 26% higher than it was in 2025. Incidentally, April's overseas emergency coverage allows for trips up to 90 days vs Now's 30 days.

I don't have any pre-existing conditions, so switching to Now probably wouldn't be a problem. But I feel April is a better known quantity so I hesitate to change. Would appreciate hearing any opinions on the matter and the experiences of anyone who has dealt with Now.

My renewal is due with April this year and AOC brokers are recommending (peddling?) Now Health to me too. I always get a bit suspicious when I hear of the same broker promoting a single company and always wonder why. They advised me to switch last year too when the Now Health policy was even more expensive than April! While I'm not averse to switching companies if it is definitely in my best interests to do so but I'm not entirely sure if this switch is in my best interests or someone else's. In fairness I've not been that impressed with AOC Brokers either! Nowhere near as good as when AA were operating here (and still dealing with non-Thai policies).

Of course not paying and self-insuring as I know many do is a tempting option, given the escalating cost of treatment though and the potential for repeat treatments being needed I wouldn't consider myself to be self insured unless I had $5m in the bank. I have seen lots of posts from folks saying they have THB 1m set aside for self-insurance, IMO that would cut it only if nothing serious happened.

59 minutes ago, SooKee said:

My renewal is due with April this year and AOC brokers are recommending (peddling?) Now Health to me too. I always get a bit suspicious when I hear of the same broker promoting a single company and always wonder why. They advised me to switch last year too when the Now Health policy was even more expensive than April! While I'm not averse to switching companies if it is definitely in my best interests to do so but I'm not entirely sure if this switch is in my best interests or someone else's. In fairness I've not been that impressed with AOC Brokers either! Nowhere near as good as when AA were operating here (and still dealing with non-Thai policies).

I agree with your opinion about AOC vs AA but, alas, AA is no longer an option for a non-Thai-based policy. Also a bit suspicioius when a broker continually recommends a single company, and wish someone with a Now Health policy could comment on their experience.

5 hours ago, Pawpal said:

I agree with your opinion about AOC vs AA but, alas, AA is no longer an option for a non-Thai-based policy. Also a bit suspicioius when a broker continually recommends a single company, and wish someone with a Now Health policy could comment on their experience.

I posted comments in another thread that Sheryl responded to that may give some insight as to why AOC recommends NOW. Concerns me enough to ignore their advice in this regard. I might even look for yet another broker, just can't be bothered at the moment.

A new 65-year-old applicant today, same April Comfort inpatient plan, same zone, is quoted around 7,500 USD per year. A new 70-year-old is around 8,700 USD.

Now take a member who is 40 today and paying around 4,000 USD. If renewal increases averaged 12% per year for 30 years:

1.12^30 ≈ 29.96

That would imply:

4,000 × 29.96 ≈ 120,000 USD per year by age 70.

Even if the long-term average were meaningfully lower than 12%, we are still talking about something potentially in the 60k to 100k range versus 8.7k for a brand-new 70-year-old.

That level of divergence is what I find hard to reconcile.

My broker forwarded me a response saying pricing does not work as simple compounding and that not every year will have an increase. But in real life, has anyone here actually had a 0% renewal year with April? I personally have not seen one below roughly 12%, and this year was over 30%.

Also, is it unreasonable to ask the insurer to provide the current year’s full premium table across all age bands for this plan? The online quote tool clearly shows new-business pricing by age, but those figures do not appear aligned with what a long-term member would reach if increases remain in the double digits.

For context, my broker raised these questions with April about a month ago and we have received no answer at all, while my renewal deadline is approaching.

28 minutes ago, lossantos said:

A new 65-year-old applicant today, same April Comfort inpatient plan, same zone, is quoted around 7,500 USD per year. A new 70-year-old is around 8,700 USD.

Now take a member who is 40 today and paying around 4,000 USD. If renewal increases averaged 12% per year for 30 years:

1.12^30 ≈ 29.96

That would imply:

4,000 × 29.96 ≈ 120,000 USD per year by age 70.

Even if the long-term average were meaningfully lower than 12%, we are still talking about something potentially in the 60k to 100k range versus 8.7k for a brand-new 70-year-old.

That level of divergence is what I find hard to reconcile.

My broker forwarded me a response saying pricing does not work as simple compounding and that not every year will have an increase. But in real life, has anyone here actually had a 0% renewal year with April? I personally have not seen one below roughly 12%, and this year was over 30%.

Also, is it unreasonable to ask the insurer to provide the current year’s full premium table across all age bands for this plan? The online quote tool clearly shows new-business pricing by age, but those figures do not appear aligned with what a long-term member would reach if increases remain in the double digits.

For context, my broker raised these questions with April about a month ago and we have received no answer at all, while my renewal deadline is approaching.

Yes the insurance racket is frustrating, no doubt that actual premiums in the future will be higher than expected, i actually think they want you to leave when older as it costs them more

3 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

i actually think they want you to leave when older as it costs them more

Is that what they told you when you were working at Lloyd's?

(this topic)

My renewal notice with April (France) came through and went up by 23% over last year from $3,870 to $4,765, I'm 67. I saw one fellow post elsewhere that his premium with April this year for age 74 would have been $18,000! I don't know what his circumstances are but that's insane! That said I've seen others saying around $8,000 plus at the same age. I understand the age band increases that often see a hefty jump, at 65 my renewal went up by 30%. The latest though I'm not sure what the reason is, I expected the next big hike to be at age 70. 67 though? I'm sure they'll come up with some reason or other, it's a Tuesday or it's raining. Cost of medical treatment has gone up of course but 23%! They just seem to make stuff up as they go along with there being no predictability to their massive price hikes.

The broker (AOC) I find about as much use as a chocolate fireguard too, other than for trying push Now Health, I'm not interested in being used to take business away from April just because of some spat between the two companies. Their service is crap though IMO, talked a great job when I was thinking of switching from AA, saying all the things that a broker should be doing for a customer but after I switched I never heard a peep from them about my last renewal at all until I contacted them about it and complained that their service was garbage! This year they bothered to send a renewal notice and tried to get me to switch to Now Health AGAIN! They CONSTANTLY push Now Health and they are just as expensive as April with similar premium rises.

I am now seriously thinking about self-insuring. The longer you wait to do it of course the more money you will have wasted on (in my case) never used / claimed insurance. The peace of mind is great of course but I'm already about $21K down the drain for the insurance to date.

My premium history with April (France) is

Age $ Prem Increase

61 2,100 -

62 2,300 8.5%

63 2,430 6.1%

64 2,682 10%

65 3,480 30%

66 3,870 11%

67 4,765 23%

1 hour ago, SooKee said:

My renewal notice with April (France) came through and went up by 23% over last year from $3,870 to $4,765, I'm 67. I saw one fellow post elsewhere that his premium with April this year for age 74 would have been $18,000! I don't know what his circumstances are but that's insane! That said I've seen others saying around $8,000 plus at the same age. I understand the age band increases that often see a hefty jump, at 65 my renewal went up by 30%. The latest though I'm not sure what the reason is, I expected the next big hike to be at age 70. 67 though? I'm sure they'll come up with some reason or other, it's a Tuesday or it's raining. Cost of medical treatment has gone up of course but 23%! They just seem to make stuff up as they go along with there being no predictability to their massive price hikes.

The broker (AOC) I find about as much use as a chocolate fireguard too, other than for trying push Now Health, I'm not interested in being used to take business away from April just because of some spat between the two companies. Their service is crap though IMO, talked a great job when I was thinking of switching from AA, saying all the things that a broker should be doing for a customer but after I switched I never heard a peep from them about my last renewal at all until I contacted them about it and complained that their service was garbage! This year they bothered to send a renewal notice and tried to get me to switch to Now Health AGAIN! They CONSTANTLY push Now Health and they are just as expensive as April with similar premium rises.

I am now seriously thinking about self-insuring. The longer you wait to do it of course the more money you will have wasted on (in my case) never used / claimed insurance. The peace of mind is great of course but I'm already about $21K down the drain for the insurance to date.

My premium history with April (France) is

Age $ Prem Increase

61 2,100 -

62 2,300 8.5%

63 2,430 6.1%

64 2,682 10%

65 3,480 30%

66 3,870 11%

67 4,765 23%

Noticed your post. I am also with April. I am age 74. When I signed up with them around 2012 I only had an issue with elevated cholesterol. This year, my premium, for hospitalization only, is $2193 a quarter, depending on the dollar/euro exchange rate. So, around $8,772 a year. I am on an older plan which does not allow a deductible. I recently checked to see if I could switch to a newer plan with a deductible and they said no.

At my age, I will probably stick with April as I have longevity with them and, hopefully, if something comes up health-wise requiring hospitalization it will be covered. However, knowing what I know now, if I had a do-over I would likely choose to self-insure here in Thailand, beginning with when I arrived in 2010. Sometime ago I added up what I have spent on health insurance here and if I remember, it was around 3.8 million baht. My hospitalization charges, meanwhile, have only been, since 2010, a couple of colonoscopys and Supersight eye lens replacement, easily afforded out-of-pocket.

Choosing to self-insure or continue with insurance is a tough decision. There's the flip side, too. While my medical charges have, so far, been modest, my late Thai mother-in-law developed colon cancer and then kidney failure and before her death she fairly quickly rang up 2 million baht in medical charges. That could easily have been an even bigger number had she lived longer.

If you are with AIA good luck with claims

The medical insurance premiums have to go up as you get older. It is not much different than buying a warranty for a car.

My Medicare part B in the US went from $185 to $202.9 per month, or about a 10% increase.

My Thai medical stayed the same at $13.22 per month.

Not using my insurance, I use a private hospital (Sikarin Bangna) for my primary care, and spend about $120 three times a year for office visit with bloodwork, and about $60 per month for medication.

Not using insurance at a government hospital (Golden Jubilee Medical Center) I spend about $30 every two months to see my podiatrist and about $12 every three months to see my Orthopedic,

5 hours ago, SooKee said:

I understand the age band increases that often see a hefty jump, at 65 my renewal went up by 30%.

I was with April Int up to last November when I dropped them. After AA Insure in Thailand were unable to continue I was talking to April direct which was a painful experience....

In several of their replies back to me in either 2024 or last year they claimed that they no longer had age band increases when I had queried the premium increases. They also suggested I go from a $500 deductible to $2,500 to help reduce the premium - from memory less than a $300 reduction......

My premium increases were similar to yours for the basic inpatient only policy with $500k coverage and I decided it was just unsustainable in the long run.

Cut and ran to a Thai Life policy which is more affordable, covers to 99 and covers me for the major things I am concerned about. Yes it includes a Life Insurance part which I didn't want/need but that is relatively small.

The only question mark for me was that the detailed Ts and Cs are only available in Thai so I couldn't do my normal full due diligence. As the partners best friend is the broker I have accepted that.

24 minutes ago, topt said:

I was with April Int up to last November when I dropped them. After AA Insure in Thailand were unable to continue I was talking to April direct which was a painful experience....

In several of their replies back to me in either 2024 or last year they claimed that they no longer had age band increases when I had queried the premium increases. They also suggested I go from a $500 deductible to $2,500 to help reduce the premium - from memory less than a $300 reduction......

My premium increases were similar to yours for the basic inpatient only policy with $500k coverage and I decided it was just unsustainable in the long run.

Cut and ran to a Thai Life policy which is more affordable, covers to 99 and covers me for the major things I am concerned about. Yes it includes a Life Insurance part which I didn't want/need but that is relatively small.

The only question mark for me was that the detailed Ts and Cs are only available in Thai so I couldn't do my normal full due diligence. As the partners best friend is the broker I have accepted that.

This is what I might end up doing TBH. Over the years I will be able to accumulate a significant amount to cover any costs I might get hit with and a policy with Thai Life may well be all that's needed to plug any gaps, on the basis that some insurance is better than none. My concern is the same as yours in that while April may be good (and I've heard differing accounts about that!) it's likely not going to be sustainable in the long run, particularly if they have done away with age bands and just hiked my premium up by 23% for seemingly no reason other than maybe to see if they can get away with it. Kinda regret the $21K I've sunk into them already but hey-ho.

Overall, if insurance was cheaper than healthcare, there would be no insurance companies.

Buy insurance for peace of mind, and to protect the financial security of your loved ones.

Even if you can afford to easily self-insure, what happens if you are unconscious and can't speak or get to an ATM, will they treat you? That's why I think it is best to have good insurance and carry several copies of your insurance card and info in all the pockets of your pants. I believe that the ambulance staff will go thru your pockets to get your ID and other info. They should see your insurance card and take you to a good hospital knowing you have coverage.

1 hour ago, how241 said:

1 hour ago, how241 said:

Even if you can afford to easily self-insure, what happens if you are unconscious and can't speak or get to an ATM, will they treat you? That's why I think it is best to have good insurance and carry several copies of your insurance card and info in all the pockets of your pants. I believe that the ambulance staff will go thru your pockets to get your ID and other info. They should see your insurance card and take you to a good hospital knowing you have coverage.

Even if you can afford to easily self-insure, what happens if you are unconscious and can't speak or get to an ATM, will they treat you? That's why I think it is best to have good insurance and carry several copies of your insurance card and info in all the pockets of your pants. I believe that the ambulance staff will go thru your pockets to get your ID and other info. They should see your insurance card and take you to a good hospital knowing you have coverag

That might not be so easy in case your insurance is not in Thailand. A friend of mine just had this case that the hospital required him to prepay first because his insurance was foreign.

He had to stay in hospital for about 1 week and had to pay around 300.000 Baht until the foreign insurance will pay the final bill which the insurer agreed to do.

1 hour ago, how241 said:

Even if you can afford to easily self-insure, what happens if you are unconscious and can't speak or get to an ATM, will they treat you? That's why I think it is best to have good insurance and carry several copies of your insurance card and info in all the pockets of your pants. I believe that the ambulance staff will go thru your pockets to get your ID and other info. They should see your insurance card and take you to a good hospital knowing you have coverage.

That's what credit cards are for.

21 hours ago, Yellowtail said:

That's what credit cards are for.

21 hours ago, Yellowtail said:

That's what credit cards are for.

what happens if you are unconscious and can't speak or get to an ATM?