A good dental insurance is literally worth its weight in gold. After all, there is hardly any other area of medicine where costs for patients have exploded so much in recent decades. Particularly in view of the fact that statutory health insurance is retreating to standard treatment, dental insurance is the best option in many cases. Since the demands on dental insurance vary from patient to patient, the question of which dental insurance is best for an individual cannot be answered in a generalized way. So what does it depend on?
What is the focus of dental insurance?
Dental insurance policies divide their benefits into “dental treatments,” “dental prostheses” and “orthodontic measures.” Typically, the individual insurance offers differ here in terms of the percentage of costs covered in the individual areas. Anyone who attaches great importance to the highest possible cost coverage for dental prostheses should therefore choose a supplementary dental insurance policy that plays to its strengths in this area.
On the other hand, if you want to enjoy the best possible treatment options in the case of dental treatment without an exorbitant financial burden, choose an insurance with high reimbursement in this area. The most important factor here is the extensive coverage for root canal and periodontal treatments. Alternatively, there are also dental insurance policies on the market that give equal weighting to all areas and thus guarantee attractive all-round protection.
Don’t forget the dental scale
The maximum benefit amount is one thing. A completely different matter, however, is the so-called dental scale, which insured persons should always take into account before concluding a contract. The dental scale refers to the graduation of the annual reimbursement benefit from the start of the contract over several contract years to the maximum benefit after five years in most cases. In higher tariffs, the reimbursement per contract and insured person is already over 1,000 euros in the first twelve months and rises to a level of 4,000 to 5,000 euros per year.
Pay attention to possible additional benefits
In addition to the benefits in the basic areas, many dental insurances offer further additional benefits for which costs are reimbursed. The reimbursement range varies here between providers and tariffs and is specified either as a percentage or in fixed amounts. A common element in dental insurance is dental prophylaxis, which includes regular professional dental cleaning.
Anyone who attaches importance to this component should ensure that the scope of benefits is as wide as possible before taking out the insurance. After all, the range of reimbursement varies greatly here and often lies between 50 and 200 euros per year.
Observe waiting period, minimum contract term and acceptance criteria
Dental insurance is not a carte blanche. This is particularly true for treatments that have already begun, especially since the costs incurred for these are not covered by any dental insurance. So the sooner you take out insurance, the better. There are also important factors such as the waiting period and the minimum contract term. While some insurers only reimburse initial treatments after a waiting period of three to six months, other insurers do not require a waiting period at all.
The same applies to the minimum contract term. The ideal solution is, of course, insurance without a waiting period and without a minimum contract term. Both criteria also apply to the insurance rates of MAXCARE. There are also major differences between the dental insurers in terms of admission criteria. Many insurers want to know exactly and ask for data on previous illnesses, dental health and dental status. For other insurers, on the other hand, the only decisive factor is whether teeth are already missing.
Conclusion
The bottom line is that dental insurance that leaves as much freedom as possible is the best choice for most patients. A true all-round provider such as MAXCARE offers a suitable and modern offer at fair conditions for everyone thanks to no less than four tariffs. A detailed comparison is therefore always necessary to find the dental insurance that best suits your needs.
Is dental insurance worthwhile?
Whether supplementary dental insurance is worthwhile depends largely on whether you will need a lot of high-priced dentures in the future. This is because supplementary dental insurance is relatively expensive. A good contract costs about 360 euros a year. By comparison, the much more important liability insurance is available for as little as 60 euros a year.
Although protection for your teeth can cost several thousand euros, the cost of dental prostheses rarely threatens your very existence. You should therefore first take care of all the more important insurances before you think about a supplementary dental contract.
The decisive question you then have to ask yourself is how you assess the health of your teeth. The relatively expensive premiums only pay off if you have high costs for dentures.
If, on the other hand, you are likely to need a crown or an implant only every few years, it is cheaper to regularly put some money aside to pay for a major dental treatment at some point. This can be done very easily, for example, by setting up a separate call money account and then transferring a certain amount from your checking account to it each month. As a guideline for the amount of the monthly transfer, you can take the contribution that the providers we recommend charge.
To bear the cost risk of a major dental treatment yourself in this form is definitely a possible solution for all people who do not expect very expensive treatments. In the best case, you will save more than you will ever need for dental treatment. Otherwise, you have at least a basic amount that you can use for your teeth.
You can switch from the savings account solution to supplementary dental insurance at any time. In any case, it is not so easy to find the right time to take out the insurance. Although the premiums are cheaper at a younger age than later, it is also less likely that you will have to claim benefits on a large scale. Don’t wait too long, though, because in most cases insurance won’t pay for teeth that are already broken.
Only if you take out insurance a few years before the first major treatments do you have a good chance of receiving the full benefits of your supplementary dental plan. Because there’s one thing providers want to avoid: having to pay for major treatments when customers have only been paying premiums for a few months.
