2027 Health Insurance Increase: What to Do with the Letter

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What to do when your health insurance increase arrives

What follows applies to a policy that renews on 1 January, which is the case for most people. If yours expires on another date, count back from that day in the same way: two months for your insurer's notice and one month for yours. It is what we go through every autumn at the Majadahonda office with people who bring us their renewal letter, in person or on WhatsApp.

When the letter has to reach you and how long you have to decide

Imagine a family of four who at the end of October open their insurer's email: the policy is going up for 2027. The first reaction is usually to call and complain, and the second to think it is too late to switch. Neither helps. What they have in front of them is a countdown with dates set by law, which leaves them time to compare calmly if they start now.

Article 22 of Act 50/1980 on Insurance Contracts requires the insurer to notify the policyholder of any change to the contract at least two months before the current period ends. For a policy that renews on 1 January, that means the new premium has to reach you by the end of October at the latest. The same article allows you to oppose the renewal with written notice at least one month before the expiry date: by 30 November at the latest. If you do nothing, the policy renews for another year with the new premium. That is why at the office we note down both dates the first day someone shows us their letter and work backwards from 30 November.

Why health insurance goes up even if you have hardly used it

It is the sentence we hear most in November: “they are putting it up and I have hardly been to the doctor all year”. The frustration is understandable. The explanation lies in a clause almost nobody reads before signing: the one that says how the premium is updated at each renewal. Look for it in your policy's terms and conditions before deciding anything: that is where your insurer's rules of the game are. If you cannot find it, we will look for it with you when you show us the letter.

At Sanitas it is in the premiums clause of the Más Salud general conditions and it is explained in detail. At each renewal the annual premium and the copays can change according to actuarial calculations based on what healthcare services cost, on how and how much the covers are used and on the medical innovations being added. In addition, the premium varies with the age each insured person reaches and with their area, applying the Sanitas rates in force on the renewal date. The update is notified in writing at least two months in advance and the policyholder chooses: accept the renewal with the new premium or end the contract by giving written notice at least one month in advance. It is the same rule as the law, written out clearly.

How to read the renewal letter without missing anything

The letter usually has one figure in large print and little else. Before doing any sums, gather three documents: this year's letter, the last premium receipt and your policy's particular conditions. They are what say who is insured, on which plan and since when. With those in front of you, compare each insured person's annual premium with last year's, not just the monthly bill. If you pay monthly, the bill may carry a surcharge for paying in instalments. And if someone in the family moves into a new age band, their premium may move more than everyone else's.

Then look at three things that are not always in large print. Copays: if your policy has them, check whether they change next year, because the same premium with higher copays is also an increase. Cover: if the letter announces new features or changes, what counts is what the updated terms and conditions of your policy say. And the exact expiry date, which is what sets your deadline for giving notice. If you send us a photo of the letter and the last receipt on WhatsApp at +34 655 02 69 85, we summarise it for you in one reply and tell you your deadline.

Your three options before 30 November

Once you understand the letter, there are three paths. The first is to do nothing: the policy renews with the new premium and you keep your seniority. It is reasonable if the increase is small or if someone in the family is in the middle of a treatment that is best not disrupted. The second is to stay with your insurer and ask whether it offers another plan (with copays, for example) that lowers the premium in exchange for paying something each time you use the insurance. The third is to switch insurers, and it has a date that does not move: written notice before 30 November.

If you choose to switch, the order of the steps is what protects you. First you work out the price and compare. Then we request enrolment at Sanitas with an effective date of 1 January together with the waiver of waiting periods for coming from another insurer. Only when Sanitas accepts the application do you send your insurer the written non-renewal notice, and you keep the proof. That way you are never left without insurance for a single day. At the office we prepare the text of that letter with your policy number and check with you that it goes out within the deadline. The full week-by-week calendar is in our guide to switching health insurance before January, linked at the start of this article.

Comparing with Sanitas on the same basis

Comparing properly means putting both policies on an equal footing: the same people with their ages, the same postcode, the same plan with or without copays and the same cover. A policy with hospitalisation is not compared with one without it. Nor is a medical directory policy compared with a reimbursement one, which lets you see doctors outside the directory. And if your current policy includes dental, that has to be taken into account in the other one. On that basis the figure in your letter means something. Without it, any comparison is misleading, for better or worse.

For the Sanitas side you have the calculator on this website: you enter each person's age and your postcode and see the standard premium in a minute, without leaving any details. It uses Sanitas's April 2026 rates. They apply for the first year to new insured persons with an effective date up to 31 December 2026. If your new policy starts on 1 January, we confirm the premium when we prepare the application and always before you sign. On top of that comes the special year-end price: the exclusive discounts of Sanitas's campaign for new health policies with an effective date up to 1 February 2027. With us you never pay more than the Sanitas rate. And if you already have an official quote from Sanitas or from another Sanitas office for full health insurance with hospitalisation, we improve on it, guaranteed.

If you switch: what happens to waiting periods

The doubt that holds back most switches is starting over with waiting periods. Imagine someone aged 52 who has been with another insurer for ten years and wants knee surgery in the spring. On a standard Sanitas Más Salud enrolment, hospitalisation and inpatient surgery have a 10-month waiting period, high-tech diagnostic tests 6 months and outpatient surgery 3 months. Consultations and emergencies can be used from day one. If they meet the conditions below, they can ask for those waiting periods to be waived.

Sanitas can waive waiting periods for people coming from another insurer: it is an underwriting policy that is requested at enrolment and decided by Sanitas when processing it. You need to have been on a full health policy with another private insurer operating in Spain for at least a year, with similar cover and no gap between leaving one and joining the other. You prove it with the particular conditions or a certificate from your insurer and the last paid premium receipt. Waiting periods are waived in the medical directory except for childbirth, which keeps its 8 months. They are not waived on reimbursement cover, nor if you come only from Spain's Social Security or from a civil service mutual fund (Muface, Mugeju or ISFAS). Pre-existing conditions are declared all the same in the health questionnaire. And in a life-threatening emergency waiting periods never apply.

What we do at the office with your letter

The first thing we ask you for is the renewal letter and the last premium receipt. With those we tell you your deadline for giving notice, set your policy next to the Sanitas one on the same basis and give you the special year-end price in writing before you decide. If we see that switching does not suit you (because of an ongoing treatment, a pregnancy or a difference that is not worth it), we tell you all the same. Whether you sign up or not, the comparison costs you nothing.

Everything is done remotely and throughout Spain. Message us on WhatsApp at +34 655 02 69 85 (every day) or call us on +34 919 93 17 90 during office hours: Monday to Thursday from 9:00 to 14:00 and from 16:00 to 18:00, and Fridays from 9:00 to 15:00. The application reaches you already filled in so you only have to sign it. With complete paperwork you are normally enrolled in under 12 hours, and sometimes within the hour. Afterwards you stay with the same people for whatever comes next: adding family members, authorisations and questions about cover. Don't just take our word for it: 430 reviews with a 5.0 rating on Google say so.

Deadlines according to article 22 of Act 50/1980 on Insurance Contracts (as worded by Act 20/2015): the insurer must notify the policyholder of any change to the contract at least two months before the current period ends, and the policyholder may oppose the renewal with written notice at least one month beforehand. Premium updates at Sanitas according to the premiums clause of the Sanitas Más Salud general conditions. The waiver of waiting periods for coming from another insurer is a Sanitas underwriting policy: it is requested at enrolment and decided by Sanitas when processing it. Prices: Sanitas's April 2026 rates, valid for the first year for enrolments of new insured persons with an effective date between 1 April and 31 December 2026. The special year-end price corresponds to the discounts in Sanitas's commercial campaign for new health policies and new insured persons with an effective date up to 1 February 2027. It depends on the product and the effective date and is confirmed when the application is prepared. It does not apply to optional add-ons or to insured persons coming from another Sanitas policy. The guaranteed quote improvement applies to current official quotes from Sanitas or from another Sanitas office for the same product and profile on full health insurance with hospitalisation. Oficina Sanitas Majadahonda is an exclusive agency of Sanitas, S.A. de Seguros: ANYO HEALTH SL, DGSFP code C0320B67816207. Sanitas is a registered trademark of Sanitas, S.A. de Seguros.

Common questions

Direct answers, the same we give at the office.

Can my insurer put up my health insurance at renewal?

Yes. At each renewal the insurer can update the premium and has to notify you of any change to the contract at least two months before the current period ends (article 22 of the Spanish Insurance Contract Act). You decide whether to accept the renewal with the new premium or not to renew. To not renew, you have to give written notice at least one month before the expiry date. At Sanitas the Más Salud general conditions set this out in their premiums clause: the premium for each renewal comes from the rates in force for each insured person's age and area, and the update is notified in writing two months in advance.

I have not received any renewal letter. What should I do?

Check your insurer's customer area or app and your email, including the spam folder. If it is not there, ask for it in writing with your policy number. Meanwhile your deadline for giving notice that you are not renewing does not move: one month before the expiry date, 30 November if your policy renews on 1 January. And do not wait for the letter to compare: with your last premium receipt and your particular conditions we can already run the numbers.

If I switch to Sanitas, will I have waiting periods again?

If you meet the conditions you can ask for them to be waived, and Sanitas decides when it processes the enrolment. You need to have been on a full health policy with another private insurer in Spain for at least a year, with similar cover and no gap. They are waived in the medical directory except for childbirth, which keeps its 8 months. They are not waived on reimbursement cover, nor if you come only from Spain's Social Security or from a civil service mutual fund (Muface, Mugeju or ISFAS). Nor if you have had health insurance with Sanitas in the last six months. Pre-existing conditions are declared all the same in the health questionnaire. We request it with your policy and your last premium receipt, and you will know the result before you send the cancellation to your insurer. In a life-threatening emergency waiting periods never apply.

Is the calculator price what I will pay from 1 January?

It is your starting point. The calculator uses Sanitas's April 2026 rates. They apply for the first year to new insured persons with an effective date up to 31 December 2026. For a policy starting on 1 January 2027, we confirm the premium when we prepare the application and always before you sign. On top of that comes the special year-end price, which depends on the product and the effective date. And with us you never pay more than the Sanitas rate.

What is the guaranteed quote improvement?

If you have an official, current quote from Sanitas or from another Sanitas office for full health insurance with hospitalisation, we improve on it, guaranteed. It has to be for the same product and the same profile: the same people with their ages, the same postcode and the same plan. Send it to us on WhatsApp at +34 655 02 69 85 and we will send you our proposal in writing. It only applies to full health insurance with hospitalisation: it does not apply to Avanza, Accede or student insurance.

Is it worth switching if the increase is small?

Not always. And we tell you so plainly. If the difference from Sanitas on the same basis is small, other things weigh more: the medical directory you have nearby, whether your trusted specialist is in it, the copays you will actually pay and whether there is an ongoing treatment or pregnancy that suggests waiting. What is worth doing is running the numbers before 30 November, because if you give notice late your policy may renew for another year. At the office we compare your policy with the Sanitas one with no obligation. If switching does not pay off for you, we tell you all the same.

Is Your Health Insurance Going Up in January? What to Do with the Renewal Letter