Individual vs family floater

Once you've decided to buy health insurance, the next choice is structural: individual plans, one per person, or a family floater — one big pool shared across the household.

Individual plans

Each covered member has a separate sum insured. The premium rises with every addition, but so does the total pool available.

Family floater

One pool across the household. Cheaper than individual plans member-for-member because actuarially only one person is hospitalised at a time in most years.

When floater wins

• Young, healthy family of 3–4
• All members under 45
• You want to minimise annual premium and can tolerate a shared cap

When individual wins

• One family member is chronically ill or much older
• You'd rather price-differentiate per person
• You want clearly separated claim histories