Discovery Health - Vitality & Team Vitality plus everything else you need to know

[Andrew Steer]

Yeah, exactly. And it'll be the same for the majority of buyers, IMO. Not caring about the points because they're getting the watch at a 0% interest rate for 2 years instead of a 6k once off purchase. 

 

So for the majority of apple watch purchasers, Disco won't have to pay a cent. And if they do, they'll be saving on claims cos they're taking closer care of their health. 

 

Got a mate who works at Discovery, their actuaries estimated 70% of users would pay full price on the watch...

[shaper]

Got a mate who works at Discovery, their actuaries estimated 70% of users would pay full price on the watch...

it's crazy when you think of it... but I guess the majority are lazy and not fussed and happy to stay on blue status and be blissfully unaware of the benefits and paybacks

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

Got a mate who works at Discovery, their actuaries estimated 70% of users would pay full price on the watch...

yeah, that's my assumption as well.

 

NOTE: I'm not an actuary by ANY stretch of the imagination (I have far too much personality, for one) but approximated the number using my experience as a previous employment at Discovery, and looking after brokers, seeing just how many clients are still on Blue status and the brokers' insistence that it is DISCOVERY'S responsibility that the client get to gold. Nevermind that the broker sold Vitality in the first place... 

Edited January 11, 2016 by Myles Mayhew

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

it's crazy when you think of it... but I guess the majority are lazy and not fussed and happy to stay on blue status and be blissfully unaware of the benefits and paybacks

More like the broker sold it to them and didn't explain it. Just a way to make the life premiums comparable to the competition, and screw the consequences of not managing your status when you've tied it to your life policy... 

 

It's just for gym, after all... 

[Saag]

One thing I cannot find an answer for is the following:

 

With the flight rewards that will kick in (allowing one to get 5% extra off for every weekly goal achieved from date of purchase up to date of flight, and yes taking into account the 4 goals you need to meet first) the question is: If my wife, who is on the same vitality policy also activates her rewards scheme, but does, or does not meet her targets, how will that affect the reward for the tickets I bought? Or will it have no impact at all?

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

One thing I cannot find an answer for is the following:

 

With the flight rewards that will kick in (allowing one to get 5% extra off for every weekly goal achieved from date of purchase up to date of flight, and yes taking into account the 4 goals you need to meet first) the question is: If my wife, who is on the same vitality policy also activates her rewards scheme, but does, or does not meet her targets, how will that affect the reward for the tickets I bought? Or will it have no impact at all?

My understanding is that it'll be according to the traveller not the payer. So she needs to hit the goals. Need to confirm hoe this affects child travellers.

 

Edit: your discount will NOT be reduced if you don't hit the 4 weekly goals. That's purely status dependant

Edited January 11, 2016 by Myles Mayhew

[Saag]

Ahhh....that wil make more sense then...wil need to get the wife active

[nonky]

Ahhh....that wil make more sense then...wil need to get the wife active

 

Get her (and yourself) to fill in the Vitality Age Test online and go for the health checks at Clicks / Dischem first, as they activate the biggest cashbacks (@ WoolWorths, PnP, Clicks etc).

 

In my view, those savings/cashbacks on groceries and pharmacy products can be much more than a few flights...unless you fly every week, that is.

[Runbikeswim]

So many guys got the watch and gave it to the wife... Met too. So we still keep fit with our garmin and polars...and now the spouse is keeping fit.

[Rocket-Boy]

More like the broker sold it to them and didn't explain it. Just a way to make the life premiums comparable to the competition, and screw the consequences of not managing your status when you've tied it to your life policy... 

 

It's just for gym, after all... 

What benefit does it have on the life policy?

I have life and vitality and I have never managed to get over silver.

I do all the online assessments and max out active points each year but I couldnt be assed to go and pay to have fitness assessments and HIV tests done.

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

What benefit does it have on the life policy?

I have life and vitality and I have never managed to get over silver.

I do all the online assessments and max out active points each year but I couldnt be assed to go and pay to have fitness assessments and HIV tests done.

essentially, it controls your annual premium & benefit increases, as well as your 5-yearly payback. The higher the status, the lower your premium increase, the higher your benefit increase, and the higher your payback will be. 

 

If you're on silver, your premium increase is 0.5% higher than it is on the tin ie:

 

If you're on their Age Rated preium pattern, you'd normally have a premium increase of CPI + 3% to 9% depending on your age at the time of the increase. If you're on their Standard pattern, your Premium increase will be a flat CPI + 3.5% p/a

 

If you're on Silver, though, the increase changes to CPI + (whatever) +0.5%

 

If you're on Gold, that goes to CPI + (whatever) -0.5%

 

Payback every 5 years - 15% of premium on silver, 20% on Gold.

 

Benefit Increase would normally be CPI. 

Blue: CPI -1.07%

Bronze: CPI - 0.57%

Silver: CPI 

Gold: CPI + 0.57%

Diamond: CPI +1.07%

 

I'f you're on Disco Health, the figures for the premium increase are even more involved. Your med aid claims come into it, and the Vitality Status is a lot more important. Your Payback benefit also has a higher percentage cap to it (max 60% vs 25%)

 

In effect, you are granted an up-front "discount" to normal rates if you are a member of vitality. If you don't manage your status, that discount is slowly whittled away until it becomes non existent. If you do manage it, it becomes one of the most cost effective policies over a long period of time, with Momentum the only other provider offering comparable benefit. That's why we manage our clients statuses very carefully if we recommend Discovery Life products. 

Edited January 11, 2016 by Myles Mayhew

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

As for the assessments etc, this year that's far less of an issue for you

[Rocket-Boy]

As for the assessments etc, this year that's far less of an issue for you

Im quite interested to see how it goes now, the active points have increased which is great. Our whole company is on Discovery for medical so a nurse gets sent around once a year to do the blood tests etc.

Despite all of that I still can never get to within 20k points of gold.

[Veebee]

Thanks Myles for a more in depth understanding of the life policy.

 

I took mine out last year and had an initial saving of like r180 as I was already on gold.

 

Will go through docs again tomorrow for a better understanding on terms and cash back.

[madmarc]

Ive been on Vitality as long as I can remember and been on diamond for about 4 or 5 years now.

 

I also have 4 policies, don't know how they calculate but i get huge money back every 5 years. latley I've been getting reduced monthly premiums as well. I get notified by sms how much money i've save on intergrator or something. So i dont know how the systme works, all i do know is if you are on Diamond it save you big money. I also have a discovery card so the discounts at the partner stores are huge

 

Nandos -20%

Cape Union Mart -20% I bought a Garmin 500 there on special for R 2 999.00 next month I got R 600.00 cash back so i paid R 2 400.00

Sportsmans Wharehouse we were looking at the Garmin 520 which is about R 6 625.00. But here I get 25% off up to a maximum of R 4000.00 spend so I would have got R 1000.00 cash back and actially paid R 5 625.00 on it.

 

So if you on blue make the effort it's easy to get to gold. In fact this year its even easier.

30k points for activity - look at the levels - for a 120+min device workout you get 3000 points. I did a 2:40 night ride at modders on Wed a similar ride at NF on Sat and a little 1.5 hour ride at Rietvlei on Sunday and got 7 500 points for the week.

 

Like taking candy from a baby

Edited January 11, 2016 by madmarc

[Frosty]

I've had my life policy for 11 years. Received both payouts at a time when it was most needed. Was on Gold/Diamond both times in the year the payout was done, but the first paymemt was based on 5 years of gold, compared to 2 years on silver/bronze and 3 years on gold for the second payment. The amount of the payout second time around was definitely less, given that the two years when my girls were born we incurred higher than normal medical aid costs. I think all the years excluding the two leading up to their births, the annual medicalexpenses were less than R3K per year.

 

Both the wife and I gave up the gym membership after daughter #1 arrived, meaning we lost that initial benefit from Vitality for free gym if you go more than 36 times. Now that this new rewards scheme is in place, I'm determined to milk Discovery for every possible benefit. As Pure Savage said... thank you to the other members for funding our lifestyles.