Usually yes, but how you switch decides whether the condition travels with you or gets excluded again.

What the policy documents actually say

The mechanism that matters is continued personal medical exclusions — sometimes shortened to CPME. AXA Health lists it as one of four underwriting routes alongside full medical underwriting, medical history disregarded and moratorium. On CPME terms the new insurer accepts the exclusions the old one applied, rather than underwriting you afresh.

Without it, switching restarts the clock. A moratorium policy held for four years is close to covering a condition that has been quiet; moving to a new moratorium policy resets that to zero, and the four years count for nothing.

The Exeter markets its underwriting options explicitly around this, offering a choice depending on whether you are switching from another insurer or new to private health insurance. That distinction is the thing to ask about by name.

Two practical traps. Anything that arose while you held the old policy but was never claimed for can still be treated as pre-existing by the new insurer unless the transfer terms cover it. And WPA's 14-day deferment applies to new policies generally, so a symptom appearing in the fortnight after switching may fall outside both policies.

Never cancel the old policy before the new one is confirmed in writing with the transfer terms you were promised. A gap of even a day can turn a continuation into a fresh application.

Questions to put to the insurer or broker

  • Will you accept my current exclusions rather than re-underwrite?
  • Does my time already served on a moratorium carry across?
  • What happens to anything that arose but was never claimed?

Related questions

Sources

  • Source: AXA Health — Personal Health membership handbook, October 2024, read 4 September 2026.
  • Source: The Exeter — Private Medical Insurance — Insurance Product Information Document (Health+) (2025-10), read 4 September 2026.
  • Source: WPA — Private Medical Insurance — Insurance Product Information Document (Complete Health) (2025-11), read 4 September 2026.

The limit behind every answer here

None of this reaches a condition you already have. Cover is written for problems that arise after it starts, so anything you have symptoms of when you apply is excluded — permanently under full medical underwriting, or until a symptom-free period has passed under a moratorium. Chronic conditions are excluded by every insurer whose wording we hold. Figures quoted come from current policy documents and change at renewal, so check the document you are actually offered.

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