Bupa Goes Digital To Save One Million Plastic Cards Annually

Health insurer Bupa announced this week that it will move to digital membership cards, a change that will save the creation of more than one million membership cards and up to 5000kg of plastic annually.

“From little things, big things grow” the song goes and for Bupa – given how many plastic cards they distribute to their members each year – a seemingly small thing can make a significant impact and lead the way for other member-based businesses to follow suit.

Last year Bupa sent out 1,022,636 plastic cards to its members. The decision to move toward digital membership cards is apparently just one small thing they are doing to help with climate change and support a joint effort in getting rid of plastics from our environment.

Director of Customer Experience Sally Damiani said the move to digital cards was made in response to customer feedback and to make it easier for people to claim their health expenses back on the spot.

“Many of our customers told us they didn’t want to carry a plastic card,” Ms Damiani said.

“They saw what was happening in other parts of their life and they rightly had the expectation that health insurance should be just as easy.

“This now means that customers can get their digital cards as soon as they become members and is particularly useful for overseas students who don’t like to rely on post.

“In addition to giving members the benefit of online claiming, reducing manual claims and allowing money to be back in the bank account of customers quicker, this move will also save up to more than 5000kg of plastic each year.

“Whilst in the scheme of things 5000kg is not a significant contribution on the global scheme, every bit helps and customers get better service as a result,” Ms Damiani said.

The digital card is optional for all Bupa members and it is estimated that more than half of all members will take up the offer.