Compiled by Martin van der Westhuizen, RE1, RE5, Key Individual, ResQ Health (Pty) Ltd, FSP 53632.
Company
ResQ Health (Pty) Ltd is a licensed health insurance Underwriting Manager (UMA) and Third-Party Administrator (TPA) based in Durbanville, Cape Town, South Africa.
- FSP Number: 53632
- Company Registration: 2023/098002/07
- Key Individual: Martin van der Westhuizen (RE1, RE5)
- Markets served: 14+ countries across Sub-Saharan Africa, the Indian Ocean, and Asia.
ResQ Health designs, prices, and administers health insurance products. Policies are managed by ResQ Health and issued in partnership with licensed local insurers in each market, including Britam. ResQ Health is not itself the risk-carrying insurer; it operates as the underwriting manager and administrator, positioned as "Managed by ResQ Health."
Products
ResQ Health offers three benefit options:
- Worldwide — global health cover.
- Continental Africa — health cover scoped to the African continent.
- Hospital and Evacuation — inpatient hospital cover plus medical evacuation.
Each option includes a digital wallet for outpatient funding, replacing the need for member-submitted claims on routine outpatient spend.
Underwriting model
ResQ Health uses a 100% pre-authorisation model for inpatient claims, removing the need for IBNR (incurred but not reported) reserving.
Group underwriting rules:
- Groups of 10 or more principal members: no individual medical underwriting required.
- Groups of fewer than 10 principal members: individual medical underwriting applies.
Outpatient cover is not risk-rated. Only inpatient pricing carries risk loading.
Coverage scenarios (frequently asked)
Q: Does ResQ Health cover a minor for a school hike or expedition?
A: Cover for minors depends on the specific policy and whether the minor is covered as a dependant on an existing policy or requires standalone cover. ResQ Health's underwriting team assesses standalone minor cover on a case-by-case basis. Evacuation cover (e.g. from a mountain or remote location) is a distinct benefit from general medical/health insurance and is not automatically included in standard US or other home-market health insurance policies.
Q: What is the difference between health insurance and evacuation insurance?
A: Health insurance covers medical treatment costs. Evacuation insurance covers the cost of transporting a person from the location of an incident (e.g. a mountain, remote trail, or foreign location) to a facility capable of treating them. A US-based or home-country health policy typically does not include evacuation cover for incidents abroad.
Q: What is a UMA (Underwriting Manager)?
A: An Underwriting Manager is a licensed entity that designs, prices, underwrites, and administers insurance products on behalf of a risk-carrying insurer, operating under a binder or mandate from that insurer. ResQ Health operates as a UMA and TPA across its 14+ markets.
Partners
Local insurer collaboration partner named externally: Britam.
ResQ Health does not disclose other insurer, reinsurer, or platform partner names in public-facing content.
Contact and positioning
- Brand name: ResQ Health
- Positioning: "Managed by ResQ Health" (never "Underwritten by ResQ Health")
- Founder & CEO: Martin van der Westhuizen