[Accident Insurance Comparison 2026] Which offers the best physiotherapy and Chinese bone-setting cover? Which accident policy pays out the most? (With exclusive actuary ratings)

A football player sprains an ankle and breaks out in a cold sweat from the pain, a child sustains a cut to the eyebrow after a collision and needs stitches, or an office worker sprains an ankle while rushing for a minibus, leaving it so swollen that a high-heeled shoe will not fit...... Accidents happen all the time, so many athletes, parents and even office workers consider accident insurance to prepare for the unexpected. Accident insurance covers medical expenses resulting from accidental injuries, and some products even cover the costs of physiotherapy and Chinese bonesetting. 10Life compares more than 40 accident insurance products on the market and has introduced a dedicated actuary rating system. This article compares different products based on factors including physiotherapy and Chinese bonesetting coverage, and explains 10Life’s rating criteria. 

Accident insurance covers medical expenses arising from bodily injuries caused by accidents. Many people often confuse medical insurance with accident insurance. Medical insurance covers illness and accidents, and generally requires hospitalisation before a claim can be made; as its name suggests, accident insurance only covers accidents and may not require hospitalisation. It usually has no excess, and the claims process is generally simpler.

Common situations covered by accident insurance include:

• Sports injuries (sprained ankles or fractures)
• Everyday accidents (children falling and getting injured at home, or being scratched by pets)
• Traffic accidents (being injured after being hit by a vehicle)

Many people undergo physiotherapy after sustaining an injury. Although each session at a public hospital costs only HK$80 to HK$135, the large number of people waiting for treatment means that each patient may have to wait a long time, so they may not receive immediate care.

By contrast, each session at a private physiotherapy clinic costs HK$800 to HK$1,200. Although the cost of an individual session is not particularly difficult to afford and patients generally do not have to wait long, they often require several sessions, or even more than ten, to complete the entire course of treatment. The total cost could therefore exceed HK$10,000, which is where the protection provided by accident insurance can also be useful. 

The compensation mechanism for Chinese bone-setting treatment is similar to that for physiotherapy. You should pay attention to the annual benefit limit, benefit limit per visit (if applicable) and number of covered visits (if applicable). The cost of bone-setting treatment in the market generally ranges from HK$250 to HK$500 per visit. 10Life identified the five accident insurance products with the highest ratings for bone-setting treatment coverage. As shown in Table 1, ZA Insure and Bowtie offer daily limits of HK$300 and HK$500 respectively for bone-setting treatment, earning a perfect score of 10 for bone-setting treatment coverage.

Under accident insurance, physiotherapy and Chinese bone-setting have similar compensation mechanisms, with each having a separate annual compensation limit. Therefore, policyholders who are particularly concerned about specific types of treatment should pay attention to the compensation limits for those treatments, such as the maximum compensation per treatment, the number of treatments covered per year and the annual compensation limit.

The cost of physiotherapy in the market is approximately HK$800 to HK$1,200 per session. Taking market rates as a reference, 10Life identified five accident insurance products offering relatively comprehensive physiotherapy coverage. As shown in Table 2, under the above hypothetical physiotherapy scenario, the products from Prudential, Hang Seng and Blue Cross would cover the full amount, and therefore received a full score of 10 for physiotherapy coverage.  

It is worth noting that most accident insurance policies require the insured to obtain a recommendation from a registered doctor or hold a referral letter before receiving treatment from a registered physiotherapist. If consumers select accident insurance to cover physiotherapy expenses, they should consider the following three key factors:

1. Do they only require physiotherapy? If multiple types of treatment are needed, a higher medical expense limit may be required;
2. How much does physiotherapy usually cost? If it is relatively expensive, accident insurance with no per-session physiotherapy benefit limit may be considered;
3. How frequently is physiotherapy required? If they are more likely to suffer accidents while exercising, accident insurance offering a higher number of claims or with no specified limit on the number of claims may be considered.

Consumers can sometimes find it difficult to distinguish between hospitalisation medical insurance, outpatient insurance and accident insurance. Medical insurance requires the insured person to be admitted to hospital in order to receive reimbursement for medical expenses, regardless of whether the condition was caused by an accident. However, when the insured person suffers a relatively minor accident that does not require hospitalisation, such as seeking physiotherapy or Chinese bonesetting for a sprain, they cannot make a claim under medical insurance. This is where accident insurance can be particularly useful. As for outpatient insurance, outpatient treatment resulting from either illness or an accident is covered. Some products even include physiotherapy or Chinese bonesetting, but their annual limits are lower and their premiums are higher than those of accident insurance.

When purchasing any insurance, it is important to understand its claims mechanism. Accident insurance generally has an annual medical expense limit (Medical Expense). This is the total amount of cover for all types of treatment covered under the policy. In other words, physiotherapy, Chinese bonesetting and other covered treatments all draw from the same limit. For example, if the maximum annual reimbursement is HK$10,000, and the policyholder receives physiotherapy twice at HK$800 per session and Chinese bonesetting once at approximately HK$300, the remaining limit will be HK$8,100.

10Life actuaries analyse personal accident insurance products by extracting four major coverage categories (accidental death and limb loss cover, medical cover, physiotherapy cover and bonesetter cover), and score more than 40 products individually, then calculate the overall score according to the weighting. As shown in Table 3, the top five personal accident insurance products with the highest overall scores each have their own strengths across the four major coverage categories, and no product currently leads in every area. Therefore, policyholders may need to make trade-offs when choosing personal accident insurance. 

Many people take out accident insurance because they are concerned about medical expenses arising from sports injuries, or because they would like to try higher-risk activities such as skiing or scuba diving while travelling abroad. It is worth noting that accident insurance places certain restrictions on the sports covered. Most policies do not cover professional sports, while activities such as skiing, scuba diving and skydiving may also be excluded. Table 4 sets out the coverage available for various sports. 

Besides age, occupation also affects the premiums for accident insurance, and some occupations may even be excluded from cover. Premium levels are generally based on the following 4 categories of work, ranked from lowest to highest: first, indoor, non-manual jobs, such as clerical and administrative roles, teachers, doctors and lawyers; second, indoor or outdoor jobs involving a small amount of manual work, such as sales and catering roles; third, indoor or outdoor jobs involving manual work, such as lorry drivers, hairdressers and chefs; and finally, high-risk occupations, such as construction workers, delivery workers, journalists and disciplined services personnel.

However, each insurance company classifies occupations differently, so you should carefully study the scope of cover or enquire with the relevant insurance company before taking out a policy.

Finally, cheaper accident insurance is not necessarily better. Accidents are, by nature, unexpected, and the number of injuries or duration of treatment may exceed expectations. Policyholders should focus on the level of protection provided. In addition to physiotherapy or traditional bone-setting, some accident insurance policies also cover Chinese medicine acupuncture and chiropractic treatment, and may even provide hospital cash benefits.

• Assess your needs: Estimate the annual accident risks for yourself and your family (for example, do your children and you exercise regularly? Do you frequently go hiking?)
• Compare the limits: Pay attention to the medical coverage limits, and consider whether you need physiotherapy or Chinese bonesetting coverage based on your personal needs
• Ask for details: 10Life compares more than 40 accident insurance plans in the market, making the coverage details and premiums easy to understand at a glance. It also provides exclusive actuary ratings. 

Note:   
1. The above premium information was updated on 23 April 2024 and does not include the levy on insurance premiums collected by the Insurance Authority.   
2. This article was last updated on: 16 April 2025.

This English version of this article has been generated by machine translation powered by AI. It is provided solely for reference purposes. In the event of any discrepancy or inconsistency between this translation and the original Chinese version, the Chinese version shall prevail.