Waiting period
Also called Qualifying period. Updated
The two that matter in the UAE
Maternity and pre-existing conditions. Across the plans in Rabt's demonstration inventory, maternity waiting periods run from nil to 40 days and pre-existing waiting periods from nil to 180 days, on plans that otherwise look comparable.
A maternity waiting period is not the same as a maternity exclusion. A 40-day wait is nearly irrelevant to a client planning a family; a 10-month wait is decisive. Both get written as "waiting period applies".
Continuity of cover
A client renewing with the same insurer normally carries their waiting periods as served. A client moving insurer normally does not, unless the new insurer grants continuity — which is negotiable on group business and rare on individual. This is the single most expensive thing a broker can get wrong when moving a scheme for a small saving.
Where it is written
Waiting periods live in the table of benefits and the policy wording, not on the rate chart. A comparison built only from rate charts cannot see them at all.
Where this comes up
Related terms
In Rabt
Every one of these is a field in Rabt
Co-pay, network, age band, waiting period — Rabt holds them as data on the plan, so a quote states them the same way every time and a comparison can line them up.