AXA Health typically authorises 10–20 sessions per year, depending on your policy level and clinical need. Usually, you’ll get an initial block of 10-20 weekly sessions. Before these are fully used, you’ll evaluate with your psychologist whether more sessions are needed. If so, you can request an additional block from AXA via phone. Sometimes AXA requires a brief therapy report from your psychologist—we provide this promptly, so you can continue therapy with no interruptions while your cover remains active.

Yes, AXA Health covers therapy when you have a mental health care option on your policy. Many of our therapists are AXA-approved and registered with professional bodies (HCPC, BACP, BPS, UKCP). We provide evidence-based treatments including CBT, counselling psychology, psychotherapy, and Schema Therapy for conditions like anxiety, depression, OCD, PTSD, relationship issues, and stress-related disorders. You’ll need an authorisation code from AXA before starting—we can guide you through obtaining this.

Yes, most private health insurance policies in the UK, including AXA Health, cover therapy for mental health conditions. AXA typically covers evidence-based treatments like CBT, counselling psychology, counselling, and psychotherapy for issues such as anxiety, depression, OCD, PTSD, and stress. Contact AXA and let them know you’d like to see one of our approved therapists—this is usually a quick phone call taking less than 5-10 minutes. They’ll authorise sessions (usually 10-20) with the option to extend based on clinical need. In some cases they might require you to obtain a GP referral.

Yes, counselling is covered by private health insurance when provided by qualified, registered therapists treating recognised mental health conditions. For AXA Health, your therapist must be approved by the insurer and registered with professional bodies like HCPC, BACP, UKCP or BABCP. At Therapy Central, many of our therapists meet these requirements. We handle authorisation and billing directly with AXA, so you never pay upfront or chase reimbursements – unless you policy specifically says otherwise.

Therapy/counselling sessions last 50 minutes and are held at regular weekly time slots. On occasions we’re able to allow some flexibility. This can be discussed with your therapist.

This depends on your unique issues. However, an initial 6-12 sessions are usually enough in our experience to start seeing some positive change. More sessions are usually needed for issues which are more enduring and long-standing. These later sessions are usually aimed at working with the root-causes of your issues and simultaneously at preventing future relapses. In the greatest majority of cases, the sessions granted by your insurer, including any additional ones, will be enough to help you stir your life in the right direction.

Yes and no. Whether you need a GP referral depends on various factors, which you should check with AXA Health directly. At times a simple call to your insurer will be enough and you won’t need a GP referral to use your AXA Health insurance for therapy.

No. At Therapy Central, we bill AXA Health directly using your authorisation code, so you don’t pay upfront or chase reimbursements. The only potential costs are your policy excess (if applicable) or any co-payment specified in your policy terms. Your insurer will confirm these details before you start therapy so there are no surprises.

AXA Health covers therapy for a wide range of mental health issues, including anxiety disorders (GAD, panic disorder, social anxiety, health anxiety), depression and low mood, OCD, PTSD and trauma, stress and burnout, work-related stress, relationship difficulties, self-esteem and confidence issues, and anger management. Therapy must be clinically necessary and delivered by an AXA-approved mental health professional like those at Therapy Central.

Yes, AXA Health covers online therapy sessions via video call at the same rate as in-person sessions. Most of our therapists offer private and confidential video sessions. Many clients find online therapy more convenient and equally effective, with the added flexibility of accessing sessions from home or wherever they feel comfortable.

After you’ve matched with one of our therapists and completed your free 15-minute consultation (typically within 24 hours of first contact), simply call AXA Health’s mental health team with your therapist’s details—we’ll provide everything you need. AXA will ask a few questions about your symptoms and issue an authorisation code, usually within 24–48 hours. Share this code with us, and we’ll handle all billing directly with AXA. The whole process can be completed within 2-3 days from first contact to starting therapy, depending on availability.

Finding an AXA-approved therapist is simple through Therapy Central. All of our therapists are registered with professional bodies (HCPC, BACP, BPS, UKCP, or BABCP) and most of them are recognised by AXA Health. Use our booking form (select Funding → Insurance → AXA Health) or email us, and we’ll match you with an available AXA-approved therapist within 24 hours, often much sooner during business hours (Monday–Friday). You’ll receive a free 15-minute consultation, to confirm the therapist is the right fit before committing to sessions.

If you reach your session limit but you and your therapist believe further treatment would be beneficial, your therapist can submit a report which would include a request for additional sessions to AXA. This includes a clinical rationale and treatment plan outlining why continued therapy is necessary. Many extension requests are approved when there’s clear evidence of progress, engagement, and ongoing clinical need. In the rare occurrence your insurer declines additional sessions, we offer competitive self-pay rates so you can choose to continue your therapy journey without interruption.