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Star Health logoHealth insurance review · 2026

Star Health Young Star

Sold only to people who buy before 41, and priced for that. Its real advantage is the clock: both the pre-existing disease wait and the specific-illness wait are 12 months rather than the usual 36 and 24, and the named illness list is four short categories instead of fourteen. There is no co-payment at any age. The plan comes in a Silver and a Gold version – everything on this page describes Gold, which adds maternity cover and a daily hospital cash benefit to the same base.

Read from Star Health & Allied Insurance Company Limited's own policy wording and prospectus. Last checked against those documents on . The wording you are issued is the contract.

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01The detail

Young Star in one table

Claim settlement ratio
89.3%FY 2024–25
95% recommended
Complaints per 10,000
53.9policies
Under 10 recommended
InsurerStar Health & Allied Insurance Company Limited
Sum insured₹5 lakh to ₹1 crore, in tiers of 5 / 7.5 / 10 / 15 / 20 / 25 / 50 / 75 / 100 lakh, on an individual or floating sum insured.

Claim settlement and complaint figures are IRDAI-published and held centrally by NYVO, not taken from the insurer's marketing.

02Cover

What Young Star covers

These are the terms that decide what you are actually paid when you claim. Room rent, co-pay and restoration do more to shape a settlement than the sum insured does, and they are read from Star Health's own policy wording.

FeatureThis planWhat good looks like
Co-paymentNo co-paymentNo Co-payment
Room Rent LimitSingle private A/C room. Take a higher category and the associated charges are cut in proportionNo room rent capping
Disease sub-limitNo disease-wise caps on ordinary in-patient treatment. Modern treatments and home care carry their own limitsNo sub-limit
Pre-Existing Disease waiting period12 months, against the 36 months most plans applyShorter is better
No Claim Bonus20% of the sum insured for each claim-free year, accumulating to 100%50% each year (Minimum upto 100%)
Restoration Benefit100% once a policy year, triggered on partial or full use, and usable for the same illness as well as a new one100% restoration once in a year
Pre-Hospitalization60 daysAt least 60 days
Post-Hospitalization90 daysAt least 120 days
ConsumablesNot covered. Star’s list of excluded non-medical items is deducted from the claimConsumables covered
Maternity (Gold Plan)₹30,000 a delivery, two deliveries in the lifetime of the policy, after a 36-month wait. A fresh 24-month wait applies after each claimIncluded
Hospital Cash (Gold Plan)₹1,000 for each completed day, up to 7 days a hospitalisation and 14 days a policy period, after a 1-day deductibleIncluded
Road accident top-upSum insured increased by 25%, up to ₹10 lakhIncluded
Day-Care ProceduresAll day care procedures covered up to the sum insuredCovered without a capped list
AYUSH TreatmentCovered. Yoga and naturopathy need prior approvalIncluded
Entry age18 to 40 for adults · 91 days to 25 years for children. Lifelong renewal once you are inBuy before 41
What this plan does
03Price

Young Star discounts you can ask for

Published discounts on this plan. Most are applied at quote stage rather than offered, so it is worth naming the ones you qualify for. Every figure is a ceiling, not a promise - what you actually get depends on the case.

DiscountWorthWhen it applies
Long-term discountUp to 10% and 12.5%10% on the second year of a 2-year policy, 12.5% on the second and third years of a 3-year policy.
Wellness discountUp to 10%Earned through the Star Wellness Program and applied at renewal. 200 points is worth 2%, 751 points and above is worth 10%.
Favourable claim experienceUp to 5%At renewal, if no claim was made or total claims stayed under ₹25,000 in the preceding three years. Only for insured persons aged up to 55, judged on the eldest member of a floater.

From the plan brochure. Discounts apply to the base premium and are subject to the insurer’s own stacking rules.

04Waiting periods

Young Star waiting periods: when each part of the cover starts

Waiting periods run from the day cover began, not from the day you fall ill, and they run in parallel rather than one after another.

Initial Waiting Period30 days
Specific Illness12 months
Pre-Existing Disease12 months
Delivery Expenses (Gold Plan)36 months

The named illnesses that wait 12 months

Unusually short, and an unusually short list. Only these four categories wait, and only for 12 months rather than the 24 that most plans apply. An accident is covered from day one, and where a listed condition is also pre-existing the longer of the two waiting periods applies – here both are 12 months.

Indicative listFrom the policy wording. Your own document governs.
01Diseases of ENT and the thyroid
02All types of hydrocele, hernia, varicocele, piles, fistula and fissure in ano
03Diseases of the female reproductive system
04Stones in the gall bladder, kidney and urinary tract
05Exclusions

Young Star exclusions: what the plan will not pay for

Every policy carries exclusions, and they are the clauses people read for the first time at claim stage. These are the ones worth knowing before you buy.

Not coveredIndicative, not exhaustive. Your policy wording is the contract.
01An admission arranged mainly for tests and evaluation, where no active treatment follows
02Rest cure, rehabilitation and respite care, including custodial help with washing, dressing and moving about
03Cosmetic or plastic surgery, and change-of-gender treatment
04Injury from hazardous or adventure sports, and anything arising from a breach of law
05Treatment for alcoholism, drug or substance abuse and its consequences
06Star’s published list of excluded non-medical items, which covers most consumables billed separately at discharge
07Maternity on the Silver Plan, and on Gold until the 36-month waiting period is served
06The honest bit

Where Young Star falls short

No plan is right for everyone, and a page that only lists strengths is not much use to you. These are the gaps we would raise on a call before recommending it.

Worth knowing before you buyNone of these are dealbreakers on their own. They are the trade-offs this plan asks you to accept.
01Star Health’s claim settlement ratio and complaint volume are the weakest of the insurers we track. That is a company-level risk you carry regardless of how good the plan wording is.
02You cannot buy it at 41. If you are already past 40, this plan is closed to you and the short waiting periods that make it worth owning are not available on Star’s other products.
03The maternity benefit is small and slow: ₹30,000 a delivery on the Gold Plan, after a 36-month wait, with a fresh 24-month wait after each claim. A private-hospital delivery will cost several times that.
04The no-claim bonus is 20% a year against a market norm of 50%, so it takes five clean years to double your cover.
05Room rent is limited to a single private A/C room, and exceeding it cuts the associated charges in proportion, not just the room line.
06Consumables are not covered, and this plan has no rider to buy them back.
07FAQs

Young Star questions, answered

What is the difference between the Silver and Gold plans?

The base cover is identical – same room category, same restoration, same 20% bonus, same 12-month waiting periods, same sum insured range. Gold adds two things: maternity cover of ₹30,000 a delivery for up to two deliveries, and a hospital cash benefit of ₹1,000 for each completed day in hospital. If you have no intention of claiming maternity, Silver is the same policy for less money.

Are the waiting periods really only 12 months?

Yes, and this is the plan’s strongest feature. Pre-existing conditions wait 12 months instead of the 36 that Star applies on most of its range. The named specific-illness list also waits 12 months instead of 24, and the list itself is four categories rather than fourteen. Only the 30-day initial period and the 36-month maternity wait run longer.

Can I use the restoration for the same illness?

Yes. The cover refills once by 100% in a policy year, it triggers on partial use rather than waiting for the cover to be exhausted, and the restored amount can be used for all claims during the policy period, including a repeat admission for the same condition. The one exclusion is modern treatments, which the restoration does not cover.

What happens when I turn 41?

Nothing, provided you are already a policyholder. The entry age of 40 is a buying limit, not a cover limit: once you are in, renewal is lifelong and the 12-month waiting periods you have served stay served. What you cannot do is buy in for the first time after 40, which is why the plan is worth pricing before your next birthday if you are close.

Is there a co-payment on Young Star?

No. There is no mandatory co-payment at any age or sum insured, which is unusual for Star. The plan simply is not sold to the age band where Star normally imposes one, and the co-payment does not appear later as you age on the policy.

How does maternity cover work on the Gold Plan?

₹30,000 a delivery, including a caesarean and pre-natal and post-natal expenses, for up to two deliveries in the lifetime of the policy. The first wait is 36 months from the start of your first Young Star policy, both you and your spouse must have been insured continuously for those 36 months, and a fresh 24-month wait starts after each claim. Pre and post-hospitalisation and hospital cash do not apply to a maternity claim, and the claim does not reduce your sum insured but does reset the bonus.

08Source documents

Read it from the insurer

We summarise. The policy wording is the contract, and it is the only document that settles a dispute. These links go to the insurer's own pages.

Young Star brochurePDF
Policy wording (UIN SHAHLIP26043V062526)PDF
Find a cashless network hospitalLocator
09Read next

Understand the terms before you commit

A plan page tells you what this policy does. These explain why each term matters and what it costs you when it is missing.

10Same insurer

Other Star Health plans we have read

Star Health files these separately, and the terms differ between them. If you are choosing within the range, compare the waiting periods and the exclusions rather than the sum insured.

Is Young Star the right plan for you?

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Looking at Star Health more broadly? Read our full Star Health health insurance review for their claim record, complaint ratio and every plan we cover.

Star Health Young Star Review 2026 | NYVO