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I'm just looking at renewing our annual travel insurance and I am being asked questions about our medical history – it's all very vague:
Physical and mental health conditions in the last two years, like:
- diabetes
- high blood pressure
- asthma
- depression
- and anxiety.
You should also include minor illnesses, like:
- headaches
- water infections
- and flu.
Then they say:
The insurer may not pay any claims you make in full if you fail to declare all relevant conditions.
I have never come across this before (or maybe I have but I am picking up on it more due to all the stories about people having claims rejected because they didn't declare something). The thing is, the vague nature of the statements (ie, saying 'minor illnesses like') – is that an exhaustive list, or do I also need to include every other minor illness that could be 'like' one of those (ie, I recently had a bout of gout).
It all seems very weird!
Just a way to get out of paying for repatriation. I noticed when I renewed mine that the question has changed from “do you have any of these conditions” to “have you ever been investigated for these conditions?”, and so even if the investigation found you in perfect health the price is significantly higher than normal.
Flu...? so taking into account covid, that is pretty much most of the population. Insurance companies to a tee.
If that's the shitty wording they are using during the simple stuff at the front end... seems like a good idea to look elsewhere
If that's the shitty wording they are using during the simple stuff at the front end... seems like a good idea to look elsewhere
I have looked at MoneySupermarket and Compare the Market – both of them have similar wording. I am now looking at Aviva directly, and it is much clearer (they still need medical history, but only 12 months, and they are much clearer about what they need to know about). But it is frustrating that I will probably miss out on the best deal if I go directly to an insurer.
Timely.
I had an incident on holiday a couple of weeks ago. The insurance co has asked me for two years' of medical records. I went to the doctor who said "we can't give them to you, they'll have to ask us directly." Which I can understand to a point - I could amend them in-flight - but surely they'd need my permission somehow?
But it is frustrating that I will probably miss out on the best deal if I go directly to an insurer.
Cheapest doesn't always mean best
Cheapest doesn't always mean best
I do know that – I usually look at the TrustPilot reviews of the cheapest few, then decide on the best balance of price versus reviews.
Timely.
I had an incident on holiday a couple of weeks ago. The insurance co has asked me for two years' of medical records. I went to the doctor who said "we can't give them to you, they'll have to ask us directly." Which I can understand to a point - I could amend them in-flight - but surely they'd need my permission somehow?
Timely.
I had an incident on holiday a couple of weeks ago. The insurance co has asked me for two years' of medical records. I went to the doctor who said "we can't give them to you, they'll have to ask us directly." Which I can understand to a point - I could amend them in-flight - but surely they'd need my permission somehow?
Odd. I asked a GP if I could get a copy of my medical records to assist with travel insurance application. No problem he said.
This is in Scotland if it matters.
Or maybe this is if it relates to a claim
Possibly the small print in the policy means you have already given permission.
I’d only include stuff I’d actually been treated for by a medical professional that could be tracked by a paper trail. I’d include stuff like private physio too.
But I’d probably find another insurance company though!
We've used Direct Travel (or trravel direct) in the past for annual cover and they have been very good, including for a skiing claim. I know the Qs are annoying, but less annoying than them turning down your ICU stay in Albufiera cos you didn't disclose something. As MuffinMan says, declare anything you have seen a clinician for in the last 2-5 years (do they not state time period in their small print/pop-ups). They should also have pop-ups with additional information on each of the conditions to clarify the "like" language. If this company is vague look elsewhere.
If you have some potentially problematic health issues for the mainstream providers, look at some specialist health insurers - there is a list of insurers somewhere online who provide that more targeted cover.
Failing that - if sh1t happens - crowd fund the return flights with an article in the Mail and a justgiving page😜. There's a thread on here somewhere about that
I've never had insurance for Europe aside from the EHIC (now GHIC) card.. Is additional insurance really nessesary if your not doing competitive sports or whatever?
Good question mattyfez. I’d be looking at things outside of medical matters though, such as loss or theft of baggage, that sort of thing. When we had EVERYTHING stolen in Barcelona a few years ago our insurers were very good at paying up for things like temporary (and replacement) passports, money, clothes, phones etc etc.
I've never had insurance for Europe aside from the EHIC (now GHIC) card.. Is additional insurance really nessesary if your not doing competitive sports or whatever?
Yes. GHIC won't cover things like repatriation if you fall down some steps and break your leg. A friend of mine had that - £15k to get back from Rome after tripping on a step in an old church.
As the GHIC page says....
https://overseas-healthcare.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/get-healthcare-cover-travelling-abroad/start
A UK EHIC or UK GHIC is not a substitute for travel insurance. It may not cover all health costs and never covers repatriation costs. You should make sure that you have travel insurance as well as a UK EHIC or UK GHIC.
Timely reminder as we are off to France on Sunday, my go to insurer is now Saga 😕
Timely reminder as we are off to France on Sunday, my go to insurer is now Saga 😕
Be careful, a lot of travel insurance demands you take it out at least 7 days before travel.
The wording in the OP is just the same as I've been coming up against as I'm looking for travel insurance for my daughter interrailing. In my opinion the insurance industry is now not fit for purpose. Whether it is asking each time you remove your roofbars or whether you have taken paracetamol in the last 2 years - its all the same grift, they are firstly looking for any excuse to weasel out of a claim and secondly putting all the risk on the customer for not completing the form correctly.
We pretty much never claim on insurance, what I'm paying for is piece of mind. I want to enjoy my life safe in the knowledge that though the worst is not likely to happen, if it does I'm sorted - that is what my money should be buying and its now not the case. Now I just feel that I'm paying an increased fee and will probably have a battle on my hands should I need to claim for anything but hopefully I've tipped the odds in my favour by spending a huge amount of time reading the small print and jumping through hoops.......that's just disgraceful.
Be careful, a lot of travel insurance demands you take it out at least 7 days before travel.
It's a single trip insurance so purely on the basis of us having declared the dates we are travelling to them when booking I think they'd struggle to argue that one.
Insurance companies are generally a weaselly lot. I should know as I used to work for one (not doing insurance work i should add!). It’s interesting to note that a surprisingly high proportion of people who work in insurance actually only take out the minimum amount necessary (car & house) as they know the odds. One issue driving up the cost of insurance is the ever-rising cost of claims reflecting a general trend of our society becoming a claim culture and all that comes with it (ambulance chasers and claims management companies in general). Travel insurance is an interesting example. In the past it was viewed as something to guard against one-off random events - flight delay, lost luggage, the odd accident. ie sh1t happens stuff - and that is why it was a reasonably minor fee that wasn’t priced off past histories (ie a prior claim made little difference to the premium you paid). But obviously they have been experiencing more claims with a greater level of “it was always likely to happen” element to them, and medical emergencies arising from chronic conditions is a classic one. But as so often is the case we have flipped from a relatively low cost lottery ticket style insurance to a high cost legal nit-picker’s charter.
Try getting cover when you have stage 4 cancer... lol!!
I eventually got a reasonable policy from a company called "All Clear". Covers me for most sports in Europe. Beyond Europe the cost is totally prohibitive.
Insurance companies are generally a weaselly lot.
100%. Unfortunately, I have had to claim on my travel insurance more than once. The first time, I had a load of stuff nicked from my apartment, including a big case of approx 30 CDs. They would only allow me to claim for eight (IIRC) as they argued the 30 CDs constituted a 'set' and they only pay for a maximum of eight in a set. I tried to argue that they weren't part of a single set, they were just quite a few CDs.
Then, a couple of years ago we lost a suitcase (it didn't turn up at Arrivals) and they wouldn't pay for *anything* unless we could prove we owned it (at the least we had to have a bank statement and a photograph of the item). Seriously – how many people take pictures of all their clothes, their toiletries etc. One of the items that went missing was a pair of expensive hair-straighteners that our daughters got via a gift card from a relative and they wouldn't allow us to claim. It went much deeper than those two headline bits, but, suffice to say, they did everything they could at every turn to avoid paying a penny.
FYI booked annual travel cover for EpicJnr who is off on a couple of post A-level hols. Used Coverwise which has good sports cover as standard, as allows you to book up to day before departure. Gets good rating on cover and on trustpilot. Worth taking a look if you are after a decent policy
Used Coverwise
Bloody hell – I have just gone to their website. Is it 2003?
I have annual through a Nationwide Bank Account (Aviva is the supplier). I called them up the other day with a general query about cover for dependents and the call handler was all over us declaring our medical histories which I’ve never had to do before despite having the NW cover for yonks. So yeah, definitely seems ‘a thing’ 🤷♂️
I’m not sure about the 7 day before travel exclusion, but in theory you should take out travel insurance as soon as you have booked, or at least as soon as you have paid for it in full. I have had to twice cancel a holiday due to injury before travel - put my back out one week before an overseas MTB trip, broke collarbone and knee one month before a ski trip - and a doctor’s note meant i recovered most of my costs.
I've never had insurance for Europe aside from the EHIC (now GHIC) card.. Is additional insurance really nessesary if your not doing competitive sports or whatever?
100% necessary, no cover beyond getting you patched up on a GHIC. Consider how you would get home if ill/injured, could be looking at a row of seats + medical support or a repatriation flight. GHIC also provides no assistance to the person/people stuck in country. Insurance should cover someone staying out with the ill/injured/whatever person including travel, accommodation and possibly even some sustenance
Then you get all the other cancellation, curtailment, luggage, cash, passport, injury and so on too
"Then, a couple of years ago we lost a suitcase (it didn't turn up at Arrivals) and they wouldn't pay for *anything* unless we could prove we owned it (at the least we had to have a bank statement and a photograph of the item)"
This is why when I was getting insured with Snowcard I took the option of dropping all the theft cover etc. Only wanted medical cover. This halved the premium. Getting it down to £114 for a month USA bike touring for health 62 year old.
Speaking of repatriation... One good thing about Ryan Air.. I had no bother carrying my dad's ashes back from Spain as additional hand luggage.
Totally free of charge as long as its in a suitably robust container (I used a stainless steel coffee jar to carry a portion back).
As long as it's accompanied by the correct paperwork, I. E. Death certificate and certificate of cremation.
Flying a corpse back is incredibly expensive though.
I would have thought with something like a broken arm or something, a GHIC card would allow you to get plastered up in Spain so then you can just fly back as normal? I thought that's the entire point of it?
I've never had insurance for Europe aside from the EHIC (now GHIC) card.. Is additional insurance really nessesary if your not doing competitive sports or whatever?
Im with you. I never have had any insurance for europe nor will I. I have a pal who flew back with a leg in plaster on his scheduled flight. If needed I would just stay longer in the country until I could fly home or come home on a train.
Repatriation without insurance in case of death even in a simple case from France is 6500 quid in 2025
Don't ask how I know .
Ehic only cover stabilising. Anything further requires a credit card or insurance before they will do. Anything.
Again don't ask me how I know.
Your view on the world is naive if you believe the ehic covers you.
Even your recovery to the hospital if the wrong method is used -say you need the air ambulance off a hillside.....that bills coming to you. If your unconscious and a private ambulance is sent....guess who's paying.
As for johndohs question. I found this year they have really tightened up .
I had to declare any hospital visits , the constipation meds my daughter's on , the general anesthetic operation she had to remove a splinter , the antibiotics for the same ....... Wifey on the phone didn't see the funny side when I gave my daughter's date of birth and said my wife visited hospital and gave birth to a child. But it didn't seem that ridiculous compared to what she had been asking for.
..
Repatriation without insurance in case of death even in a simple case from France is 6500 quid in 2025
Don't ask how I know .
Ehic only cover stabilising. Anything further requires a credit card or insurance before they will do. Anything.
Again don't ask me how I know.
Your view on the world is naive if you believe the ehic covers you.
Even your recovery to the hospital if the wrong method is used -say you need the air ambulance off a hillside.....that bills coming to you. If your unconscious and a private ambulance is sent....guess who's paying.
I've never had to use it so I don't realy know, but 'stabalising' in the case of a broken bone would mean getting it set and plastered up? it wouldn't be very stable otherwise!
In the case of a death, it's better to get cremated locally, and then fly back with the ashes..
In the case of a death, it's better to get cremated locally, and then fly back with the ashes..
What makes it better ? certainly wasn't better for me and my family.
Ehic only cover stabilising. Anything further requires a credit card or insurance before they will do. Anything.
Again don't ask me how I know.
Not so - you were entitled under EHIC to the same level of care at the same cost as a local. Its a bit moot as it no longer exists. NOt checked the small print on the GHIC cover but I believe it similar
The UK Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) lets you get necessary state healthcare in the European Economic Area (EEA), and some other countries, on the same basis as a resident of that country. This may be free or it may require a payment equivalent to that which a local resident would pay.
When Kevin got injured in Switzerland the hospital only wanted to see his GHIC card and passport. All the treatment was free.
However the heli rescue off the mountain wasn't covered but eventually reluctantly picked up by the holiday insurance after alot of tooing and froing around policy wording
I'll let you argue you are right with the doctors. Good luck with that.
My old man with in induced coma at the time. That was considered stabilised for the time being. They needed insurance or credit card to proceed with the MRI.
The wordings crucial "necessary healthcare"
And also "to the same as a member of that state"..... Not all healthcar requirements are free in France.
An no my old.man wasn't being daft to end up in induced coma. A french man not going round a corner smashed into him head on -all caught on dash cam
I've never had insurance for Europe aside from the EHIC (now GHIC) card.. Is additional insurance really nessesary if your not doing competitive sports or whatever?
100% necessary, no cover beyond getting you patched up on a GHIC.
As above. I collapsed from dehydration / heat whilst on holiday, the GHIC 100% covered the 3-4 days I spent in hospital but the initial triage was €1,300 which I'm currently trying to claim back via the travel insurance.
I suppose it's possible that the GHIC might have covered that as well, but being unconscious at the time I wasn't in the best of positions to have that discussion.
That's probably a point worth making in itself. As well as having a GHIC, make sure that family members know where each others' cards are too.
The questions have expanded in recent years to better understand the risks and in a lot of case actually lower the cost so they can get the business from the competition as they have more to risk score.
A lot of policies that don’t ask the questions usually have an exclusion on existing health conditions. I know which policy I’d want to choose.
EHIC or GHIC work better in some countries than others. Like many have said, Switzerland is a dream. When she badly knocked herself out a few years ago, my daughter got a private room with a view of Interlaken and the surrounding mountains with an ante-room for my wife to stay in. 4000 swiss francs or 35 with an EHIC! No insurance needed.
However whenever we have have medical attention in Holland its been expensive even with an EHIC and we've occasionally needed insurance. Thats because its expensive and you need insurance even if you are Dutch......obviously Switzerland has more cash to give its citizens!
GHIC gives you the same rights to medical intervention as is afforded to the locals. It's not that the card "works better in some countries" but rather that some countries have different public healthcare systems.
Interesting about needing to show GHIC to get treatment. I'm off climbing in Fontainebleau next week - I have specific sports travel insurance but I'm guessing easier to get treatment on GHIC plus any co-payments unless it gets really pricey.
Do I need to be carrying my GHIC with me when I'm out bouldering? - I'll be with a group but they are camping and I'm Air BnB so not at same base.
...just in case obvs
On a trip this year I got a quote from SkiCover.com (they were recommended for back country stuff). One of the questions was "have you been to the GP for anything over the last 2 years" - I said yes, for a random thing that'd all been sorted. The quote system promptly told me they couldn't offer cover but provided a phone number - once I got through to a human they sorted it within a few minutes. Same trip a mate with MS had the same when requesting a quote, they managed to arrange cover with a couple of exclusions. Ended up pretty reasonable for the level of cover we had.
My takeaway is to go with a broker/insurer that'll actually speak with you, the automated risk estimation systems seem to be patchy at best. And more generally with insurance, disclose everything (Vitality were complete and utter <insert swear filtered word> when dealing with a recent family life insurance claim).
did you realise that the NHS will recover costs of treatment if you are in a RTC?
I did wonder what they do in the netherlands as its a two tier system with those on low incomes getting treatment for free or minimal cost and those on larger incomes being charged ( via insurance if they have it)
did you realise that the NHS will recover costs of treatment if you are in a RTC?
I don't think you realise the stress and paperwork involves with that tj.
Trust me insurance is less hassle all told.
We had years of court battles and therapy.
Having lived both scenarios - I wouldn't be traveling abroad uninsured unless the cost was prohibitive. Even less so if I had any seizable assets.
Man I am not shitting on your lived experience - sounds utterly horrendous. That comment was not aimed at you at all.
Don't worry about it. I'm genuinely just trying to get across the point that it really isn't worth the saving on insurance unless you've no dependants who have to deal with the fall out - 10 years ago my credit card took a battering to get my old man treated at Grenoble after his crash because marker study underwriters wouldn't authorise treatment without speaking to the insured..... Slight issue there. Marker study also operate out of Gibraltar and so ombudsman has no teeth. This was an MCN group test touring insurance best buy insurer. -so clearly they paid MCN for that review.
Just noticed someone's post above. I'd like to praise l+g life insurance. They have been absolutely top notch dealing with our claim.
Despite my old man dying of a cardiac arrest and having a (declared) pre existing condition of cardiac issues.
Coop repatriation services were also top people despite being subject to the "hack" . Both companies assigned me a specific person and supplied me direct phone lines and only that person dealt with me. Made conversations flow and no going over old ground every time a new call centre operator took it on.
Made a shit situation slightly more bearable.