Travel Insurance

[Fluke]

I'm travelling to Thailand and possibly nearby countries, for up to 90 days and looking for suitable travel insurance. Which magazine lists a number of providers who are good if you have a preexisting medical condition which I do. They include Saga, Staysure, Allclear, Avanti and others. Does anyone have any experience of this type of travel insurance? Obviously I'd like to keep the premiums to a minimum but be covered most importantly for medical emergencies which would most likely be unconnected to my existing condition. e.g. falling and breaking something.

The length of the trip is unclear but would not exceed 90 days, also whether or not I would travel outside of Thailand is also unclear at this stage.

Grateful for any advice.

[Arborbridge]

We have used Staysure for a few years. I booked a holiday with Explore yesterday, and they recommend contacting Campbell-Irvine https://www.campbellirvineinsurance.com/

I haven't tried them yet but will do as I have several journeys this year.

Arb.

[Fluke]

Thanks Arb, not one I'd heard of but might just do the job. I'll take a look.

[Fluke]

Well that turned out to be way more work than I would have liked. Started by getting quotes from 4 or 5 of the Which? recommended suppliers. I started with going down the single trip route, specifying start/end dates, which countries I expected to be travelling to, I’m not sure at this stage so put down Thailand plus 4 other nearby countries, Cambodia, Loas etc. Got a shock when premiums came back in the £700-900 range. All previous policies I've had were around the £50-60 mark - ouch! I wasn’t expecting my declared health condition to put me in such a high risk category. I didn’t believe it. I then went down the annual multi-trip path, worldwide excluding US with a maximum duration per trip of no more than 60 days (90 days is rare in annual policies) and premiums weirdly came back from the same providers at around the £300-400 mark. Better but still expensive I thought given that I am perfectly fit and healthy despite aforementioned health condition. Plus not doing anything risky like sports etc.

I then turned to the comparison sites specifically Confused and Payingtomuch.com conscious of feeding the beast with all my PID, they threw up mostly lower level policies, none for instance gave me the option to increase the maximum number of days per trip to 60, one gave me the option of up to 50 days which I nearly went for but noticed at the last minute that worldwide didn’t include Thailand!

After much ado I went to the Post Office site and got a quote for an annual, multi-trip, up to 60 days, reasonable medical emergency cover (which is all I actually care about), and it came back as about £200, I was happy with that and they seem to be one of the better providers. The PO was the only site I went to where you could put in what you needed in order to obtain a quote and only if you proceed do you then put in all your personal details. Wish I’d gone there first.

Also they’re probably on a damage limitation drive at the moment, so hopefully won’t quibble if a payout becomes necessary.

Bit perplexed by the massive disparity in quotes. As with all insurance policies I hope it’s money down the drain and no claim is necessary, but at least I know I’m adequately covered now.

[airbus330]

It is an absolute mine field for anything other than a 2 week bucket n spades to Majorca.
My wife and daughter both have mild reportable pre existing conditions and each year it is a few hours work to screen scrape the best cover.
I have found Staysure to be good if you claim, but their cover rockets for many medical declarations.
I have used Puffin a few times and find them reasonable in price and cover.

The biggest thing is that you must read the small print carefully if you propose to do anything other than sit on a beach.
As an example, I'm doing 9 days in Bulgaria in May on a rented large motorcycle.

Of the many quotes I got, most restrict self ride to sub 125cc bikes.
A few banned bikes of any description. Almost all banned Quads.
Some banned off tarmac road riding. Which is very common in Europe where un made roads are more common than in UK.
Some listed required head and/or clothing protection.

In this case Carole Nash (speciality bike insurer) had a bike specific policy which was comprehensive in as much that it added cover for expensive bike kit.
Puffin had no CC limits and was half the price, but only general limits for kit claims.

Good luck

[77ss]

,,,,,,,
After much ado I went to the Post Office site and got a quote for an annual, multi-trip, up to 60 days, reasonable medical emergency cover (which is all I actually care about), and it came back as about £200, I was happy with that and they seem to be one of the better providers. The PO was the only site I went to where you could put in what you needed in order to obtain a quote and only if you proceed do you then put in all your personal details. Wish I’d gone there first.

Also they’re probably on a damage limitation drive at the moment, so hopefully won’t quibble if a payout becomes necessary.

Bit perplexed by the massive disparity in quotes. As with all insurance policies I hope it’s money down the drain and no claim is necessary, but at least I know I’m adequately covered now.

FWIT, I have used the Post Office offering for annual worldwide cover (excluding NA) for some years now. With medical conditions - just need to answer their questions every year.

I think they are just a front for Great Lakes Insurance

[gryffron]

It is an absolute mine field for anything other than a 2 week bucket n spades to Majorca.
…The biggest thing is that you must read the small print carefully if you propose to do anything other than sit on a beach.

It’s a fact. Some policies even exempt a pushbike on the road as an “extreme sport”.

[UncleEbenezer]

It is an absolute mine field for anything other than a 2 week bucket n spades to Majorca.
…The biggest thing is that you must read the small print carefully if you propose to do anything other than sit on a beach.

Why on Earth do people go to sit on a crowded beach? A beach serves to access the water, and a quiet beach might be a pleasant place, but a "holiday" beach is sheer hell!

It’s a fact. Some policies even exempt a pushbike on the road as an “extreme sport”.

Some people race or run time-trials on the road. Which perhaps has the potential to be 'extreme' if you push so hard for performance as to affect awareness of what's going on around you. But in general, if you're doing healthy physical exercise you're at much lower risk than sitting on a beach in the sun.

[gryffron]

Some policies even exempt a pushbike on the road as an “extreme sport”.

Some people race or run time-trials on the road. Which perhaps has the potential to be 'extreme' if you push so hard for performance as to affect awareness of what's going on around you. But in general, if you're doing healthy physical exercise you're at much lower risk than sitting on a beach in the sun.

No, not just competitive racing. The policies are quite clear. Even pootling up and down the promenade on a pushbike is an "extreme sport".

[Fluke]

FWIT, I have used the Post Office offering for annual worldwide cover (excluding NA) for some years now. With medical conditions - just need to answer their questions every year.

I think they are just a front for Great Lakes Insurance

That's good to know, I'll probably stick with them now, don't fancy going through that rigmorole again. Btw the £200 quote was the lower of 3 bands covering you for £5M medical expenses, the other two being £7.5 and £10M. Well like I say, let's hope I don't get to find out what £5M quid gets me in a Thai hospital.

[Steveam]

A personal experience of medical care/travel insurance for Thailand. 10 years ago so some things might have changed …

- I was admitted to Bumrungrad Hospital (one of the best in Bangkok and known for catering to foreigners) as an emergency
- they commenced tests/scans/diagnosis and I contacted the travel insurer
- after some days delay the travel insurer informed me that Bumrungrad was not on their approved list and their local agent would take charge of things and getting me moved to an approved hospital. I objected to this as diagnosis and treatment had already started but the insurer was insistent so I was moved to a much cheaper hospital where no one spoke English - this was hopeless - every time a doctor needed to explain something or I needed to explain something we had to get an interpreter. I made a big stink with the insurer who eventually said that the additional costs of Bumrungrad would need to be to my own account. I was moved back to Bumrungrad
- the hospital were now recommending major surgery to remove a brain tumour but the insurer kept saying that they hadn’t yet assumed liability. What the hell did this mean? Fortunately I’m pretty forceful and eventually got out of the insurer that they were waiting for confirmation from GP that this was not a pre-existing condition. From my Thai hospital bed I now chased the GP practice who had just received the insurer’s request. I explained the urgency and got people talking and moving
- the hospital still needed a costs guarantee. My bank, once I’d explained everything three times, came up trumps. They temporarily increased my credit card limit (for this purpose only) to £50,000 and sent a letter to the hospital
- day before surgery the insurer agreed to liability and informed the hospital that they would meet the costs (subject to some further argument about whether I needed to be in a private room or could I be in a shared room)
- operation was a complete success
- follow up and further treatment went well and, when permitted by the medics, I was flown home
- I then started trying to sort out the insurance: it was a nightmare but eventually I think I was out about £3,000 on a total claim of about £50,000 (I asked for a second opinion about the diagnosis and treatment and the insurer declined to pay for this)

Lessons:
- this was a (relatively) cheap travel insurance policy and it showed up in the constant cheap skating. I was fortunate that although seriously ill I felt able to fight my corner
- local agents are a menace and make their money by saving the insurer money. They tried to move me to a much cheaper and less good hospital. While I was recuperating (under hospital care) they decided that they could put me in a cheaper hotel which would have been a hopeless journey to and from the hospital. Although my travel tickets were business class they tried to fly me back economy but again I objected
- you really do need a (short term) backup plan. Perhaps family or assets - health comes above all
- it’s not unreasonable that the insurer might want to check your medical records but push it along

Best wishes,

Steve

[airbus330]

A personal experience of medical care/travel insurance for Thailand. 10 years ago so some things might have changed …


Steve

Interesting and sobering reading. The constant issue is WHO are the reputable insurers who will not quibble in a crisis?
I have not found a reliable source. Most review sites are skewed by personal circumstances which may or may not be the insurers fault. Having worked for years in the tourist industry, it is clear that many are economical with the truth when buying insurance. My corporate policy was next to useless the one time I needed to claim for a medical issue abroad and that was a global name.
A household name, Post Office for example, are a front for a faceless underwriter.
Fingers and everything else is kept crossed.

[UncleEbenezer]

A personal experience of medical care/travel insurance for Thailand. 10 years ago so some things might have changed …


Steve

Interesting and sobering reading. The constant issue is WHO are the reputable insurers who will not quibble in a crisis?

Lesson I'm (tentatively) taking from it is that the key was Steve's assertiveness. Accept what they say and you'll end up paying, or die waiting.

How many people ill enough to need emergency hospital admission would have that in them? An assertive wife/husband/travelling companion might be the more usual version of that scenario.

I wonder how well the same assertiveness would work when being messed about by our own NHS?

[Steveam]

Interesting and sobering reading. The constant issue is WHO are the reputable insurers who will not quibble in a crisis?

Lesson I'm (tentatively) taking from it is that the key was Steve's assertiveness. Accept what they say and you'll end up paying, or die waiting.

How many people ill enough to need emergency hospital admission would have that in them? An assertive wife/husband/travelling companion might be the more usual version of that scenario.

I wonder how well the same assertiveness would work when being messed about by our own NHS?

Although not mentioned in my original post my local friends and U.K. family were extremely helpful and supportive.
Additional lessons: I’m tediously scrupulous about telling the insurer EVERYTHING. I print out the insurance details and have them in the front pocket of my suitcase; also all the insurance details are available on my mobile. I now use a big name travel insurer (provided through my bank) but I’ve no idea how a claim would be handled.

Best wishes,

Steve

[airbus330]

I now use a big name travel insurer (provided through my bank) but I’ve no idea how a claim would be handled.

Best wishes,

Steve

And that is the problem. You have, completely understandably, now chosen a big name supplier, but have absolutely no data to support the feeling that you will have a better experience in similar circumstances!
I do the same thing as you when travelling and have at least 2 copies of the policy easily to hand.

[Gordon51]

Like Steveam I notify my health insurer (which comes via my bank account) of all health related matters. However I receive no written confirmation ( despite having requested it) detailing the specific notifications I’ve made. I’m always a bit concerned about this. I’d be interested to know from Steveam and others whether they have proof from the insurer of what they’ve notified.

[GrahamPlatt]

One has to say, thank goodness there is an insurance company behind that policy. If it was truly the PO doing the insurance, I’d be looking elsewhere.

[airbus330]

Like Steveam I notify my health insurer (which comes via my bank account) of all health related matters. However I receive no written confirmation ( despite having requested it) detailing the specific notifications I’ve made. I’m always a bit concerned about this. I’d be interested to know from Steveam and others whether they have proof from the insurer of what they’ve notified.

FWIW, I have made several health declarations for my wife and daughter. The policy documents have always included what has been declared and what is/is not covered. I don't use packaged insurances, but I would imagine that the policy schedule or certificate would be available if requested. Having, years ago, had a group policy as part of my employment which covered my family, it was noticeably vague compared to a stand alone policy. I never fully trusted it and bought stand alone policies for w&d when we travelled. Insurers! You can't trust em!!

[Gersemi]

Like Steveam I notify my health insurer (which comes via my bank account) of all health related matters. However I receive no written confirmation ( despite having requested it) detailing the specific notifications I’ve made. I’m always a bit concerned about this. I’d be interested to know from Steveam and others whether they have proof from the insurer of what they’ve notified.

Whenever I've taken out travel insurance I've declared my pre-existing conditions and the policy documents have included a list of the conditions declared.

[Steveam]

Like Steveam I notify my health insurer (which comes via my bank account) of all health related matters. However I receive no written confirmation ( despite having requested it) detailing the specific notifications I’ve made. I’m always a bit concerned about this. I’d be interested to know from Steveam and others whether they have proof from the insurer of what they’ve notified.

I’m now using the “free” travel insurance provided by my bank. Berfore travelling I go through the health screening and they always send me a document listing all declared and accepted conditions.

Best wishes,

Steve