Holiday Insurance

[johntaylor99]

My wife has recently suffered a heart attack and I have been diagnosed with lung cancer.
What are the implications of going to Tenerife and relying on the E111 for sickness and only taking normal basic holiday insurance.
johntaylor 99

[VHG]

The E111 is now invalid and been replaced by the EHIC.

The implications are if she has anorher heart attack while in tenerife and you dont have adequate insurance.

This could cost thousands and your EHIC will not cover it. And if you dont declare her illness on your insurance form that may invalidate your insurance.

ts up to you if you want to take the risk, but you may finish up with a medical bill of 20,000 pounds.

[KARL]

If you take out any insurance covering medical expenses then you will find that the insurer states that any undeclared existing medical conditions will automatically invalidate the whole of that cover - no ifs or buts. Thus, you must tell the insurer as you approach them for insurance the full nature of the existing conditions or else you will in effect not be insured. In your case it seems likey the insurer will either raise the premium sharply or quite possibly refuse to insure you. Please do not take out insurance without declaring your and your wife's condition because if you do not and simply assume you are covered because they have accepted your premium, then you will not be covered for medical expenses (maybe the whole policy will be voided in the event of a claim) - there will definitely be something in the wording whereby the insurer avoids any risk of covering undeclared conditions. Of course if you find some form of travel insurance that has no health questions or health cover, then baggage, delays/cancellations, etc. may be covered but insurers are very much inclined to have lots of clauses which you must ensure do not complicate your cover so make sure you read the wording - the onus is generally on you to ensure nothing is amiss, the insurers generally ensure you have to take care of the preliminaries. When/if it comes to a claim they will go back and put you through the hoops and the slightest anomaly is likely to lead to them washing their hands of the whole thing. They are in business, not there to make sure you are taken care of (never mind any advertising).

[bednobs]

the implications are huge. Repatriation costs (even of a body) are massive. Medical repatriation can run into the tens of thousands. Being very unwell in a country that dosen't speak your language is frightening.

[Buenchico]

The EHIC provides you with the same cover that a Spanish citizen would get (which is fairly similar to what you'd get on the NHS here anyway).

The only really important 'extra' offered by medical insurance is the cost of repatriation, if necessary.

The vast majority of travellers don't really need medical insurance when travelling within the EU. (I certainly don't bother with it). But anyone who thinks that medical repatriation might be required ought to at least consider it.

Standard policies usually don't cover anything related to a pre-existing condition but this specialist broker might be able to find suitable cover at a reasonable price:
http://www.able2travel.com/

Chris