Travel insurance: alcohol issues

dopeyp

Having heard a story of girl at work who broke her back in spain after a fall, she was paralysed from the waist down and her insurance company would not foot the bill as she'd been drunk at the time. I am now quite scrupulous when checking travel insurance policies and most do contain something like: "will not cover anything caused by the direct or indirect effect of you using alcohol or solvents".

This is quite worrying as this would include a glass of wine with your lunch! I am interested to hear if anybody has had any experience or advice on this or can recommend any policies that do not have this clause.

Thanks in advance,

Chris

dogbot

Hi chris. This is a standard exclusion across the market so I doubt that you will find any policies without it.

The point should be made though that it is not the case that any claim following you having a glass of wine with lunch would be excluded. The exclusion is there to specifically exclude cover for reckless behaviour. In your example the alcohol needs to be the direct or indirect cause of the loss – simply being present in your system is not a factor.

For example, you could have a few drinks one evening and be walking back to your hotel in a busy part of town on the pavement, and for some reason a car loses control, goes onto the pavement and hits you and you would certainly still be covered. If you were drunk and decided it was an idea to walk down the middle of the road and then got hit, well that is another matter, since the fact you were drunk is material to the loss.

Provide you behave yourself therefore you shouldn't have any problems.

dacouch

I think from memory that some of the Axa policies do not have the alcohol exclusion in them.

Only problem is Axa are not always great on claims

FH_Brit

Da - Not true - AXA (as you know my Fav!!!!!!) do have alcohol exclusion. But I have found out that The FSA have ruled against this.

Apparently, if the accident COULD have happened reasonably when sober (like tripping over a broken paving slab), then alcohol cannot be considered the cause. If however you are totally under the "affluence of incahol!" and decide to tight rope walk on the power lines, then you aint covered.

The FSA ruled this for one of our patients against AXA (it even hurts to type their name!).

Dopeyp - Call Fortis (available at the post office) and ask them, you'll find they say "excessive alcohol" you'll need to know what they consider "excessive"

Also -
See my other thread that has some useful Travel Insurance info:
Click Here for must-read information: Medical & Travel Insurance

FH_Brit

DA - ONLY????? Only problem with AXA? You make it sound like they only got one problem!!!!!

FH_Brit

Dogbot - your example is not quite so, the car that hits the pedestrian is liable and travel insurers are now fast learning that they will deny travel insurance claims pending any claim against (in this example) the car driver's insurance.

Here in Florida it is called PIP and even your hire car policy has it by law. PIP (Personal Injury Protection) will pay any med bills at 80% up to the first $10,000.00. Therefore many UK travel insurers are denying claims that I put in if it is to do with MVA's (Motor Vehicle Accidents).

Also true now that a few are denying claims if there is a claim against Disney (if you fell in the "house of mouse" and it's their fault - like slipping in mouse c**p or something).

dogbot

Indeed, i was just plucking a quick and simple e.g. out of thin air... the driver could just drive off into thin air never to be traced!