Are ANY insurance companies paying out for Ash?

UKHCGirl

FH_Brit wrote: »

UKHCGIRL - Fortis (mainly available as Post Office Insurance) is my personal recommendation from my view as a biller and getting IC's to pay they are second to none. An excellent company.

They are not the cheapest but they were first to announce that they are covering the Ash delays and they are very quick in after claims service. If you get a quote and iif t is not too much then I would advise get it. But do check the prices and compare to Insure&Go (they are not covering all ash claims, only some) but your loyalty may make it not worth changing. Check before it runs out.

Thank you for this.

The Post office version of fortis seems to be about £10 more than i pay for the insure and go policy (worldwide annual insurance, Platinum with no excess fee). Insure and go would have to half that to keep me to be honest. One of the reasons i chose that policy was i was really paranoid about my stuff being stolen after my friend got mugged in Barcelona when i was with her (and had no insurance) and they offer a pretty good deal with mugging and loss of valuables.

But now that i dont trust them, i dont want to be with them anymore.

Do you know if fortis covers for anxiety attacks? I know that I&G dont but i couldnt find anything in the post office policy that says that they dont.

Birdy

dacouch wrote: »

It actually covers people who are abroad, note the words "Into the UK" "Delays to journeys from the UK and journeys into the UK"

Travel Insurance is one of the things Fortis excel at which is why most brokers use them as they have a well won reputation for wide policy cover and dealing with claims in a fair way.

It would be nice to think MSE members would remember Fortis and the other Insurers who are paying these claims when they buy cover next. As well as putting their policyholders minds at rest by publishing information about this as early as possible.

FH Brit and myself constantly recommend Fortis backed travel policies on MSE. It's not unusual for people to come back and say we looked at Fortis and they were £30 more expensive than acme insurance so we went with acme insurance. The chances are Fortis will be more expensive than other companies but as in anything in life quality comes at a price and you get what you pay for.

Brokers often make a comparison with Marks and Spencers and Insurance, M&S have plenty of customers who are prepared to pay more for their goods because you get better quality and back up service. A lot of people argue that insurance is different, until they come up against something like the Volcano issue and then they discover after the horse has bolted that this is the case.

There is a chance the other companies will back down as the Association of British Insurers are meeting with Insurers to try and resolve issues and no doubt as the election is very soon the Government are putting pressure on them to pay the claims.

Travelplan Direct (underwritten by Fortis) are NOT paying out.

Please find below details of the restrictions applicable on your travel insurance policy with regards to the disruption caused by the volcanic eruption in Iceland.


Cancellation
No cover will apply under this section. The insured events are specific and this scenario is not covered under primary policies.



Travel Delay & Abandonment
This section of cover contains specific exclusions, one being any claims arising from the delay of travel arrangements by or on the order of any Government, public or Local Authority but not limited to any civil or federal aviation authority. For this reason the policy can not respond as the authorities have grounded/delayed flights.
Whilst the above overriding exclusion applies, it is also worth noting that a volcanic eruption is not a weather event and, whilst most policies provide cover for adverse weather, this does not apply in these circumstances.


It may be that you are able to claim refunds from your airline and/or accommodation provider directly.

Therefore, unfortunately there is no cover available for any costs incurred by the disruption caused by the Volcanic Ash, however, your policy will be automatically extended or the dates amended free of charge, subject to you rearranging your travel plans for any other claims that may arise.

I hope this clarifies your queries.
Kindest Regards

FH_Brit

Leigh-Anne_60 wrote: »

Off topic but.....We has someone say they had to pay £500 for insulin in Florida as they had run out? Is that the going rate there? Or would that include the med consultation?

It depends on maker of the drug, what medical facility you went to, if the doctor is nice, if you were given good or poor advice.

The biggest mistake is that Brits go to the ER (they know no better) that is the most expensive way to do it - and most insurers by the way, wil not cover "fogotten to bring" medications. This Ash situation is different as people are running out despite bringing plenty with them.

If you are ever in Florida and run out of meds, the best ways to get more (in order of preference/cost)

1. Get yellow pages and contact Doctor who takes "walk ins" and is specialist in your condition (i.e. Oncologist if you need cancer drugs).
2. Urgent Care facility (CentraCare, Solantic etc).
3. Wallgreens/CVS Pharmacy [those that have clinics] for some meds (they'll tell you before they charge you)
4. Other Doctors PCP (GP) Primary Care Physicians - call first to ask if they will write the script or they will charge you for exam (they must exam you) and then refuse your script.
5. Emergency Room.

Obviously depends on office/clinic hours - you may have to use ER out of hours.

A bit of good news - a Lady contacted me y'day regarding her life saving drugs she was running out of. I contacted our hospitals "Disaster Releif" dept (Yes we have a permanent one for hurricaines etc) they sent a Doctor in an ambulance with a supply of the drug FREE OF CHARGE to her. I know my employer had a heart somewhere!

FH_Brit

UKHCGirl wrote: »

Thank you for this.

Do you know if fortis covers for anxiety attacks? I know that I&G dont but i couldnt find anything in the post office policy that says that they dont.

I could not tell you exactly but Fortis are VERY lenient where PEMC's are concerned

Drea2904

Direct Travel have changed their homepage to advise this now:

Direct Travel Insurance is treating the ash cloud event as "weather related”. We are therefore able to offer cover for customers, who purchased policies on or before Tuesday 13th April, under the following sections (subject to policy limitations):

<LI class=faqLI>Section 7 Missed Departure and
• Section 8 Delayed Departure or Abandonment

If your flight has been cancelled or delayed, whether you are in the UK or abroad, in the first instance please contact your airline and/or travel company.
If you are stranded abroad, Direct Travel Insurance may cover the costs you have incurred within the limits of your policy.
If you would like to make a claim, please ensure that you follow the standard claims procedure and provide all relevant supporting documentation. The following links should help:

luci

FH_Brit wrote: »

I could not tell you exactly but Fortis are VERY lenient where PEMC's are concerned

I called the medical screening for Fortis on Monday as I was considering them when my annual policy comes up for renewal.

They would NOT provide cover for any of my PEMC's, none of which are serious or are likely to cause to me claim or cancel (although I appreciate you cannot be 100% on this).

They did say to call back nearer the time as one of the PEMC was time limited.

They offered to cover OH's HBP for an additional premium of £50.

dacouch

Luci they tend to be a bit picky if the trip is outside Europe especially if it's America.

Have you looked at the Health Dec on the broker sold policy which can sometimes be better. http://www.fortisinsurance.co.uk/images/pdf/666.pdf page 4

Leigh-Anne_60

Have added Lloyds TSB - as looks like they have now changed their stance. All ash claims were previously excluded

http://www.lloydstsb.com/travel_disruption.asp?WT.seg_3=HH2BR2

And an AXA policy!!!

luci

dacouch wrote: »

Luci they tend to be a bit picky if the trip is outside Europe especially if it's America.

Have you looked at the Health Dec on the broker sold policy which can sometimes be better. http://www.fortisinsurance.co.uk/images/pdf/666.pdf page 4

Yes I had read that before calling the medical screening line. Unfortunately I tripped up on a couple of the health questions.

I am currently with Direct Travel and they seem to have a fairly comprehensive policy. I was very disappointed to see that they excluded claims regarding the volcano, but they have done a U turn and are now covering it.

One think I particularly liked about Direct Travel is that I don't have to declare PEMC's for elderly parents. All they ask is that you don't know of any reason the trip may be cancelled.

siamese0109

I have my travel insurance through World First because of my PEMC (Pulmonary embolism) I'm not stranded but have had e-mail today from World First saying they are covering ash claims. They weren't expensive either so worth a look for anyone with PEMCs :beer:
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