Travel Insurance Article Discussion

Chordeiles

On this very thread I started (in July 2017) a bit of a discussion about (what looked to me) like a possible drawback of annual multi-trip insurance. It struck a chord with quite a few others.
Little did I know at that time how the problem would come back and bite me personally ! Here's a timeline :

March 2017 - Booked very expensive Holiday in Asia (for Jan 2018) and also a mildly expensive holiday in Europe (for June 2017).

April 2017 - Took out annual multi-trip cover with LV=.

May 2017 - Booked an inexpensive holiday in Europe (for April/May 2018).

June 2017 - We took our pre-booked holiday in Europe, no problems, enjoyed it immensely.

September 2017 - In some trouble with knee pain - not a problem I'd experienced before.

November 2017 - Knee pain takes a significant turn for the worse, seek medical advice.

January 2018 - MRI scan shows "torn and displaced meniscal cartilage". Pain explained !

January 2018 - I consider cancelling the expensive Asian holiday. Doctor would have supported this decision so would have been an insurance claim. In the event I decided to "tough it out" and went on the holiday. Still not sure if correct decision, enjoyed the holiday up to a point but was certainly prevented from getting the maximum out of it.

April 2018 - Invited by LV= to renew annual policy. Up more than 25% on previous year's premium, presumably mostly because the wife and I are a year older. Of course I'd need to renew if I wanted to claim for cancellation of my inexpensive holiday later in the month. A call reveals that any new condition that occurred during the past year must be declared NOW or else my cover would exclude it.

Thus I must declare my damaged knee. This will result in a requote. Realising that it's a condition that could easily result in cancellation of my upcoming holiday I can imagine the premium will look a lot like the cost of the holiday !

So it's just another example of the old adage "heads the insurer wins, tails you lose".

Of course if I'd gone for a separate policy for each trip then I'd automatically be covered for my upcoming holiday, as the condition has occurred since I booked the trip (and would have bought the insurance).

So it's certainly something worth bearing in mind when choosing holiday insurance.

Right now I'll be booking no new significant holidays until the NHS sort out my knee. Lord knows when that will be, the orthopaedic surgeon talks about a knee replacement "in the fullness of time", but right now I can't walk very far. So an annual multi-trip policy makes no sense for me at the moment.

I'll probably go on my holiday later this month, covered by a single-trip policy that of course will not cover my knee problem. Grin and bear it !

jonesMUFCforever

''Grin and bear it'' is a stupid idea IMO. What if something serious goes wrong and you are hospitalised?

Make sure you are properly insured would be my suggestion even if it costs a little more.

Chordeiles

jonesMUFCforever wrote: »

What if something serious goes wrong and you are hospitalised?

But my knee is a known quantity now. It hurts and thereby stops me walking as far as I like. If I end up in hospital the reason will almost certainly be elsewhere.

I'm well used to travelling without declaring a pre-existing condition. I'm a prostate cancer "survivor", the head oncologist at the hospital where I received radiotherapy told me herself "you shouldn't be paying any extra for travel insurance, as far as we're concerned we have fixed you". These words were good to hear (but in real life I do have to manage a few side effects of radiotherapy). If I tell the insurance company this story they will load my policy. But I know that it won't be this history that messes up my trip, so I'm happy to take cover that excludes it.

Happily with LV= if you don't declare pre-existing conditions it doesn't invalidate the whole policy, it's just problems associated with pre-existing conditions that are excluded from cover.

Life is full of risks, this is a tiny one that I'm happy to take.

gromituk

I booked a travel insurance policy through the referral link from MSE. The form has an unticked box with the following: "I agree that Leisure Guard Lite Insurance can keep me up to date with the latest product and marketing information by email."

I never tick these boxes.

Two days after the policy expires, what do I get? An email from Leisure Guard punting me pet insurance.

As usual, the response from the company is "we'll take you off our mailing list" rather than "oh no, we're breaking the law, we must look into it and ensure that it never happens to anyone ever again."

I've submitted an official complaint. Apparently they have 8 weeks to address it...

buckdall

I have read many newsletters that have said insure as soon as you book. So I did! However I was only asked for my dates of travel. Am I really insured from the time I took the policy? Or am I covered only for the dates I declared?
Also, for how long after return am I still insured? In case I bring back lergy!!!

EssexExile

If any insured risk causes you to cancel your holiday between taking out insurance & travelling you are covered. If you bring back the lergy it will be treated by the NHS & not cost you anything.

rax3

Has anyone ever flown to Malaga, Spain way to Marbella? Getting from Malaga airport sounds like a long journey on the bus. Do you have any advice or suggestions on how to get from Malaga airport please?

MallyGirl

not relevant to a discussion about travel insurance

athonjon

Hi. Just thought I'd share the deal I just bought..

I'm a 35 year old male with no health conditions, and I'm going to Tunisia for two weeks in about a week's time.

I've bought an annual multi-trip policy for £7.87 through Coverwise, (I was going to buy a single trip policy, but it was roughly double the price through this company). I might get some cashback on top (20% through topcashback today).

NB Tunisia is considered part of Europe with this company. The levels of cover compared favourably with Allianz and Insure and Go (who also include Tunisia under European cover). This policy doesn't include things like winter sports etc.

fred_quimby

Hope someone on here can help. We are going to New Zealand in January to visit family for 3 months. We are both over 65 but under 70 and it looks like the cheapest travel insurance will be over £400. Is there a cheaper way of doing it please? Thanks