Cost of Medical For Insurance for cancelled Holiday

TomLikesSausages

Our neighbours had to cancel their holiday on the day before they travelled due to ill health. On that day they went to see the doctor who said one of them had a bad virus and was unfit to travel the following day. They are covered by insurance and understood they would have to pay a £50 excess for the cancellation or "No show" which is what this claim was classified as. Obviously they had to get various forms from the insurance company to complete including a medical certificate from their GP. They were flabagasted when their doctor said there was a £40 charge for issuing this certificate. We think this is disgraceful . We appreciate perhaps a small administration charge of £10 to £15 but £40 seems far too steep. Is this common with all GP's or a standard charge made under the NHS. Our neighbours also told us this charge is not recoverable from the insurance company.

photome

TomLikesSausages wrote: »

Our neighbours had to cancel their holiday on the day before they travelled due to ill health. On that day they went to see the doctor who said one of them had a bad virus and was unfit to travel the following day. They are covered by insurance and understood they would have to pay a £50 excess for the cancellation or "No show" which is what this claim was classified as. Obviously they had to get various forms from the insurance company to complete including a medical certificate from their GP. They were flabagasted when their doctor said there was a £40 charge for issuing this certificate. We think this is disgraceful . We appreciate perhaps a small administration charge of £10 to £15 but £40 seems far too steep. Is this common with all GP's or a standard charge made under the NHS. Our neighbours also told us this charge is not recoverable from the insurance company.

AFAIK GPs can charge what they like, and you are right it isnt recoverable

cockaleekee

In completing the forms, the doctor is providing a private service. Hence, they may charge as much as they wish. If you feel it is too much, compare it to what a solicitor would charge for completing a form - you'll find you have got a bargain.

Bob_the_Saver

Forty quid!

That's enough for 2 'return' international flights with Ryanair.

Magic_Moments

We know people who were only charged £20 for this service, so there does not seem to be a fixed fee.

Tuesday_Tenor

I was charged £10.
Never had to get a certificate of this nature before and was naive enough not to realise there'd be a fee!
I was getting a refund for an off-peak rail ticket after being unable to travel as fractured my arm very badly the day before. Refundable with £10 admin fee, which I thought reasonable. However rail company encouraged me to get a doctor's letter as even the £10 would be waived for medical reason for not travelling.
Surgery took 14 days to get letter sorted, then charged me the £10, so there'd been no point doing it at all!

And if it'd been £40 I'd have been well out of pocket!

SteveJW

My surgery has a scale of charges displayed for things like this, it includes
Signing
Driving license applications
Passport applications
Shotgun license applications

My doctor does however give me private prescriptions for free, still have to pay for the medication (malaria tablets)

HitAndMiss

My son was charged £30 for this certificate last year. He did visit the doctor 2 days before he was due to go on holiday and he was told he was unfit to travel so it was not a case of not having consulted his GP.Th doctor said he should be OK in about 5 days after he was due to leave!! It seems there is no set rule or amount.

PaulPonting

My fathe,r who is a pensioner, was takenill last autumn and was unable to travel 2weeks later on his doctor's advise. He was not charged for the medical certificate for his insurance company. This shows every GP practice does have seperate rules and charges. Thankfully my father has fully recovered and has booked another holiday in May. He has declared his condition, which is not very serious, to the insurance company a who had added an additional premium to cover his condition. Always declare any medical condition to the insurance company even if it means paying more, otherwise you may not be covered.

Yellow_Is_The_Colour

I never knew Doctors charged for this sevice. I can understand a £10 to £15 fee for administration but some of the figures quoted in some of the above posts seem excessive. As when you visit your GP it is part of the the NHS surely there should be a standard charge that could be waived as the GP's discretion.Whilst I am not a pensioner or excempt for any reason surely people in this group should get it free like a prescription.

stephb34

Yellow_Is_The_Colour wrote: »

I never knew Doctors charged for this sevice. I can understand a £10 to £15 fee for administration but some of the figures quoted in some of the above posts seem excessive. As when you visit your GP it is part of the the NHS surely there should be a standard charge that could be waived as the GP's discretion.Whilst I am not a pensioner or excempt for any reason surely people in this group should get it free like a prescription.

Why should they get it free if you can afford to go on holiday you can afford a cancellation letter.