Help with Travel Insurance to cancel holiday

Angry_Bear

I'm supposed to be off to Egypt on the 1st of June but my OH has slipped a disc in his back. We're not sure yet if he will be fit to go (we dive, so just being able to travel isn't quite enough).
We have an annual insurance policy that expires tomorrow (typical!) and of course, we haven't got it's replacement in yet.

My OH is going to the minor injuries unit today to get checked over and try to find out whether he'll be fit to fly, although he might not know for sure how he's healing for another week.

I'm trying to work out my best course of action in case we have to cancel or reschedule:

• Am I likely to be able to claim on our existing policy?
• Should I try to get another policy noe before he has seen a doctor and it is officially and "existing" condition?
• If I extend my existing policy, would it cover this period?
• Is there something else I could/should do?
• Am I totally screwed by the timing and will just have to take the cost hit?
• Does it completely depend on the policy wording?

Thanks in advance for any help!

InsideInsurance

Angry_Bear wrote: »

[1]Am I likely to be able to claim on our existing policy? [2]Should I try to get another policy noe before he has seen a doctor and it is officially and "existing" condition? [3]If I extend my existing policy, would it cover this period? [4]Is there something else I could/should do? [5]Am I totally screwed by the timing and will just have to take the cost hit? [6]Does it completely depend on the policy wording?

1) Yes, if the Dr says before tomorrow that he isnt fit to travel, if they want to play it by ear and see how it goes for the next week or two then no

2) No, its a pre-existing condition irrespective of if its diagnosed or not. Undiagnosed symptoms make insurers even more scared than diagnosed and treated conditions

3) You'd still need to declare the condition for the new policy, you cannot extend the existing policy simply you are buying a new policy for another year

4) Speak to your insurers and take their advice, particularly the claims department

5) Possibly, unfortunately this is the one disadvantage of annual cover -v- either single trip or continuous cover that you get with bank accounts etc

6) It does ultimately depend on both their wording and what their company policy is. I've done work with companies that specialise in white label Travel (ie if your a non-insurance company and want an easy way to flog travel insurance to your existing customers) and the wholesale price was dependent on how much leeway on the terms they wanted their customers to be given etc.

Angry_Bear

Thanks for that. I guess mostly what I expected

I guess we'll see what the Dr says today and take our gamble on whether to cancel now or take the hit.

littlereddevil

I flew to Cyprus with a slipped disc

Hermione_Granger

littlereddevil wrote: »

I flew to Cyprus with a slipped disc

And your point is?


The OP has already stated that simply being fit enough to fly isn't enough due to them going to Egypt specifically for diving.

littlereddevil

I assumed a doctor just stated fit to fly or not. Sorry

Angry_Bear

littlereddevil wrote: »

I assumed a doctor just stated fit to fly or not. Sorry

As it turns out, the doctor wouldn't commit today as to whether he'll be "enough" better in 2 weeks or definitely not.
Slightly better news is that it looks like we can move various dates around with a reduced cost (flights and hotel - our dive company will reschedule us for free ) and both our work are happy for us to reschedule our holidays. So not too catashtrophic.