Travel insurance for a child that isn't mine?

debsterrr

I'm taking my daughter and her best friend on holiday to USA next month and just wondering about travel insurance. Do I need to get travel insurance that covers all of us (because I paid and it'll be easier to claim for all 3 of us if something went wrong?), or does her family have to get her travel insurance because she's not part of my family?

Also, when I've gone to get a quote I either get options of individual, family, or group (but group normally implies adults only)

Really not sure what to do for the best

Thanks in advance

stephb34

Check with her family if they have an annual policy for their family then you won't need to get one. How old is she because if she's 18 then she would need her own policy. You can get it for her but you need to know about her medical issues. The most important thing I would look for is the excess on the policies. It would be silly to get a £5 policy if you have to pay £300+ if you needed to make a claim.

martindow

I suppose there would be an issue if someone was unable to travel and everybody decided they did not want to go. If one of you broke their leg the day before the holiday, for instance.

If your party is insured by two separate policies this situation would probably not be insured.

Even so for the USA, insurance is essential even if cancellation is not fully covered.

peachyprice

You can do either, a group policy with most insurers is for non-related passengers travelling together, or you can ask the child's parents to arrange their own insurance for their child. Not all insurers will allow a single policy for a child so if you choose this option they may have to shop around a bit, but it is possible.

As an aside, have you really not got insurance yet for your own family?

PeacefulWaters

stephb34 wrote: »

Check with her family if they have an annual policy for their family then you won't need to get one.

As long as that policy allows for the child travelling with non-family members.

How old is she because if she's 18 then she would need her own policy.

It depends on the policy. My 19 year old was covered to travel by himself by his Mum's bank account insurance. Full time education extending the age limit to 23.

Different policies will have different wordings. Your words may be accurate but equally they may be incorrect in this specific case.

Advice to OP is to check what cover the child's family has and make sure they read the wording very carefully. Then take things from there.

agrinnall

peachyprice wrote: »

As an aside, have you really not got insurance yet for your own family?

:eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek:

debsterrr

Both children are 12.

And I only booked the holiday a few days ago so just started looking at insurance now.

I doubt my daughters friend has any travel insurance as they haven't been away for years and in fact the girl I'm taking has never been abroad!

Whatever I choose to do I will DEFINITELY get insurance as I have to cover my daughter for a pre-existing condition and I've seen how expensive things can get if anything goes wrong

shaun_from_Africa

debsterrr wrote: »

And I only booked the holiday a few days ago so just started looking at insurance now.

You should really make this a priority.
It's always advisable to get insurance as soon as any part of the holiday is booked to ensure that you will be covered should something arise that requires cancellation or delay.
Even if it's a policy for a specific holiday (rather than an annual policy), you will still be covered from the day the policy is issued.

zagfles

shaun_from_Africa wrote: »

You should really make this a priority.
It's always advisable to get insurance as soon as any part of the holiday is booked to ensure that you will be covered should something arise that requires cancellation or delay.
Even if it's a policy for a specific holiday (rather than an annual policy), you will still be covered from the day the policy is issued.

There's a lot of hysteria on this point. It's not always advisable, if for instance you've booked cancellable flights and hotel reservations there's no urgency to get travel insurance till before you travel.

The really essential thing for travel to the USA is to make sure you have medical cover and any pre-existing medical conditions are declared and covered.

zagfles

debsterrr wrote: »

Both children are 12.

And I only booked the holiday a few days ago so just started looking at insurance now.

I doubt my daughters friend has any travel insurance as they haven't been away for years and in fact the girl I'm taking has never been abroad!

Whatever I choose to do I will DEFINITELY get insurance as I have to cover my daughter for a pre-existing condition and I've seen how expensive things can get if anything goes wrong

The other thing to look into is there are now silly rules about taking other peoples' children out of the country - you might need a letter from her parents giving you permission to take her. Not sure how this works - I can't see how a letter could be proof of parental consent as anyone could have written the letter, but you'd best look into this.

sheramber

You should also have written consent to authorise medical treatment if needed .