Admiral travel insurance- disgusting company

NCO99

Took out Admiral travel insurance when I booked my holiday back in February. A few days before I'm due to go on holiday, I get a call to say my sister is in hospital on end-of-life care. She has been an alcoholic for years, excluded all people from her life and she has been very secretive about her life.

As her next of kin, I go to the hospital and spend her last few days sat at her bedside. 
Obviously, I need to cancel my holiday so I let Admiral know.

I just get really rude and smart replies from their advisors. Saying there is no claim unless I can prove this was not an existing condition- first, I have no right to access my sister's GP records and second, I have not been in touch with her for years. Nothing but faux sympathy leading to really insulting replies. 

I have many issues with the policy being sold- of course I am aware of pre-existing condition for myself and immediate family but other people? The insistence that you need to prove other people's previous health- this is contrary to GP confidentiality. Admiral have been sent a letter from the hospital doctor to say my sister is an inpatient for a terminal condition (with dates). The policy should not be sold without attention being drawn to the clauses as they are so punitive. Finally, their staff need completely retraining- I genuinely cannot believe how Admiral spoke to me and the email they sent. 

So avoid at all costs. Family and friends are equally appalled at Admiral. Even Jet2 are stepping as there cannot be much stronger grounds for dealing with a claim with some compassion.

Ayr_Rage

Sorry to hear of your loss.

However, the clauses are there for you to read before you take out the policy if you can be bothered to do so, most of us just skim over them at best.

Admiral are no different to other insurers and it is highly unlikely you would have been covered with anyone else.

TELLIT01

Were you aware that she is an alcoholic when you took out the policy?  If you can prove that she became alcoholic after you last had any dealings with her you may have grounds to appeal the decision.

I think it is a ridiculous expectation by insurers that you know everything about the medical history of family members, who may be living 100s of miles away and rarely have face to face contact. 

Hoenir

TELLIT01 said:

I think it is a ridiculous expectation by insurers that you know everything about the medical history of family members, who may be living 100s of miles away and rarely have face to face contact. 

Suspect that in the heat of the moment there was miscommunication of some kind. The front line operative may not have handled the enquiry in the best possible manner. Basic elements of insurance rely on disclosure of material fact at the outset.  Otherwise the risk won't be underwritten. 

eskbanker

NCO99 said:

of course I am aware of pre-existing condition for myself and immediate family but other people?

TELLIT01 said:

I think it is a ridiculous expectation by insurers that you know everything about the medical history of family members, who may be living 100s of miles away and rarely have face to face contact. 

But presumably the expectation is that you'd know enough about those close enough to you that you'd cancel a holiday for?

Brie

eskbanker said:

NCO99 said:

of course I am aware of pre-existing condition for myself and immediate family but other people?

TELLIT01 said:

I think it is a ridiculous expectation by insurers that you know everything about the medical history of family members, who may be living 100s of miles away and rarely have face to face contact. 

But presumably the expectation is that you'd know enough about those close enough to you that you'd cancel a holiday for?

My family, siblings, mom, often don't tell me what's happening despite me talking to them weekly.

elsien

Complaint to insurer followed by ombudsman? 

It’s not just Admiral, this has cropped up on here before with other insurers And I would imagine it’s about what’s reasonable for you to know or not know. 

eskbanker

Brie said:

eskbanker said:

NCO99 said:

of course I am aware of pre-existing condition for myself and immediate family but other people?

TELLIT01 said:

I think it is a ridiculous expectation by insurers that you know everything about the medical history of family members, who may be living 100s of miles away and rarely have face to face contact. 

But presumably the expectation is that you'd know enough about those close enough to you that you'd cancel a holiday for?

My family, siblings, mom, often don't tell me what's happening despite me talking to them weekly.

I'm sure you're far from alone, but the point is that an insurance company can't be expected to know about the degree of communication between family members, so can only realistically operate a one-size-fits-all policy, rather than effectively favouring those who have less dialogue with their families.

Bicycleman22

I think it is fair to say this is an area where you make a decision to cancel a holiday or not once you know if you are covered or not. Whats is pre existing and who is a close relative would need to be determined before cancelling as of course they dont ask those questions when taking out a policy..... I imagine all policies are the same as Admirals.

Misslayed

A former colleague had worked for a big insurance company in a previous career, she told us their company had an entire floor of their building devoted to finding ways to refuse claims, with splendid bonuses for those who worked there. Which is why she left and went into teaching. 

eskbanker

Bicycleman22 said:

I think it is fair to say this is an area where you make a decision to cancel a holiday or not once you know if you are covered or not.

I think that's a generalisation, in that I'm sure that many will cancel a holiday without first considering whether they'd be eligible to reimbursement.  However, the timing of any such check doesn't really make any difference to the issue at hand.

Bicycleman22 said:

Whats is pre existing and who is a close relative would need to be determined before cancelling as of course they dont ask those questions when taking out a policy.

The policy terms will clearly define who is categorised as close relatives - I don't know whether there's the opportunity to declare pre-existing conditions for such relatives at the time of taking out the policy though.