Travel insurance

Wanderer2024

Dear All

I have been reading reviews of various insurance providers on trust pilot and I am finding it difficult to find an insurance provider which has a good claim ratio. And recommendations of a company which actually pays out? I am looking to buy an annual multi trip travel insurance in UK for worldwide travel excluding US. Thank you.

TELLIT01

If you have a packaged bank account i.e. one which has a monthly charge, have you checked for travel insurance as part of the package?

sheramber

Were the  complaints about not paying out justified or did people not take care to check what  cover they had but instead assumed  they had that cover? 

NoodleDoodleMan

TELLIT01 said:

If you have a packaged bank account i.e. one which has a monthly charge, have you checked for travel insurance as part of the package?

Good call - their travel cover providers are major league insurance companies such as AXA and Aviva.

They will honour claims which are justified within the terms of the policy.

I would hesitate to read too much into Trust Pilot reviews without drilling deeper into the details of why a claim was rejected.

MyRealNameToo

Wanderer2024 said:

Dear All

I have been reading reviews of various insurance providers on trust pilot and I am finding it difficult to find an insurance provider which has a good claim ratio. And recommendations of a company which actually pays out? I am looking to buy an annual multi trip travel insurance in UK for worldwide travel excluding US. Thank you.

Looking at the claims acceptance rate its amusing how the rates vary, worldwide annual policies pay out 82% of claims whereas for single trip its 73%

Most insurers use the identical terms for both so if it's not the terms driving the difference it must be the consumer. Potentially those who travel regularly so buy an annual policy know what they are doing and what insurance covers whereas those who dont dont so put in lots more claims that would never be covered. 

In my experience most claims that arent paid out are because customers failed to declare medical conditions, stating that for some reason they didnt think they needed to mention their broken shoulder 5 months ago despite the question being "have you seen a medical professional, taking medication or suffered the symptoms of any medical condition or injury in the last 2 years".

A lot also get declined because there were other avenues, holiday company fails, they paid by card so it's a chargeback not an insurance claim. 

Finally are those claiming for things not insured... fell off a motorbike whilst drunk, broke up with g/friend so dont want to go anymore, granddad who's had cancer for 18 months took a turn for the worse. Even some stupid things still have to be logged as a claim and then formally declined rather than just laughing and saying no you can't claim the cost of a manicure for a broken fingernail at the airport on the way out (real case). 

NoodleDoodleMan

Finally are those claiming for things not insured... fell off a motorbike whilst drunk,

Apologies for veering off course a bit - Thomas Cook and Thomsons reps used to recommend local scooter etc. hire firms back in the day but ceased this practice due to the number of clients having accidents whilst under the influence of alcohol.

This rendered insurance null and void as well as potential criminal charges. The former obviously had implications for medical treatment not being covered.

Wanderer2024

Thank you for your replies. My bank doesn't offer travel insurance.

Any claim experience with Coverwise - they have very competitive rates and easy to buy process?

Also, if I have visited GP for experiencing fatigue and have got blood tests done but everything came out normal and I am not on any medication, do I still need to declare consulting GP?

MyRealNameToo

Wanderer2024 said:

Thank you for your replies. My bank doesn't offer travel insurance.

Any claim experience with Coverwise - they have very competitive rates and easy to buy process?

Also, if I have visited GP for experiencing fatigue and have got blood tests done but everything came out normal and I am not on any medication, do I still need to declare consulting GP?

What is the question they asked? Normally they its something like have you seen a medical professional, taking medication or suffered symptoms of any condition/injury in the last X years.

Assuming thats the question they are asking you it would be an uphill struggle to claim you dont think your GP is professional hence why you answered no - they'll assume it's fraud. 

TELLIT01

The policy I have asked for ANY appointments with GP or as hospital inpatient or outpatient in the past 6 months.  Do not make the potentially expensive mistake of thinking something doesn't matter.  If in any doubt, declare it.

2childmum2

I have struggled with declaring having tests and there being no diagnosis. Filling in the online form is impossible - they ask for a medical condition and I don't have one as the tests all came back fine. Even when I phoned they just kept asking for a diagnosis. Sometimes on the phone they are willing to add a note that I have had tests and nothing was found,so that they have logged I have declared it 

If you put ' fatigue ' in when declaring medical conditions what does it ask next?

NoodleDoodleMan

"Thank you for your replies. My bank doesn't offer travel insurance."

That's not a problem.

There's no reason why you can't set up an account with one of the banks that does offer packaged deals including travel insurance.

We did that with Nationwide FlexPlus and pay in £18 monthly by standing order from our main bank account.....that satisfies the terms and conditions for the Aviva deal.