E111

SteveyJC

Do I need a E111 if I have already bought proper travel insurance?

The reason I ask, is I am taking my gf away for a surprise, and asking her to bring an E111 will give the surprise away. Dont worry I can get her passport easily enough!

SC

mystic_trev

Check the Policy wording as some (not many - as far as I'm aware!) Insurers insist on you having an E111

zzzLazyDaisy

provided there is nothing in your travel insurance requiring you to have an E111 there is no obligation to get one.


In any case, they are of limited use. They only apply within the EU, and, even then, many of the medical centres, doctors, and hospitals are private, and they don't accept the E111.

My friend broke her arm in Greece recently. The hotel called the nearest medical centre and they sent a car. We were there and back with her arm set, within an hour. They were brilliant. But it was only later that we discovered that they were private and wouldn't have accepted E111 anyway. The nearest hospital that would have accepted it was over an hour's drive away over poor bumpy roads. And we would have had to arrange our own transport.

So, ALWAYS have private medical insurance first and foremost!!!

NOWSE

A note of caution re E111s.

Apparently forms issued prior to the start of the year are worthless. Anyone having one of these should obtain a fresh one, which will only run until the end of this year.

Twopints

You can get the E111 for her yourself.

You need her NI number or National Health number and then complete the form, take to Post Office to get stamped - that's it, she doesn't need to sign it. (Note: you will need to sign the form, and there's a declaration that the people on the form have given their consent to their details being put on the form. I'll leave it to you to decide if you are happy to sign )

Click here for E111 forms

Twopints

NOWSE wrote:

A note of caution re E111s.

Apparently forms issued prior to the start of the year are worthless. Anyone having one of these should obtain a fresh one, which will only run until the end of this year.

Not sure about worthless, but the current forms are only valid until 31st December 2005. The forms are being replaced by European Health Insurance Cards, but if you fill in the form now you have the option (a tickbox) to have a card sent automatically when they are available later this year.

EDIT: Nowse is quite correct that forms issued prior to this year are invalid (worthless!) . You need a valid one for it to be worth anything.

Ria

I don't think E111 is worthless. I had an accident in Spain at Christmas and my treatment at a local clinic and the hospital was all done on E111 as it was emergency treatment.
Having said that I would always take private insurance policy as well as E111 only covers for emergency treatment.

Twopints

Agreed. But I misread Nowse's post. He/she is correct that E111's issued prior to this year are not valid. I have edited my previous post.