Travel Insurance For Pre-Existing Conditions

Quick questions

• What's typically covered under a travel insurance policy?

  Every travel insurance policy covers different things but all offer a varying degree of cover for:

  Medical treatment
  Unforeseen illnesses, injuries or accidents will be covered under the medical section of your policy – absolutely crucial as you have pre-existing medical conditions. This covers the cost of receiving treatment overseas – including dental emergencies in most cases – and repatriation, the cost of having to fly you back to the UK. 
  
  On a more morbid note, most policies cover cremation costs or the repatriation of a body should you or someone else covered under the policy die during your holiday.
  
  Cancellation 
  Travel policies also cover cancellation if you can no longer go on your holiday or you need to come back early. However, there needs to be a valid reason for you to abandon your trip. Being made redundant, having to do jury service, or having to take care of a seriously ill family member are among valid reasons.

  However, many travel insurers will no longer cover Foreign Office advisories for new customers, as – with coronavirus being declared a pandemic – it's no longer an unexpected event.
  
  But if you decide you no longer fancy a trip to the Canary Islands because you would rather go to the Maldives, or you want to return to the UK because you forgot to put EastEnders on series record, your claim would probably be rejected.

  Important: You need to know that new policies won't cover you against coronavirus-related cancellation, or if you're travelling against Foreign Office advice.

  
  Baggage and personal belongings
  Your travel policy will also cover you if your stuff is lost, stolen or damaged while you are on holiday. Almost everything you take overseas, including computers, phones, cameras and expensive clothing is included – but always check the policy limits. Many providers will also cover you for the loss of a passport, cash or a driving licence. 
  
  However, policies can differ wildly both in the amount covered and in the excess – the amount you have to pay towards the claim yourself. For example, items such as cash or expensive goods can be subject to an additional higher excess.

  Personal liability
  Personal liability protects others and their property from accidents you may cause while on holiday. For example, the personal liability element of your insurance would cover you if, during a skiing trip, you crashed into another skier and injured them. Insurers will typically cover you for up to £2 million, which is generally more than enough. 
  
  Delays
  Travel schedules are often the victim of adverse weather, so delay cover is one of the more important aspects of travel insurance. Most policies cover against more than just storms, with many including events such as industrial action and mechanical breakdown. 
  
  If your flight's been delayed for more than three hours or it's been cancelled you may be able to claim compensation of up to £520 directly from the airline. However, the reason for the delay or cancellation must be the airline's fault, so bad weather, for example, won't count.

  This compensation is only for EU-regulated flights. An EU flight is where the flight departed from an EU airport, regardless of the airline OR where an EU airline landed at an EU airport. Under this law, EU airports also include those in Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. See our Flight Delay Compensation guide for more info.

  If this doesn't apply – perhaps because you flew from and to an airport outside the EU – you can also try making a claim on your travel insurance policy. Insurers typically pay out for each 12-hour period you've been delayed, but the payouts are often tiny compared with what you can get from your airline so always go down that route if you can.

• What is typically left out of travel insurance cover?

  Like all insurance policies, there are a number of things that providers will not pay out for. Here are the most common:

  Alcohol-related injury
  You may be on holiday to unwind but if you are injured while you are more than just a little tipsy, your insurer is likely to reject your claim. The same goes for drugs. Insurers have different classifications of 'drunk', with some using blood alcohol limits, so check your policy carefully before you buy.

  Medical conditions
  Most insurers will cover you if you have a pre-existing medical condition, especially if it is not severe. If you have a minor health condition, such as mild asthma, you may be able to get cover cheaply but if you have a more severe condition, such as cancer, buying insurance will be more expensive or you may be declined cover entirely. 
  
  However, if you fail to tell your insurer and then need treatment for that condition, or a related condition, you won't be covered. So if you have asthma and don't tell your insurer and, during your holiday, you have an asthma attack or any breathing-related difficulty, you are unlikely to be covered.

  You may also struggle to get a claim paid if you ignore advised medication or jabs needed to enter a country. For example, if you go to Kenya and decide against getting jabs for diphtheria, hepatitis A, polio, tetanus and typhoid, do not expect your insurer to foot the bill if the worst happens.

  Dangerous sports
  If you're going on an adventure holiday, or you are planning to take a winter sports break, you must get extra cover or a specialist policy. Taking to the Alps for a spot of snowboarding with just a basic travel insurance policy is a risk not worth taking. If you get injured you could end up paying £10,000s in medical bills.

  Unattended possessions
  Travel insurance will cover your possessions when you are abroad but it doesn't mean you can be gung ho with your stuff. If you leave your items unattended and they are stolen, your insurer will not pay for their replacement.

  Travel to 'dangerous' countries
  The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) outlines which countries it deems to be unsafe for travel. If you travel to a country on the FCO's list, your cover is likely to be invalid (unless it's declared unsafe after you've booked – and even then, some insurers are not covering anything coronavirus-related). Check out the FCO's current travel advice for more.

• Does it matter which country I am going to?

  Insurers will classify your trip as European or worldwide. Worldwide is often further broken down to include or exclude the US, with cover that includes the latter usually more expensive, due to the high cost of medical treatment in the US.

  European annual travel cover isn't just for Europe
  If you're travelling just outside Europe, you don't always have to select worldwide cover as many insurers actually allow you to use their European cover in a handful of non-European countries.
  
  So if you're visiting Egypt, Morocco, Turkey or Tunisia, it's worth getting a quotation for European cover first and then checking the policy's geographical area definition to see if the country you're going to is included. 

  It's also worth noting that not all insurers automatically include Spain (and the Balearic/Canary Islands) in their European cover – you may have to pay extra to include Spain if you plan to travel there.

  As always, check your policy to make sure you're getting the right cover.

• Am I covered for trips in the UK?

  Standard travel insurance covers you in the UK but the cover here is not as powerful as when overseas. However, it can still prove useful, so you'll need to weigh up the pros and cons.

  Travel insurance in the UK offers all the usual protections you'd get abroad, such as theft of valuables and cancellation, though you normally aren't covered for hospital treatment but that's not such an issue given you should be able to use the NHS.

  That said, you'll still need to declare all pre-existing conditions as insurers want to know how likely you are to have to be driven or airlifted home in a medical emergency. Problem is not all trips are covered, eg, most insurers only cover you if you've booked accommodation.

  But there can be other restrictions, so check policies carefully as they can vary. Bear in mind that many insurers are amending what's covered or stopping sales of new travel insurance policies. Always check that any travel insurance will cover what you need it to.

• What is an excess and how does it work?

  An excess is the amount you have to pay towards any claim you make. For example, if you cancel a trip and are entitled to £3,000 back from your insurer but have a £500 excess, you will only receive £2,500.

  However, many travel insurance products have separate excesses for different sections of the policy. For instance, some providers may make you pay an excess on both stolen cash and luggage. So if your suitcase was nicked and your wallet was inside you would have to pay an excess on both.

  If you have a group policy you may also have to pay an excess for each person for any loss that impacts your entire party, such as cancellation. It is important to check all excesses so you know exactly what you will have to pay if you make a claim.

• Does it matter what type of holiday I'm going on?

  Most travel insurance policies are designed to cover package holidays, as historically that's how 90% of us booked our holidays, and not all providers have kept up. This leaves them ill-equipped to cover DIY trips, where flights and accommodation are booked separately.

  The biggest issue is a lack of cover for knock-on consequences. If a policy covers scheduled airline failure, for example, and the airline goes under, you'd typically be able to claim for the flights and any consequential losses, such as hotel costs. Without this cover, you'd lose the money you paid for it.

  To beat this, you need a policy that specifically covers 'indirect loss' or 'scheduled airline failure'. Check the small print as more insurers are including this cover as standard or as an optional extra.

  Remember, package holidays feature extra ATOL and ABTA protection. And as of 1 July 2018, you're fully protected if you create a DIY package by selecting elements separately via the same website (or shop or call centre) and then buy them in the SAME transaction. See Holiday Rights: ATOL, ABTA, cancellations & delays explained for more.

• What should I check in my policy before I buy?

  As with any insurance product, check all the terms, conditions, exclusions and inclusions before you buy. Travelling without the right cover can leave you seriously out of pocket. As a traveller with pre-existing medical conditions you MUST check that all conditions you have now or have had in the past are declared and covered.

  Remember to check your excesses too. High excesses may result in a cheaper policy but should only be considered if you can afford to front a large portion of the costs of any claim yourself.