Travel Insurance

[valthomas15]

I am planning a trip to Spain to visit my daughter and the quotes for travel insurance are horrendous once you declare AF which of course is a must. I am therefore thinking of travelling on the Government Health Card arrangements and wonder if anyone has experienced having AF whilst abroad and having to use the card? Thanks

[tealdozer]

I have AF and travel to Spain regularly, don't think I would like to rely solely on GHC, I use an annual policy with Admiral which cost me £99 this year which includes cover for my AF, which I thought was very reasonable considering I'm 72 !

[valthomas15 in reply to tealdozer]

Thank you I shall look at it.

[Hidden]

Personally, I don’t think it would be a wise move. I have no idea what the treatment situation is like in Spain, but as I understand it, the card provides very basic cover based on how they treat the Spanish population. Not wishing to be disrespectful, but at your tender years, you could be subject to all kinds of non AF related health issues so you ought to consider the wider risk issues of not having adequate travel insurance. I’m with Staysure at the moment and have also used Admiral but touch wood, have never made a claim but you don’t really know how good they are until you make one. Hope you get it sorted and have a lovely time with your family. Bearing in mind the weather, stay hydrated during the flights and whilst you are there…..

[valthomas15 in reply to Hidden]

Yes I think we will go with the insurance. Thank you for your reply.

[CDreamer]

I really wouldn’t chance it - insurance for Spain is always more expensive than rest of Europe. Also read the policy VERY carefully. You will need to pay for any expenses up front and reclaim expenses on return for UK.

You will also find that most insurance won’t cover private hospitals in Spain so read the small print VERY carefully and you will need to pay for food as that’s not included in public hospitals.

Having said all of that I always had excellent care in Spain, far superior to UK but we took out cover in Spain - worked out a lot cheaper.

Age is normally more of a factor than AF - I paid mane £20/ week for Lone AF medical cover 10 years ago? Not tried recently though.

[valthomas15 in reply to CDreamer]

Thanks for your reply, you have persuaded me.

[Wellperson]

Had AF and ablation ,have been to Italy recently , insured with StaySure who specialise in pre-existing medical conditions ,cost about £100.

[Wellperson in reply to Wellperson]

Also I should add I am 73.

[emv54 in reply to Wellperson]

Also use StaySure — very competitive and good cover. That said, I've never had to claim! I'd also be wary of relying on reciprocal post-Brexit agreements.

[JeanetteH]

I insured with Staysure but when i said I was on the waiting list for a pacemaker they declined my insurance even tho my health was no worse and I had told doctors I did not want the pacemaker till after my holiday so I was not going to cancel because of it.I went with All Clear.Its not just health insurance you need to think about but also the cost of repatriation which GHIC card wont cover.

[Maggimunro in reply to JeanetteH]

some friends of mine were with Staysure and they declined when he made a claim

[Frances123]

I have just recently taken out some travel insurance with Saga which cost £124. The Afib side of it was a doddle. It was the other bits and pieces that put it up. I could have got it cheaper with some companies but I wasn’t prepared to take the risk with some Mickey Mouse place I’d never heard of. Staysure refused to cover me because I am waiting to see a consultant. No treatment, tests or investigations etc but they still refused. Saga on the other hand said fine.

[southkorea]

Have you tried insuring through your bank? They are usually cheaper

[JeanetteH in reply to southkorea]

I dont think they cover pre existing conditions ? Also ive read there are age restrictions?

[Omniscient1]

Yes, I have always insured,I have always telephoned not do e it online, and the AF part has been fine. You Also are insured against bags going missing, delays, early returns etc... Which you don't get with just the health card.

[kitchengardener2]

We have an annual policy with All Clear which cover us for Europe, no cruise cover. I have Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia and my husband has blood pressure problems. Not cheap but I wouldn't travel without it.

[Jetcat]

I’m sure you’ll find one. I holiday in Spain and actually just came back from almeria and have never had a problem finding insurance at a reasonable price.👍

[pottypete1]

Try Rias Travel Insurance. They specialise in travel insurance for those of us who have a medical condition.

Pete

[pottypete1]

rias.co.uk/travel-insurance/

[Samazeuilh2]

Out of interest, what was the quote? I’m travelling to Rome in September.

[valthomas15 in reply to Samazeuilh2]

I am travelling with my husband and we are both 80 years old, some of the companies would not insure over 80's, and we wanted an annual multi trip policy. My husband has no pre existing health conditions. So we have now accepted a policy for the two of us from Avanti for £536. We looked at other companies but were all pretty similar.

[Samazeuilh2 in reply to valthomas15]

Thanks.

[KMRobbo]

Try CoverForYou, never has a problem with them.

[Pab1]

I need World Wide cover to visit my son in USA for which it is a whole new expensive ball game. Having researched Staysure and all the others found that transferring my bank account from barclays (who would not touch me) to Natwest was in the end significantly the cheapest and they accepted Afib, pacemaker etc (with a premium)

[rubyr61]

if you go to spain and take ill you will be taken to a private hospital and billed for it even when they have past an hospital the insurence company told me that

[lynneangela]

We have just brought 1 weeks holiday insurance to Spain with this company called insurancewith.com l have multiple comorbidities and husband multiple myeloma, £147 total insurance. I did it over the phone. Brilliant lady was a real help.

[Tomred]

Have a look at post office.

[TheBoys]

InsuranceWith are excellent-a bit expensive but gave me peace of mind - and depending on where you are travelling to, the Spanish Health system is superb.

Make sure you take details of your meds/conditions with you - in case; perhaps get it translated? All the best and have a good holiday.

[Nick1957]

I have Nat West travel insurance attached to my £15 a month bank account fee - which does include vehicle breakdown cover phone cover the usual garb. I pay an additional extra £100 to cover my AF history even tho I'm 2 years in NSR with no blips. That's covers me my wife and family - I think it's value for money!!