Travel Insurance for People With Epilepsy

[Dusty1949]

Hi,

I'm new to the group and trying to arrange travel Ins for myself.

It seems nigh impossible these days to speak to a human, they all seem to be automated.

Some questions are difficult to answer with a straight yes/no answer. Can you recommend any insurance companies where you can actually converse with the person on the other end of the phone that is aware of your epilepsy?

kind regards

Keith Miller

[EpilepsyAction1 Partner Epilepsy Action]

Hi Dusty1949

At the moment Epilepsy Action don't have any agreement with a holiday insurance company.

In the past it was with a company called Insurancewith. You could still contact them for a quote. insurancewith.com/

You may also wish to do a general insurance search on the web. Most companies will give you the option of phone.

I hope this is of help.

Regards

Diane

Helpline Team

[Considine in reply to EpilepsyAction1]

Hello KeithIt is a concern/worry and as such seizure inducing. I have a Nationwide Building Society account which for a monthly fee has a range of benefits such as car breakdown which is now with the AA. The account also has travel insurance and for an additional premium I get cover which is reassuring. At the end of June I'm travelling again and will be researching alternatives in terms of level of cover and cost. Having recently passed the 3 score year and ten milestone I know some companies raise the cost.

I would be interested to learn what you decide to do. As a Which member I will have a look on their website to see if it recommends any companies for medical conditions and report back.

[Considine]

Hello again. In June 21 Which did a feature article regarding the best travel insurance for those with a medical condition. If your found to have withheld information your insurer could/would consider your policy invalid. I assume most people will know that. However, less obvious is that some conditions are automatically excluded so an epoleptic might pay for a policy and not be covered. I think Epilepsy Action needs to research and advise.Which reports that there are specialist providers who strive to provide insurance cover for clients that struggle elsewhere.

MEDICAL SCREENING: when searching for quotes from different companies you are likely to be asked the same questions. The specialist insurance companies employ a handful of agencies/companies to perform the task of medical screening. Most use a company called 'Verisk'. However each insurance company will make its own decision regarding the policy offered and its price using the same screening process and score.

Which lists 22 policies and gives them a % score. The top 5 were

Holiday Extras Platinum Policy 73%

All Clear Platinum Policy 72%

Staysure Comprehensive Policy 72%

Direct Travel PremierPlus Policy 70%

Saga 68%

In 4th position is Direct Travel's Premier Plus Policy rated 70% and its Budget Policy was last of the twenty two rated at just 35%.

Of the top five each used Verisk to do their medical screening with the exception of the 2nd placed All Clear Platinum which uses a screening company named 'in house'.

It is obviously vital to read the actual policy to ensure your not automatically excluded and to learn what you are actually covered for.

The Financial Conduct Authority has created a directory of insurance companies that have a proven specialism in covering people with specific medical conditions.

I hope Epilepsy Action can work in partnership with a company to enable epileptics to secure adequate cover at a competitive price according to individual circumstances.

[Dusty1949 in reply to Considine]

Hi Considine, thanks for all the research you have done, it is greatly appreciated. I now have travel Insurance with "All Clear's Platinum Policy" after being put in touch with them through a broker. I was able to speak to a person although many of the questions asked were very similar to the Verisk automated questions. Thanks once again

Dusty1949

[GillyA]

I can’t give a specific provider, but the other option is to do it the old fashioned way and go to an insurance broker and get them to do the work. They will often know which companies are the best starting place for more complex circumstances.

[Dusty1949]

Hi GillyA, I did indeed go through a broker in the end who put me in touch with "All Clear".Regards

Dusty1949