Medical insurance for Europe ? (1 Viewer)

[Charlie]

Talking to a pal and fellow motor homer last about our up and coming trip to France. The subject of medical insurance came up and he dismissed it as not being needed.

He says we have cover in Europe just as we do here in the UK and when he was taken ill in Italy the treatment he got was far better than he would have received here in the UK. The Italian medical services simply billed the NHS who effectively paid for his treatment.

We have sent off for the cards needed ready for our trip.

But as usual I would like to be sure before listening to just one opinion.

Thanks,

 

[chaser]

If you do decide to look for some insurance this is a good site to compare them
https://www.google.co.uk/compare/tr...dit&q=AIqED2QWB_7CohW2zCW-LBaEz6k&pref=PLKGC6

 

[Judge Mental]

Card works OK but you are treated the same as a local and its not like home as some services need paying for...

Plus if this important to you it dont include repatriation? So you can get stuck out there...

Have told Mrs Mental if I die just get me cremated locally and bring home in a plastic milk bottle.

In summary if your reasonably healthy and insurance not expensive silly not to have it. many have it for free ( or for a small additional cost) and don't know it via bank account etc....

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[Lenny HB]

Your friend is a bit nieve or has plenty of cash to spare.
In other countries you only get the same treatment as the locals, France for example if you need an operation you may have to pay up to 20% of the costs it could cost you thousands. An air ambulance to get you home about 10k etc.

If you are feeling lucky and have the cash for an emergency fine, I wouldn't risk it.

 

[Scattycat]

I believe that although there are reciprical agreements re European health cover you will probably find that it will only cover emergency treatment and as has been said not repatriation.
Also without proper insurance you will probably have to pay for meals and things like wound dressings etc.
In my opinion, for the cost it's not worth taking a chance, let's face it, would you drive your car or van without adequate insurance?
I don't know if it is the same in the UK but here our bank MasterCard covers us for medical costs and repatriation when abroad. It states so on the back of the card, it might be worth checking your cards

 

[bhs]

Mother in law developed pnemonia on one of our trips, hospitalised for 6 weeks, bill came to €17,000, although the EHIC covered the majority we had to pay for ambulance and some medicines upfront, recovery of monies spent plus extended stay expenses for us and subsequent repatriation handled by insurance company, very glad we had the cover. You will have to pay some medical coasts upfront and can claim some of it back, insurance companies will help with this process, Certainly wouldn't travel without it

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[SomeoneElse]

Time to read http://www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/Healthcareabroad/countryguide/Pages/EEAcountries.aspx

Note on right of page:

European countries not accepting an EHIC

The countries listed below do not accept a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC). Ensure you have adequate insurance before you travel.
​

• • Monaco
  • San Marino
  • The Channel Islands, including Guernsey, Alderney and Sark
  • The Vatican
  • The Isle of Man

 

[Irishrover]

It's relatively cheap to get Insurance, no sense in not having it....each to their own though...

 

[Cobweb]

The cost of travel insurance depends on many things and you have to declare any existing medical conditions as well as length of trips . We have a worldwide annual multi trip one which covers any travel during that period . if you do not have any medical conditions it should be fairly cheap . Even with travel insurance you should have the EHIC card which is the first thing asked for in any medical emergency and if you are lucky that may be all you need but as others have said does not cover repatriation . Personally I would not travel without insurance .

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[Lenny HB]

I don't know if it is the same in the UK but here our bank MasterCard covers us for medical costs and repatriation when abroad. It states so on the back of the card, it might be worth checking your cards

Many UK back accounts give good cover, Nationwide, Lloyds etc. We rely on our Lloyds account that gives world wide cover including winter sports if required, It's a very good policy 45 days in a single trip (can be extended at a cost) covers up to 80 years old. I know it works well a friend had a head injury in Barbados, after he was released from hospital they flew a nurse down from Canada to accompany him on the flight home and arranged a 1st class flight home for him & his wife.

 

[Feltwell]

A long way from Europe, but I know of someone on another forum who collapsed and went into a coma whilst on holiday in the Bahamas. To cut a long story short, a specialist was flown out from America, an air ambulance back to America with the specialist (nearest place with the right facilities), 6 weeks in an American hospital then an air ambulance with a nurse to the UK, followed by 3 months in hospital here. His wife was asked to sign a document at one point - she saw a figure on it of nearly 1 million US dollars. Thankfully they had full insurance.

As I said to him, some people really will do anything just to get some extra legroom on the place home

 

[Cobweb]

Many UK back accounts give good cover, Nationwide, Lloyds etc. We rely on our Lloyds account that gives world wide cover including winter sports if required, It's a very good policy 45 days in a single trip (can be extended at a cost) covers up to 80 years old. I know it works well a friend had a head injury in Barbados, after he was released from hospital they flew a nurse down from Canada to accompany him on the flight home and arranged a 1st class flight home for him & his wife.

Surely with any cover given by card of bank account you still have to declare any existing medical conditions and read the small print to see what you are covered for . We have such a card but reading the small print it would not give us the cover we need . We need very good insurance because we spend a lot of time sailing in Florida and the Bahamas and there any emergency would easily be millions . Europe should be a lot easier and cheaper to get cover for but in every case do read the small print and if not sure of anything call them .

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[John & Joan]

We were quoted £200 each by the C&CC who took our money then they said we had to contact another company for an assessment. This company then came back saying they wanted another £1200 for me, so we didn't bother putting Joan's info in and requested a refund from the C&CC. I have controlled blood pressure as has Joan.

We have now been going every winter to Spain 5 to 6 months for 6years and have not needed anything but a top up of meds for a chemist.

 

[vwalan]

i find the ones that travel alot .for months and have been doing it for years dont worry. use the nhs card if you need to. dont get picked up by a private ambulance or get taken to a private hospital. we all know these things so would watch out for one another.
my mate broke his arm in morocco ,cost 10 quid for xrays and plaster cast to be put on .
i cut the plaster off 6 weeks later as we were then in another country . it was ok .
you could spend a fortune on all kinds of insurance .
save your money . local garages fix your vehicle ,local doctors /dentists etc can fix you as well.
deep in africa health care is very cheap. many go there just to get things done as its cheaper than in the eu.
if your really worried stay in uk.

 

[Lenny HB]

Surely with any cover given by card of bank account you still have to declare any existing medical conditions and read the small print to see what you are covered for . We have such a card but reading the small print it would not give us the cover we need . We need very good insurance because we spend a lot of time sailing in Florida and the Bahamas and there any emergency would easily be millions . Europe should be a lot easier and cheaper to get cover for but in every case do read the small print and if not sure of anything call them .

Here is the list of conditions you do NOT have to declare for Lloyds.
Broken Link Removed

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[chaser]

One thing no one has mentioned is for insurance to be valid you have to have a return ticket paid for.

 

[Cobweb]

I am suprised that Blindness and Parkinsons are on the list ! Otherwise it does not have my medical conditions and I doubt that it would cover over 4 months sailing in Florida and the Bahamas. It might be suitable for anyone qualifying .

 

[Charlie]

i find the ones that travel alot .for months and have been doing it for years dont worry. use the nhs card if you need to. dont get picked up by a private ambulance or get taken to a private hospital. we all know these things so would watch out for one another.
my mate broke his arm in morocco ,cost 10 quid for xrays and plaster cast to be put on .
i cut the plaster off 6 weeks later as we were then in another country . it was ok .
you could spend a fortune on all kinds of insurance .
save your money . local garages fix your vehicle ,local doctors /dentists etc can fix you as well.
deep in africa health care is very cheap. many go there just to get things done as its cheaper than in the eu.
if your really worried stay in uk.

Ha Ha I'm not worried ! I asked the question got the answer and will definately get comprehensive cover !

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[buttons]

We have annual world wide cover, immaterial of what was said earlier I wouldn't dream of going away without it. It doesn't end there I have just been reading through my policy and the detail is in the small print. To get over any argument I fill in our forms then get my GP to read through all my answers and he then he signs to say that I have declared everything on our med records.
A bit ott some would say but if you have any assets then it would be silly not to protect them. Uninsured med treatment in the US could wipe you out in one fell swoop.
I like to travel with peace of mind, you cant do that on a medical wing and a prayer.

 

[Lenny HB]

One thing no one has mentioned is for insurance to be valid you have to have a return ticket paid for.

For a lot of the independent insurances yes, can't find any requirement for that in the Lloyds policy.

 

[chaser]

For a lot of the independent insurances yes, can't find any requirement for that in the Lloyds policy.

Don't know about lloyds, but definitely staysure, didn't know till reading the smallprint one night with nothing better to do , so in effect we had been in France for five weeks with no return booked, and even though paid the best part of £100 was un insured, rang them when we got back and they confirmed it.

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[ludo]

Although you get some medical cover in Europe with the EHIC, you do not get any public liability cover which you do normally get with travel insurance.

For those who think that they are covered for 3rd party public liability through their household insurance policy, most household insurance policies do not cover this outside UK territorial limits. You do need to check your policy in this respect.

 

[mentaliss]

Talking to a pal and fellow motor homer last about our up and coming trip to France. The subject of medical insurance came up and he dismissed it as not being needed.

He says we have cover in Europe just as we do here in the UK and when he was taken ill in Italy the treatment he got was far better than he would have received here in the UK. The Italian medical services simply billed the NHS who effectively paid for his treatment.

We have sent off for the cards needed ready for our trip.

But as usual I would like to be sure before listening to just one opinion.

Thanks,

My wife and I have never yet found ANY insurance company Travel or Medical who will include my heart condition irrespective of cost

 

[JackieP]

Living in the Isle of Man and not being in the EU and therefore not eligible for the EHIC, travel insurance has always been a big expense for me. I have a couple of medical conditions too so the price is whopped up. This year the best quote I can find is £500 and although it's so very tempting to 'wing it' for me it's just not worth the risk. A simple ankle fracture can cost anywhere up to £10 000 to repair. Luckily, for all the thousands I've paid out of the years, I've never yet had to make a claim but then, that's why it is called insurance.

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