Holiday Insurance

[steve_b_wales]

I've just gone online to comparethemarket.com for holiday insurance for the wife and myself. I always declare medical conditions, and, in the past, Puffin insurance has always come out as the best with an average price (2 weeks) of £39:00. This time, Puffin were not on the list of providers, and the cheapest quote (for one week) was £58:79. I then went on to the Puffin website, entered all details, and was quoted £20:00. I've booked with them direct.

[sam triple]

Another one that’s good is Holiday safe ,cover you for a wide range of activities on holiday skiing etc have used them for Spanish track days a few mates have made claims and they always come good  my last years cover with them was £67 

[Vince Green]

The thing is, its good you have the sense to take insurance, too many people believe they are covered by those stupid EHIC cards and don't realise they are variable at best and totally useless at worst depending where you are. 

[Lloyd90]

41 minutes ago, steve_b_wales said:

I've just gone online to comparethemarket.com for holiday insurance for the wife and myself. I always declare medical conditions, and, in the past, Puffin insurance has always come out as the best with an average price (2 weeks) of £39:00. This time, Puffin were not on the list of providers, and the cheapest quote (for one week) was £58:79. I then went on to the Puffin website, entered all details, and was quoted £20:00. I've booked with them direct.

 

I like to use the compare app, then phone the top one or two direct and get a better deal 👍🏻👍🏻😂😂

10 minutes ago, Vince Green said:

The thing is, its good you have the sense to take insurance, too many people believe they are covered by those stupid EHIC cards and don't realise they are variable at best and totally useless at worst depending where you are. 

 

Too lazy to even look into it. 

Youd be surprised the amount of people leave changing money to the last minute and then have big issues! 

[steve_b_wales]

Just now, Lloyd90 said:

 

I like to use the compare app, then phone the top one or two direct and get a better deal 👍🏻👍🏻😂😂

To be honest, I've had a comparethe market quote in the past, and when I've checked directly with the provider, they are usually dearer. This applies mainly with car insurance  Churchill for example.

[Ade1971]

Steve,

Try fit2travel, we always use them now with Nics medical conditions.

 

Ade

[charlie b]

just been on go compare tonite and done one week insurance in greece for me and the wife £12.45 with puffin lets see how much when i take my motorcycle to france in july

[rimfire4969]

My bank offers travel insurance along with mobile phone cover and breakdown cover plus a few other things I can’t remember for about £10 per month. The travel insurance covers the whole family, so it has worked out good value for my family of five. As you also have it for the year all trips are covered including weekends away in the UK. 

[steve_b_wales]

11 hours ago, Ade1971 said:

Steve,

Try fit2travel, we always use them now with Nics medical conditions.

 

Ade

[Bobba]

You guys must be relatively "young" men so take advantage of these low premiums while you can. Wait until you get to 70 and then 75. The insurance industry heavily load the premiums because, they say, we're old and a greater risk. Yet analysts in the financial press and travel industry pooh pooh this assertion. They say that claims and payments made per capita in these older age groups are lower than younger folk and it's an excuse to raise more money from an ageing population. 

Mrs B and I are both retired. I am 75. We like to travel and have annual holiday insurance. Last year there was a three month gap between renewal and our next trip so Mrs B discussed with the Co the possibility of letting the policy lapse and starting again three months later. The reply was that on taking out the new policy we would be regarded as new over 70 clients with a significantly higher premium and restriction conditions. Also, a mate who is 80 and a fit veteran mountain biker has extreme difficulty getting single trip insurance because of his age. So enjoy it while you can.

Edited June 18, 2019 by Bobba

[oldypigeonpopper]

14 hours ago, Vince Green said:

The thing is, its good you have the sense to take insurance, too many people believe they are covered by those stupid EHIC cards and don't realise they are variable at best and totally useless at worst depending where you are. 

hello, your right Vince it only covers basic treatment and most you still need to pay for, its the same for those of a younger generation doing a gap year trek or what ever and insurance is not on a priority list, 

[oldypigeonpopper]

38 minutes ago, Bobba said:

You guys must be relatively "young" men so take advantage of these low premiums while you can. Wait until you get to 70 and then 75. The insurance industry heavily load the premiums because, they say, we're old and a greater risk. Yet analysts in the financial press and travel industry pooh pooh this assertion. They say that claims and payments made per capita in these older age groups are lower than younger folk and it's an excuse to raise more money from an ageing population. 

Mrs B and I are both retired. I am 75. We like to travel and have annual holiday insurance. Last year there was a three month gap between renewal and our next trip so Mrs B discussed with the Co the possibility of letting the policy lapse and starting again three months later. The reply was that on taking out the new policy we would be regarded as new over 70 clients with a significantly higher premium and restriction conditions. Also, a mate who is 80 and a fit veteran mountain biker has extreme difficulty getting single trip insurance because of his age. So enjoy it while you can.

hello, with the cost of my last holiday insurance i could have had a week in Benidorm !!!! i still have one last country on my bucket list and i did look into the cost !!!!!!  

[Cranfield]

The over 70 insurance costs are quite extraordinary, a couple we know were quoted over £1000 for 3 weeks in Cyprus, just basics, no sky diving, free fall parachuting, etc.
I did a search on compare sites for annual, no limited periods, incl USA, for a couple over 70 and the cheapest was over £900, some were well over £2000.
Another concern, some of these Insurers you have never heard of, cheap costs, but whats the claim efficiency like ? 

We are insured through our bank account, but have to pay a supplement for our age, which amounts to less than £150, so its still a good deal in comparison to whats out there.

[oldypigeonpopper]

3 minutes ago, Cranfield said:

The over 70 insurance costs are quite extraordinary, a couple we know were quoted over £1000 for 3 weeks in Cyprus, just basics, no sky diving, free fall parachuting, etc.
I did a search on compare sites for annual, no limited periods, incl USA, for a couple over 70 and the cheapest was over £900, some were well over £2000.
Another concern, some of these Insurers you have never heard of, cheap costs, but whats the claim efficiency like ? 

We are insured through our bank account, but have to pay a supplement for our age, which amounts to less than £150, so its still a good deal in comparison to whats out there.

hello, i have Lloyds and they had an account with insurance which i had a few years back, i think they still do if you have a gold account alas mine is mere brass 

[amateur]

36 minutes ago, oldypigeonpopper said:

hello, i have Lloyds and they had an account with insurance which i had a few years back, i think they still do if you have a gold account alas mine is mere brass 

My wife has kept with her old Lloyds account purely for the free travel insurance. Saved us a fortune over the years, especially on trips to the USA and Canada.

[oldypigeonpopper]

12 minutes ago, amateur said:

My wife has kept with her old Lloyds account purely for the free travel insurance. Saved us a fortune over the years, especially on trips to the USA and Canada.

hello, i seem to remember mine had holiday / phone and lost key insurance, i think Lloyds still have an account with this but it is not likely i will do any more holiday like i did many years ago with 30 day cover,  

[Fatcatsplat]

1 hour ago, Bobba said:

You guys must be relatively "young" men so take advantage of these low premiums while you can. Wait until you get to 70 and then 75. The insurance industry heavily load the premiums because, they say, we're old and a greater risk. Yet analysts in the financial press and travel industry pooh pooh this assertion. They say that claims and payments made per capita in these older age groups are lower than younger folk and it's an excuse to raise more money from an ageing population. 

Mrs B and I are both retired. I am 75. We like to travel and have annual holiday insurance. Last year there was a three month gap between renewal and our next trip so Mrs B discussed with the Co the possibility of letting the policy lapse and starting again three months later. The reply was that on taking out the new policy we would be regarded as new over 70 clients with a significantly higher premium and restriction conditions. Also, a mate who is 80 and a fit veteran mountain biker has extreme difficulty getting single trip insurance because of his age. So enjoy it while you can.

I work in insurance and can assure you that the worst risks are the young first timers going to Magaluf, families going abroad with very young children and then the elderly - Age 70+.

The first two generally get a quick visit to a and e and then let go - Maybe £250 as a bill. The over 70's though tend to be larger claims by virtue of underlying conditions and a week or a fortnight of sudden excess exacerbating those conditions - They will then require X Rays, ECG's, scans etc, etc all of which rack the costs up and then there'll be an overnight stay to monitor them - Suddenly you have a £5,000 - £10,000 bill. It takes a hell of a lot of £12.50 single trip premiums to make that money back.

I'm a broker so I just place the risk and take a commission - Talk to a travel underwriter who actually takes the risk and pays the claims and ask them how many years in the last ten they've actually made a profit...

 

[Cranfield]

Nationwide have the FlexPlus account which costs £12 per month, this has an insurance benefit and covers vehicle breakdown and recovery, travel insurance and mobile phone insurance.
Cheap loans and overdrafts and commission free cash withdrawal overseas are also other benefits of the account.

[Vince Green]

The other thing, people don't read the exclusions, which can be many and not always what you would expect. Horse riding, quad bikes, scuba diving, motorcycles, etc

6 hours ago, amateur said:

My wife has kept with her old Lloyds account purely for the free travel insurance. Saved us a fortune over the years, especially on trips to the USA and Canada.

I don't know if you realise just how minimal the medical cover provided by some of those schemes are. My stepdaughter thought she was covered by hers till she looked into it, certainly not enough for USA or Canada. You are covered for lost luggage and cancelled flights but not much else

Edited June 18, 2019 by Vince Green

[Old Boggy]

6 hours ago, Fatcatsplat said:

I work in insurance and can assure you that the worst risks are the young first timers going to Magaluf, families going abroad with very young children and then the elderly - Age 70+.

The first two generally get a quick visit to a and e and then let go - Maybe £250 as a bill. The over 70's though tend to be larger claims by virtue of underlying conditions and a week or a fortnight of sudden excess exacerbating those conditions - They will then require X Rays, ECG's, scans etc, etc all of which rack the costs up and then there'll be an overnight stay to monitor them - Suddenly you have a £5,000 - £10,000 bill. It takes a hell of a lot of £12.50 single trip premiums to make that money back.

I'm a broker so I just place the risk and take a commission - Talk to a travel underwriter who actually takes the risk and pays the claims and ask them how many years in the last ten they've actually made a profit...

 

I can relate to the costs involved to sort out us wrinklies when something goes wrong. A few years back the wife was taken ill in Turkey and needed an emergency operation. The first thing that was asked for of course was the insurance details. Once this had been established, nothing was too much trouble and the local doctor ran us to Bodrum hospital. One`s first thought of a hospital in Turkey would be something inferior to our own, but nothing could be further from the truth. She was given excellent treatment with the results of tests, blood tests, ecgs, x-rays etc coming back in minutes and told that an operation was essential within two hours. The hospital was spotlessly clean and the surgeon who carried out the operation was back each day to redress the wound himself and check on things. We were put up whilst she recouperated in a suite within the hospital and then three further weeks in a hotel of our choice (she wasn`t allowed to fly for four weeks after the op.). One of the days of his visit, he spotted a dead fly in the corner of our suite, immediately gabbled something in Turkish on his mobile and within minutes, the suite had been thoroughly cleaned and fumigated. Total cost which included first class air fair home and ambulance from the airport to home .............. £28650.

I am so glad that we got good insurance. Cannot remember the premium, but only remember the trauma of it all.

I`ve since heard horror stories of people risking not taking out insurance on the basis of `Oh, it won`t happen to me`, only to be saddled with similar bills.

The moral of course is to check what is being insured for and up to what cost.

OB