To think that it should be illegal to go abroad without travel insurance

If I could not get travel insurance for any medical condition that I had, I would not want to travel abroad. Accidents happen, you can get an infection through no fault of your own which requires hospital treatment, then what do you do?

Some of the attitudes to insurance on here really indicate the lack of knowledge and common sense!
It's like the question of "should I not travel then if I can't get insurance" - the question is how are you going to self-fund any medical bills if anything goes wrong!

I do also question how much people think medical bills can be! It's not just a few hundred quid! It can be £2000 a day whilst in hospital. A YouTuber I follow took ill overseas and 5 weeks in hospital and repatriation cost his insurance company £100,000! Be aware of what you may have to fund for yourself or a family member!

Steer clear of dirt cheap policies because they'll not cover much, read all the policy to see what it covers before paying such small sums of money!
Also be aware of what can invalidate policies, such as hiring mopeds or quads etc! You won't be covered if you get into an accident on something like that! Winter sports requires extra cover so don't be thinking that your £5 policy covers riding around on a deathtrap moped or quad.

Being an illegal overstayer isn't great advice! You basically gained entry to a country by deception! If they want to see you have a flight back in the next 30 days it's because your visa status probably doesn't extend beyond 30 days! Not only ate you telling people to break immigration laws, you are telling people to buy cheap worthless insurance! A YouTube traveller I follow ended up in a Thai hospital unexpectedly for 5 weeks before being flown home, his insurance had to cover £100,000 and he was in trouble for illegally overstaying!

That’s highly unlikely unless it’s terminal! I have several long term conditions and have to pay through the nose for insurance but that’s why I’m more likely to need it than the average person. It’s irresponsible to go without it quite honestly. Why should others contribute to a go fund me because you chose to go without it! I’ve seen 2 such cases on the news only today…

You save money to cover treatment before you go! You have to be responsible for funding yourself!

Save enough money to personally pay for anything, falling and fracturing a wrist will still entail a bill if you aren't insured! Make sure you can pay for yourself!

You don't stay in hospitals overseas at potentially thousands of pounds per day!

It depends whether those conditions are a risk of becoming an issue when away, it's stupidity to take risks when there's a likelihood of ending up in hospital overseas because why should anyone else pick up the tab? If it goes wrong, it can cost certainly more than 10k! I follow a traveller that took ill overseas and his hospital bill was about £2k a day! If you as a family are happy to cover the bill between you then go for it but don't rely on go fund mes and block a hospital bed overseas.

Well the GHIC card will give anyone the same care in a state hospital as any Spanish Spanish citizen

Always check the small print and what the policy provides when buying such a cheap policy.

Well Spain isn’t going to pay for his care….it’ll have to be paid for somehow.

Anyone , even a tourist can access emergency NHS treatment for free

What about those that come over on boats?

I have incurable cancer. When I put my details into comparison websites only 2 will insure me, quotes were £6 and £18K for Europe. Specialist insurers like Insure With won't insure me. I holiday in the UK. I am desperate to go abroad though and am considering using my European health card, I understand you would receive emergency care in line with residents but it does not cover body repatriation. I/my partner would have the funds to pay for anything required. I think you should have to prove you have insurance or sufficient funds before you travel. In fact I remember when you had to accept the agents insurance or give details of your alternative.

People who come to this country to work pay their national insurance through PAYE, PLUS a yearly immigration health surcharge to access the NHS which is paid upfront when they apply for a visa; currently over £1000. There are exemptions that I’m aware of but they certainly can’t swan in and access the NHS for free.

As someone said in one of my solo travel groups… there are two types of travellers; those who pay for their own insurance and those who’s insurance is the expectation that people will contribute to their GoFundMe page.
I think that having insurance should be requirement of travel.
And it is usually possible to find insurance whatever the age or health of the traveller. I took my aged parents on holiday when they were in their 90s and the insurance was about £1000.

You either don't travel or you have a good savings account that can cover any costs.

So, what happens if you cannot get insurance?

If he doesn't have sufficient funds to deal with any potential medical issues then yes, he'll have to holiday at home unless your family has agreed to club together and cover him.

More to the point, it should be illegal to enter UK as a foreign national without private health insurance unless a reciprocal arrangement is in place with the other government. Too many people come to UK and expect the NHS to treat them free of charge when they have not contributed any money to UK government funds.

I have several serious long term conditions which are all stable, never had a problem getting travel insurance through specialist providers, although it costs a bit more, obviously

In 2015 myself and my late husband were involved in an RTA on our motorbike while travelling through Holland. Husband was in ICU for 5 weeks and had to be returned to the UK by Air Ambulance. Never would I travel without insurance. People who do should not resort to GoFundMe when things go wrong. No way would i be contributing

How would you police it? You could show a cheapo policy but not worth paper written on as it won’t cover you due to occupation or medical history.
There was a lad injured in Thailand recently (slipping near waterfall) with a go fund me. There was insurance but wouldn’t pay out apparently. Article said he was in army but just on hols with gf, not doing any extreme activities or sports. I was checking out policy for a group trip and in tiny print military staff were fully excluded so I assume he’s fallen foul of a clause like that.

Unless he is prepared to lose his house in the event of an accident, no he shouldn’t be travelling.

Yes, they will not cover you if waiting for ASD assessment. I had this very scenario 2 years ago BUT there are some insurances that will cover you for everything else just not the thing you are on the waiting list for. It’s really important to check as one insurance policy I was going to take out wouldn’t have covered my DC for anything as they were on the waiting list for ASD.