Travel insurance and previous medical conditions

[IShouldKnowThisAlready]

I admit I’ve been putting this off my (short-term) to-do list because the prospect of listing everything is fairly ugly, but I really bloody need to step up and sort out travel insurance.

We’re a family of four. The two DC each have a separate condition to declare, one of which is v straightforward. The other one had a hospital stay four years ago for a vomiting bug and subsequently insanely low sugars, but we’ve never had a repeat and the doctors seem to chalk it up to ‘one of those things’.

First question - am I likely need to do anything about that on a declaration?

Secondly - my own medical history is, shall we say, a bit of a list, and this is where I’m hitting a wall. I’ve had what I can see would be classed as serious conditions from 15-25 years ago but not suffered from since, then there are a few lesser things from over five years ago, and a couple of things more recent that I know to declare and they’re straightforward, then there’s the bloody gestational diabetes from six years ago which you would think would show up in a previous conditions list but doesn’t.

I suppose my question is am I just better off going through a broker? Can anyone recommend one if so? Or do I just list literally every condition on my NHS record, regardless of how far it was in the past? I’m possibly overthinking it all but I can’t find solid guidance on where to draw the line and I don’t want to tempt fate and I want to play by the rules.

Also am having really an absolute shitshow of a month thus far, so if anyone so inclined could avoid going to town on me either for overthinking or just not knowing, genuine thanks.

Declare EVERYTHING. Yes, its a pita, but its the insurance company that gets to decide what is relevant, not you. Nor is it to wise hide behind Martin Lewis or a random MN poster as saying you can leave out minor items or problems from a long time ago. Insurers will always look for a get-out clause, so best to leave them to decide for themselves whether, say, your shingles attack fifteen years ago matters when calculating your current risk.

It depends on the wording about pre-existing conditions. All Clear list things which must always be mentioned if they have ever happened and other things only if they are within the last 5 years or you still have the diagnosis/are getting ongoing treatment/medication.

I really can't remember all my medical treatment and dates of things. When people say declare everything, I am in my fifties so to mention every gp appointment etc would take forever! Honestly, I wish there was some clear guidance around this. Even insurance companies websites don't always make it clear.

Declare everything. Even if you think its not relevant.

A few years ago we had to claim the cost of cancelling a holiday. I was 10 weeks pregnant, had a serious bleed and was advised not to fly because it was classed as a threatened miscarriage. Insurers refused to pay out because I hadn't declared I'd seen the GP almost 2 years earlier with coccyx pain following a rollerskating incident. Despite not having to tell them I was pregnant, no longer needing medical input for the coccyx pain and there being no connection/correlation/causation between that and the bleed.

You are supposed to be declaring your conditions not your GP appointments.

@Firefinch I suppose you could ask for a copy of your NHS medical records and use that to make your declaration.