Do you declare EVERYTHING for travel insurance?

[Squeekey]

Just that really.

I would always declare my daughter's health condition as it's serious, will affect whether we get coverage etc, but do you really declare everything everyone in the family has seen a Dr for in the last 2 years?

Last time I phoned up about insurance (phone needed because of daughter), they spent about 20 minutes asking innane questions about my husband's 5 minute trip to a Dr 9 months ago for foot pain.

I'm perfectly happy to accept that I won't get coverage for anything we don't declare, but in reality what do people do? I keep, I think I had a phone appointment with the GP last year for antibiotics for a chest infection - according to the insurance rules I need to declare it.

I'm considering that I might benefit from antidepressants for the first time to get me through a very very stressful few months and I can feel my mid plummeting, but I can't face having it over analyzed for donkeys years by insurers.

What do people do?

Yes, I made the mistake of renewing by phone last year, she said I really should hve had my GP records with me (will do next year) to run through all the various visits, they want to know everything

Problem is they also want to know what came of it, what was the outcome. Well often there isnt an outcome. I think one of the things that came up in that phone call among many others was tonsilitis, was I given anti biotics, I couldnt remember, was there any follow up, cant remembe,r what happened then, cant remember, was I given a formal diagnosis of tonsilitis, cant remember

And on and on and on it went

Yes, you must. If it’s a big claim they will use any reason to get out of it, even if unrelated.

someone here once was saying they had a claim rejected as they hadn’t declared menopause and HRT…..think the ombudsman found in their favour in the end.

but ive read about accident claims being rejected because the company found out the person had previously discussed anxiety with their GP.

I guess the nhs app I have access to would be a good aide memoire now we have access to that.

If you feel you need antidepressants you should have them. You just tick that box on the online questionnaire. There might be a follow up question or two but so many people are on them i can’t imagine you’d be refused insurance…..your premium might be very slightly more.

Yes because if the Insurance company can find a way to deny your claim they will.

Make a claim and the first thing they will do is contact your GP and ask for your records. They will use anything to dismiss your claim even if the GP visit and the claim are for completely unrelated issues. Read the Ts and Cs.

I declare everything. It's not just that you won't be covered for things you don't declare, insurance companies will often not pay out for anything health related if they find you didn't declare something (even if not related to what the claim is for)

If you don't declare, your entire policy could end up being cancelled.

I agree with this.

You have to declare everything.

I remember watching Rip off Britain where someone had their claim rejected because they did not declare that had seen a doctor about a slight headache.

They will go though everything if you make a claim and will try and get out of it even if the claim has nothing to do with the omission.

Yes, you can appeal but it is much less stressful if you don't need to.

I keep a list of every appointment so it is easy.

Declare everything... as others have said, if you claim they will ask for GP records and may not pay out if you have missed something.
The medical screening can be a bit of a pain but most things won't increase the premium and at least you'll have full cover.
TBH if you're not prepared to discose all there's little point in taking insurance!

I guess it's that we can only use a few providers (due to kid) and they are ridiculously detailed. Maybe it's the price we pay for finding somewhere which won't reject my child outright but honestly it was so intrusive!

I can't just tick a box because they need to get advice from senior colleagues etc due to child. The foot thing was nuts. It was literally a 5 minute appointment. Did he have surgery? Is he going to have surgery? Is he on opiates? Height? Weight? Needs a wheelchair because of it? What about a stick? Details of consultant (none, 5 minute GP appointment 😂), future treatments - again none. Steroids? Again - no. And on and on and on for 20 minutes.

The conversation I had with them recently was 90 MINUTES, and that just covered child and the foot pain. We didn't end up booking that holiday so didn't book the insurance in the end anyway.

In reality, I know I probably need to declare everything and it shouldn't put me off going to the drs. I guess it's just yet another frustration with having a kid with health needs.

How do you get GP records?

Can you not have one policy for DC and a more simplistic one for you and DH?

Via the NHS app.

Yes, because if you don't, you can be denied payment if something happens

How does this work if you have an annual policy? Or indeed take out a policy when you book a holiday? Do you have to update them before you go every time? Last year I took out insurance for the holiday at the time I booked it, but then had to let them know I'd had an illness between then and going on holiday. It cost me to update the policy, which seems mad

Yeah, pretty much

My dad had a scare in the summer, called his travel insurance company straight away and they told him they won't cover him anymore. He's just been charged an extra £300 (on top of the £700 annually) to go to the Caribbean at the end of the month

That's the thing, we were waiting for test results when I phoned up. They said that depending on the results they might increase the cost or cancel coverage. They couldn't answer whether in the event they'd cover the cancellation costs if the holiday. So it was a case of - we may insure you, we may not, for an indeterminate sum, and you may still lose the cost of the holiday.

Hence why we hesitated.

I hate insurance companies 😥
Maybe I'll just give up the idea of going abroad again for a few years.

Ok so it is as mad as it seems. i thought I made sense to take the policy out early as other use I wouldn't have been covered if I'd become unwell before I went. But I hadn't thought about having to let them know about any GP contact in the meantime

Yes this was my experience with the tonsillitis, what happened was I think I thought I had tonsillitis, phoned for anti biotics, never got to see the GP, got a text I think (cant remember) for me to collect them, might have had a second course, or another phone call. this bit of the phone call went on and on and on and on, she couldnt quite get it round her head that I hadnt even seen anyone, just got a text through, so dont know if I had tonsillitis or not, couldnt say what the GP thought or didnt think because Id never seen them

Strictly I should update them each occasion something changes, Ive seen the GP (or phoned/texgted/seen an HCP) loads of times since then and we hve a holiday coming up in Feb so Im dreading it, I need to update them.

Yes you have to update every single thing.

People who take out a bog standard policy where you just tick a load of boxes dont understand they're probably not covered, you have to tell them everything

Unless someone is lucky enough not to ever visit a HCP

I believe you do. I’ve just taken an annual policy out for dd who has quite a few pre existing conditions and I think the small print does say to do this.

When dd was waiting for some of her test results because we were in that awful interim period we could not get travel insurance for her. Just a blanket refusal from everyone online. Admit I never rang a specialist broker, we just waited until she had the results.

so she now has an annual policy and since I took that policy out her haematologist offered to have her whole genome mapped on the nhs when she went for a routine appt. To rule out some rare undiagnosed condition. She doesn’t have any new symptoms, etc. I think her dr has a soft spot for her and thinks she’s an interesting case. But it takes six months for the results and she’s going away next month.

I’m going to have to ring her insurance but I am worried they’ll withdraw the insurance. If they do will they refund the holiday?? She wouldn’t have booked it without insurance and she can’t go without insurance

You have to read the policy questions, they are all different. We had one last year that was a medical specialist one because of a cancer diagnosis, that had to be screened and was OK, but it didn’t ask the general “have you seen the GP about anything in the last 2 years question” but “have you seen the GP about any of the following x,y,z” so once we got past the cancer part it was actually easier.

I had an annual policy with no “existing conditions”. When I visited the gp for perimenopause and decided to take hrt i invalidated the policy and had to buy a completely new one that allowed perimenopause to be added as a “condition”. Really bloody frustrating.
Also spent a bloody age on the phone to add do’s fungal nail of all things!