To not update travel insurance

[QuiltedHippo]

DD has a number of food allergies. The only time we've been to hospital was during weaning when her head swelled up after peanut butter. No treatment needed beyond antihistamines, which is how we've managed any other reactions since.

Requests for an epipen were denied as she's not had anaphylaxis and isn't high risk (bad asthma etc) - have been nervous about this especially during ambulance strikes but it is what it is.

She'll go on her first flight this year to North America, when doing travel insurance we declared the food allergies but said no to "life threatening allergies" - saying yes would add £200+ to the quote.

Knowing that PBJs are more likely to be kicking around a playground than here, and because of the flight we requested an epipen again which was approved. Its a holiday prescription so not a long term thing and her consultant described it as "an abundance of caution". The paperwork to carry it on the flight states the patient is at risk of life threatening allergies...

So do we need to update the insurance? There's no change to her health so I'm loathe to give them hundreds of pounds more, but I'd hate them to slither out of a claim if the worst happened

To America where even a one night hospital stay could be thousands? you’d be crazy to not pay the £200 to update them.

Yes, of course you update the travel insurance, even out of an abundance of caution. How would you feel if something did happen and you weren't just coping with a sick child, but you were battling with insurance company about what they will or will not pay for or you get presented with extortionate medical bills costing 100x more than the couple hundred you're reluctant to pay now. Even if your DC falls and breaks an arm or leg, when trying to claim anything in insurance, you've already declared it null and void for ANY claim by not declaring everything. Believe me, insurance companies will do anything to avoid paying out and you're just handing them a gift by lying by omission

Really! You’re loathe to spend £200 on adequate medical insurance for your daughter who suffers from allergies?

This

You will be efffed if something happens.

Pay it. Not worth the risk.

Of course you need to update it.

Unless you have millions in the bank to pay her hospital bills?

Always update travel insurance and pay any supplements. As pp have said, needing urgent care abroad can cost thousands.
I have been in that situation myself.
£6k for medical treatment plus extended hotel stay and rearranged flights.
The first thing my insurers did was obtain my gp records to make sure my emergency was not in any way connected to an undeclared, pre- existing condition.

I've been to the US many many times and always get the highest level of cover. Medical costs can run into literally $millions over there. You would be insane to not pay the £200.

100% update your travel insurance, you would be insane not to!

So you don’t want to spend £200 but are relaxed about possibly paying a million or so?

Depends how much you value your assets, including your home.
£200 is pocket change if you’re landed with a £100k bill (easily doable) - and you can bet the insurance company won’t pay a penny when they find the epipen prescription!

Are you planning to do a GofundMe if she's hospitalised?

When my daughter was diagnosed last year with epilepsy, I contacted our insurer and as my daughter was only on one medication, there were no additional costs for the cover. I did have to pay an additional policy as my daughter was taking a break over 31 days, will need to do the same again this year

Insurance contracts are contracts of 'the utmost good faith'. This means you have a responsibility to tell the insurance company anything that might affect their decision about whether or not to insure you, how much to charge etc. If (heaven forbid) you need to make a claim, but haven't been completely open with them, they might refuse the claim, and a court might well support them.

shes Now categorised as having a life threatening allergy because she has an epipen and paperwork that shows life threatening allergy so you need to declare it. I’m not sure why an epipen would be any more needed in the US than here but she has one now

Try declaring as a new medication for an already declared condition.
I had to ring my insurance company to add some extras on and because the original diagnosis was already declared they just added notes and it didn't increase the premium.
The year before I added changes and they didn't do it as notes but added it on as new illnesses (which it wasn't) and I ended up paying a premium. I'd still rather pay the premium than not be insured (because if you haven’t declared something in this case a new medication they can decline payment for anything not just the allergies).

I could be wrong but I believe that insurers can cancel your policy if they discover you have not declared everything. So, they could still refuse cover even if you made a claim that was not allergy related if they discovered that you'd not been completely honest in the application for cover. My experience with insurance companies is that they will do everything they can to reduce what they pay out so personally I wouldn't take any risks, especially not travelling to a country where you would not be entitled to any kind of free healthcare and where it's notoriously expensive.

@QuiltedHippo

...but I'd hate them to slither out of a claim if the worst happened...

You'd like to "slither" out of paying the premium for the correct cover but would "hate them to slither out of a claim" that you'd purposely avoided buying cover for?

They would simply not be covering something the policy excluded.

I think we can see who's doing the slithering here.

OP have you ever been in a situation where your life depends on medical aid that your insurance has to cover ?

I have , I nearly died . My insurance claim was £40,000

I wou;dn;t wish it on my worst enemy so shame on you that you;re even thinking of not adequately protecting your own daughter .

If you claim for ANYTHING even if it isn’t her allergy - say she needs a cut stitched or a broken bone or has tonsillitis, they’ll likely ask for a GP summary, and the most recent thing on there will be the letter issued by your GP, which says she has a life threatening allergy. So yes they absolutely can say that voids your insurance.

I would start by ringing them though and explain you’d filled in the form saying not life threatening as she’s always been managed by antihistamines but you wanted to be cautious when travelling and so sought an epipen prescription. Make sure their calls are recorded. They may or may not charge you £200 but you definitely need to pay for cover which actually covers you.

You'd be insane not to pay the extra £200. I had to go to a walk in centre in Florida. My bill for an x-ray of my leg and a bandaged knee was $3k. I was in and out in an hour. My travel insurance said it's the only country they pay upfront for. Everywhere else you claim money back.
I can't even fathom a potential hospital stay for allergies.

To the USA? You are fucking crazy to not update. Very stupid.

Were you quoted the extra £200 from your existing insurer? If so it may be worth shopping around for a better quote, companies vary hugely in what they charge for different medical conditions.

I think you'd be on thin ice if you've got an epipen prescribed & something were to happen.

I had a friend whose insurance company tried to do this over an undeclared minor condition that had absolutely nothing to do with the broken leg she got falling down a flight of stairs.

You’d be mad to try this in America of all places.

The insurance company would absolutely not pay out, as it’s a clear case of non disclosure.
Medical care in the USA will cost thousands per day. You would be mad not to update the policy and would never forgive yourself if you didn’t, something happened and insurance didn’t pay. For peace of mind it’s worth the extra cost.