To think travel insurance is an utter scam?

[ragingruby]

Before taking out annual travel insurance, declared health conditions of menopause and insomnia - both managed by medication. Have had some issues recently with piles. Got anusol from GP to manage.

About to travel later this week. Rang to advise of Insurance company, Staysure, re new condition (as their documentation notes you have to). They said they will continue cover but not for the pre-existing conditions and neither for the recent condition, the latter of which they said don't just emerge suddenly so I must have known about the piles for some time and hadn't told them.

I'm like 'what???'. I've just told you!

They wouldn't budge.

So, despite previously insuring the conditions of insomnia and menopause, both of which are being managed, they've decided now not to. Apparently I'm covered if I die and need repatriation or for medical aid if in a car crash though I suspect they will say if I was driving, I was likely not to have had enough sleep!

Not going to renew my cover with them next year. Renaming Staysure as 'StayAway'. What's the point?

I can’t imagine you’ll need to claim on your travel insurance whilst on holiday for menopause symptoms, insomnia or piles, and it’s not likely, without specific evidence as to the cause, that they’d exclude a car accident.

I don't go abroad, but do you really need to declare piles? I thought the pre-existing conditions covered things like cancer, heart conditions etc.

What? Menopause and HRT needs declaring??! I had no idea!

😂

What situations are likely to arise abroad where you'd require cover for menopause symptoms, insomnia or piles?

You have to tell the insurance company EVERYTHING or you are not covered. We learnt this the hard way. Hopefully you won’t have any problems with piles or menopause while you are away. Travel insurance is very peculiar - I take medication which keeps my blood pressure low but am penalised because I take it. Do make sure you pack extra medication just in case your return is delayed.

Why on Earth would you declare insomnia, menopause or piles???

I get insomnia. I’m menopausal. And I have had piles at times. I have never felt those needed to be declared. I had had treatment for breast cancer and I declared that obviously.

How is menopause a medical condition! It’s just a state of the body, like puberty

There are 2 piles related issues that can put you in hospital - thrombosed and if one pops and bleeds out. My poor Google search history!

I have insomnia, menopause symptoms and occasionally get piles. Of course I wouldn't declare them because not one of those would require urgent medical abroad or be things likely to cause other issues. You've either chosen a dodgy insurer or have taken the declaration of existing health conditions too far.

Whilst the horror warnings often come up about declaring everything, the PRA is actually very clear to insurance providers when it comes to consumer duty and treating customers fairly that a customer’s failure to declare e.g. high cholesterol would not be acceptable grounds for denying a claim for e.g. a broken leg caused by slipping on ice.

You have to declare everything because that's the conditions of insurance as required by the provider. It's not up to you to decide what to declare and what not to declare. Just complete their questionnaire, give honest/complete answers and you'll be fine. Insurers refuse to pay out mostly when there hasn't been full disclosure, and rightly so. As I say, it's not up to you to decide what they need to know and what they don't need to know.

Why on earth would you put piles and menopause on there. 🤣

When I used Staysure last year, I was asked ‘in the last 2 years have you seen your GP’. I had to declare my husbands constipation!

You have to when answering their health screening questions. When it asks "do you have any pre-existing conditions", it's not up to you to decide what they need to know and what they don't. If you answer "no", then you've not been honest and they have every right to choose not to honour the insurance policy.

What's the issue with them being excluded? Are you really anticipating needing to claim for insomnia?

I'm preparing to be flamed here but what the hell here goes....

Why on earth would you let your insurance company know that you have insomnia, menopause or piles !!! all of them are unlikely to cause you to have a medical emergency on holiday that you would need treatment for.

Now me on the other hand, I have liver disease (no medication) and never mentioned to insurance company, a growth on my lung (no diagnosis of cancer yet) no medication and again never mentioned to insurance company and have oestoporosis again no meds and never mentioned to insurance company.

If I need to have treatment for the growth or need meds for the liver disease then yes I will have to declare but up until then i'm happy to wing it.

@taxguru - but most women of a certain age are menopausal. That is just bloody obvious. Why does it need declaring?

So if you fall and break a bone you're happy to risk not having help from your insurers due to failing to declare your osteoporosis? Madness!

We are with stay sure and have an annual policy. I updated ours yesterday as needed to declare a few extra medical bits, I had to pay an additional premium for declaring DD’s recent allergy diagnosis and declared that I had a broken bone since last renewal which is all fixed. They confirmed I am still covered for previous disclosed conditions, medication for high blood pressure and DS’s controlled asthma. Have you made a claim recently that would make them nervous.

If you haven't been honest and a claim is in any way connected to your non-disclosure then they can refuse to honour the claim.

If you get run over or fall down some stairs then your failure to disclose acne is neither here nor there and the ombudsman would give them very short shrift if they refused to pay.

When I declared my broken bone yesterday I was specifically asked if I had been investigated or diagnosed with osteoporosis so I think you really need to declare that.

Because the conditions of insurance require you to declare all medical conditions, visits to GPs, drugs you're taking, hospital admissions, etc etc. It's not up to the individual to decide what they do and don't need to know.

The algorithm behind the health screening questionnaire is remarkably complex and links to massive databases of risks based on prior claims, publicly available datasets, medical research, etc etc. Not only the "risk" that a condition may cause a cancellation or require medical treatment, but also the "cost" of that risk based on destination, type of holiday, hospitals/doctors cost in each country, etc.

ALL insurance requires FULL declaration of all material/relevant facts. It's what you sign/agree when you take out insurance.

Whereas on health insurance that would be considered a managed condition so you are not penalised. Mad isn't it.

Menopause isn’t a medical condition! It’s a natural stage of life. It would be like declaring puberty!