Daughter broke her arm - due to go on holiday, can I cancel?

[BrokenArmworries]

My DD8 broke her arm this week. Silly accident just in the playground, nobody’s fault. It’s quite a bad break and she has a cast on from her wrist to shoulder, so she can’t bend her arm and it’s in a sling.

we are supposed to be going on holiday next week.. all inclusive, pool and kids water slide park etc. all the things she won’t be able to do.

im gutted for her! She LOVES a pool and all she wants to do on holiday is play in the pool. She won’t be able to go on slides due to the full arm cast. We have a waterproof covering for it, but the whole arm cast makes everything quite tricky for her. She can’t put weight in it (yet).

AIBU to cancel and claim through our travel insurance? I booked the flights and hotel separately, so not a package holiday. Would travel insurance cover this?

she has to go to hospital again next week before we go on holiday to have it x-ray’d again to make sure it’s healing correctly. She will have to have it x-rayd again once we are back. They did want to see whilst we are away but said they could work around our travel dates.

other details - we are a family of 4, I have another DD11.
we have already been on a lovely holiday this summer, so if we didn’t go this time, nobody would feel they are missing out, and we could put the money towards fun things later in the year.

YABU - go on holiday and try to make the most of it.
YANBU - cancel and use the money another time.

I wouldn't go under these circumstances, it'll be miserable for your daughter having to watch the other kids on the slides, in the pool, etc. Also for your other DC, who won't have their sibling to have fun with. The insurance company are highly unlikely to pay out if she were to do any further damage or need any treatment whilst there. Rather than cancelling, are you able to change the dates? Maybe go for October half term, or over the Christmas hols?

I would go. This happened to my son (he was 10 at the time) last summer. He broke his arm on Monday, had an operation under general anesthetic on Wednesday and we flew out on Saturday morning. We just made sure we did other activities as well and not just hang out by the pool. And when he was in the pool, he was on a floaty, playing with a "beach ball" or throwing sinkers in the pool for his sisters to find and we just came up with lots of other random games he was able to take part in. Just make sure you take couple of the waterproof coverings with you. (We managed to rip one, not sure if it was the heat). He had a good holiday. Just make sure to stay positive and be prepared to be more involved when it comes to activities.

Just edited to say we checked with the surgeon/consultant that it was okay for him to travel. Also to point out, he had to have a cast on after the operation to protect the arm. We had a letter from the consultant but it was never needed. And random side note my daughter has also flown with a arm in a cast.

I've remembered why I don't usually comment on mumsnet posts.

We took ours age 9 or 10ish with a broken elbow. Luckily she had the pins out the day before we travelled so it was hit and miss. We let her play in the sea with the cast off towards the end of the holiday (they made us one that could be velcroed together as her arm would swell on the plane) as she was able to take it on and off. She did play in the pool if it was quiet with a cover over it. I managed to get a lilo with a hole at the foot end so she could stand in that part and prop her arm on the lilo and have a cool in the shallower end of the pool. She made some friends and would hang around in the shade with them too.

Sorry this has happened for your daughter . we had the same with our child. A broken arm, in a cast, and an appointment with the hospital during our holiday time to check how it was healing. Our insurance covered us to cancel the trip. It was hard anough with the cast at home, it gets hot and itchy and some of the main advice was do not go near sand! My advice is look at your insurance policy and only speak to the facts on their policy and your hospital appointments. Everything else is a distraction. You need your money back to spend on a great time when your family can enjoy themselves. Best of luck

I would talk to the hospital to see what they think- it's often a bad idea to fly having had an accident recently, also if you don't get medical advice I think it is unlikely your insurance would pay out.

8 years ago I broke my pelvis before a long, independently booked tour of South America. I didn’t get any letters saying I was unfit to fly, I just told the airline and hotels - lots of hotels. Anything I didn’t recover I claimed from my travel insurance. I made a profit on the exchange rate in the end.

Does the hotel have a cancellation option. I know you can move Ryanair flights for a fee so maybe you can do the same for other carriers?

The fact body parts swell in the heat means the cast could be uncomfortable or even crack causing more harm

If you can’t claim on the insurance can you change what you do on the holiday? Go out from the resort and do some sightseeing etc so she’s not sat watching everyone else in the pool have fun ?

Her GP may be able to provide an unfit to fly note. A full arm cast is a horrible thing, very burdensome and uncomfortable and the swelling could prove to be a very distressing complication, particularly likely to happen when flying and in heat. You need to inform your travel insurers anyway of course a out the change in her health. If it were me I wouldn't go and I would explain all this to the other children as appropriate. I could not watch her unable to join in, horrible for her siblings too. Accidents happen sadly. Best to be thankful it wasn't worse.

My son broke both bones in his arm less than 2 days before flying out for 14 days all inclusive. He had to have a manipulation and a split cast fit past his elbow less than 24 hours before we flew. We are still here now. Hes been in the pool on water slides and still managed to enjoy himself. We ordered a bloc rubber cover from amazon. He took iburofen and paracetamol before we flew and the 4 hour flight was relatively painless.

You are making a massive assumption that your travel insurance will cover the cost if you cancel.

They typically do everything possible to avoid paying out within a very strict interpretation of the terms and conditions of the insurance. So I would only cancel if you are OK with losing whatever you've paid for the holiday that can't be cancelled under the normal booking conditions.

Hey , our son snapped his arm in half in June , the cast they put on could get fully wet ( most of the ones for children are this way now so double check this ) our boy went down to theatre on a Monday had the cast changed from a thick heavy one a week later into the wet abled one .

children are more resilient than we think , the only things she’s not going to be able to do is go on the slides if they won’t allow ( remember the arm is safest in one of these casts so unless they stop her going on it I don’t think it will restrict much and yes the situation sucks but I would still do the holiday personally . Always think there are children out there in wheelchairs and what not that generally can’t do this anyway so I think she would be fine , so wouldn’t let this stop her . As mums we always look to the worst and what they “ cant do “ instead of what they can do . If it was a leg fracture I’d be inclined to agree posibbly but as it’s an arm is would still go and enjoy yourselves . Maybe what you all need ❤️

I don't think insurance will let you cancel, it'll be out of your own pocket. I think you need to go with a positive attitude that you'll all make the most of it. She's in alot of pain now and still nervous of it but by 2 weeks she'll feel loads better and be more used to the cast. My daughter had a break/cast like that and was able to do way more than expected, definitely was on the slides. I think don't talk about holidays in front of her now for a bit I til she feels bit better then just see how it goes. I get bring disappointed and probably worried for her but unless you want to lose all that money I'd go and make the best of it

Look at waterproof covers people use these to bathe and shower in, most chemist/ boots do them

Go on holiday.

From my experience of breaking my arm at that age (a very bad double break that had to be set under a general anaesthetic, with a full cast from hand up to mid-upper arm, preventing me from bending my elbow) she'll adapt very, very quickly and will be able to do a lot more than you think.

My mum has a picture of me up a tree I'd climbed with my arm in plaster.

This won't happen.

Get one of these.

https://uk.bestchoice.com/price-comparison/Bloccs-Waterproof%20Cover%20for%20Plaster%20Cast%20Arm,%20Child%20Arm%20Medium-E69j968aao?targetid=pla-2432679559083&matchtype=&device=m&campaignid=22839433677&creative=766661148469&adgroupid=183232279676&feeditemid=&locphysicallms=9222618&locinteresttms=&network=g&devicemodel=&placement=&keyword=$&target=&aceid=&adposition=&trackid=UKShoppinggCSS&mId=407-132-4411&trackOld=true&gadsource=1&gaddcampaignid=22839433677&gbraid=0AAAAACWZmZmVCQKEe00X9rSwRwtr1jBil&gclid=Cj0KCQjwwZDFBhCpARIsAB95qO1ZOn3dTUEunnj7rQrhTHPdd3KFu8Gmjf4B1scd2Mae9lMP-1iMRIaAmepEALww_wcB

Are you going somewhere where you can't leave the hotel? Can't you go to beaches? Sight seeing? Hire a car? Play games? Read?

Yes it can @BauhausofEliott
https://www.flightright.co.uk/blog/flying-with-plaster-cast-infos

How do you know ?
Someone above wrote that happened to them

my ankles /legs and fingers swell in the heat so sure my arm prob does as well

See the link I posted re risks @ Blondeshavemorefun and @ Brokenarmworries

I think definitely cancel and redo something when she has recovered. It’s still early days for the fracture there could be complications sounds like a complex break. I think Iinsurance should cover that extremity. That’s what it’s for. Accidents that prevent you going. Neither you nor your daughter would enjoy this holiday you through worry. Cancel

We did go ahead with our holiday 2 days after DS broke his leg, as he was really looking forward to it. He missed out on the beach, looked from a distance, but he loved the rest. I guess it depends if your DD wants to go, and whether you can claim.