Travel Insurance experts needed!

[triplets]

Hi we haven`t been out of the UK since my dh was diagnosed with advanced cancer in 2007. He is currently in his 2nd year of remission and we are hoping and hoping to be able to book a really nice holiday for next year. But insurance is nightmare, most companies even those who claim to cover cancer have turned him down.
So a few questions please.
Do you have to have travel insurance in place before you book?
Can you recommend from personal experience any company who might offer an affordable cover?
Do we all need to be on the same policy if we had to cancel because of say the cancer returning?
Would it make any difference if my dh booked his holiday separately?

We spent hours y/day phoning round, answering the same questions over and over only to be turned down. One company did offer to cover him for a single policy trip to Europe only, up to 14 nights at a cost of £1000 and 21p, plus the first £1000 excess!! It really unfair :(

MacMillan do a leaflet/book giving numbers to try for travel insurance.
saved my (older, and complicated by a heart attack) friend quite a bit. He lent it to me, and I did better with internet searches, but it might work out for you ?

Thank you bfg we have tried them, I downloaded the booklet only y/day, that's what makes me so cross they give you hope then 20 mins later say no. Because he has had secondaries they say he is high risk, yet he has been all clear for almost 2 yrs and has had no chemo for 3 years!

I can't help with a lot of your questions but i have a daughter with a serious life long condition. We tried a lot of specialist insurers in the first place amf were floored by their high quotes. I tried a mainstream insurer on the recommendation of a friend(insure and go). They still loaded the premium but by only a few pounds more. No idea if they offer cancer cover but may be worth trying.
Good luck. I hope you find some insurance soon.

to answer the first question - you don't have to have travel insurance in place when booking, or indeed at all. But clearly it is daft not to have it. The biggest risk is a medical emergency needing repatriation, which can bankrupt people. And that is a risk for everyone, whatever their state of health.

the insurance should generally be bought just after booking so you are then covered if you need to cancel.

I can't help with your exact query but it is possible because I have a relative who was given six months to live and still got travel insurance. BTW he is still here, seven years later.

best wishes to you.

Thank you and wonderful to hear of another surviver. I will keep phoning round. So it would be ok to book for 2014 then get insurance, need to find out if we all need to be on the same policy.