Insurance - Seperated Family

[DaddyofThree]

My separated wife and I will be taking the kids to the US this summer, each spending time with them separately.

She will be flying out with the kids and spending 3 weeks with her family and then I will be flying out separately to pick them up and then travel with them but not with their mother. Due to complexity of flights we will be returning together.

Does anyone have any experience of booking insurance for such an arrangement. The main problems are:

• We are not living together so are not a single family
• If we both have insurance with the kids then the insurance does not (for the kids) start and end in the UK

No problem getting insurance for myself and their mother but we are almost being pushed into not having insurance for the kids

Thanks

I'm a LP, and I got my TI with the Post Office who do a single parent family cover - same cost as individual cover, as children >16 go free - could you both do that? The children will have 2 policies for the days you're both in the US, but there's no law against that.

The problem with that yanniwoo is that most insurance policies that I have seen state that the policy covers travel starting and ending in the UK.

If we have two policies then their mothers policy is invalidated as their travel on her policy does not end in the UK and mine is invalid because it does not start in the UK
Daft but that seems to be the case.

Just had a look at my policy and that's true with Post Office too, however you can get travel insurance for them in their own right with P.O.

What about separate children's cover a quick google gave me a few options
www.essentialtravel.co.uk/travelinsurance/childrens-travel-insurance/
Or
www.insureandaway.co.uk/childrens-travel-insurance
Or www.moneymaxim.co.uk/travel-insurance-young-travellers-18-17-16-15
Are a few options

If you are flying back together will they not continue to be covered on her insurance even if they are not with her?

have a look at AMEX - you might have to pay a bit more but they are very good and able to give more flexible cover I think - they have a policy which allows independent travel - so the resident parent could get the cover for themselves and the children and it would cover kids for when they were with the NRP -who would have their own cover - and the RP when they were on their own.
insurance.americanexpress.co.uk/travel-insurance/family-couples/family/
N. AMerica is always expensive due to the medical costs of course.....

Thanks for all the help.

Wonkylegs - the first two you suggest fall foul as soon as you try to insert and the third is only for older children - but had some snippits of advice from other insurers - See Below

Catsrus - Amex lets you enter a single child but on the next page then insists on an adult - might be OK in the rules somewhere but difficult to find

mrsmortis - unfortunately not with many insurers as they would not be covered while I am travelling with them - only when travelling as a group

Anyway - based on a link on the moneymakim site - Columbus might be the way to go as they allow children on family policies to travel independently if with a responsible adult - you just need to let them know in advance. flexicover also look good. I think you need to buy an annual policy to allow the independent cover though. So an annual policy for kids and their mother and single trip for me will do.

Thanks for all the help.

Online might not be your friend here, OP - I feel sure that if you were to speak to a RL person at one of the Insurance companies you could get three policies - one for you, one for your wife and the third for the children - all with accurate start and end dates.

Or even better than an individual insurance company try a broker. They'll have a much better overview. I've used A-Plan in the past when I had a difficult situation to insure.

The Amex policy would be one for the RP plus children - but it then allows them to travel independently. The other, nrp, would then get their own policy and all would be covered. I would recommend ringing AMEX - I have found them very helpful. Insurance like this, particularly travelling to the USA, is not something you should be looking for the lowest cost on - you need to get the best cover. I used to work in the industry (not AMEX or travel insurance) so know how underwriters try to wriggle out of meeting claims. It's a false economy to go for cheap if you are not fully covered.

I had an issue with insurance this summer too.

I'll post in full when have laptop, but similar probsbwith journey not commencing in UK.

Am with Insureandgo. It was easily sorted,.

So - our annual familly travel policy covers me, DH and our 3 DC. (2 don't live with us, they are DSSs and live nearby).

The issue we had is that this summer we are going away for two weeks - and the second of those two weeks we are having DNephew for a week. He will have been holidaying in the same region for two weeks prior with his DF.

So, I checked out getting a separate insurance policy for DNephew - v cheap, but most of them insist on the journey beginning and ending in the UK. Which for our leg of the holiday period HISwon't be.

I phoned InsureandGo - and they have added DNephew to our policy - with the only stipulation being that he has to be handed over to/from a responsible adult aged 18 and over.

No charge for us either - which is nice.

I suggest speaking to your current insurers as it is more complex than online forms can handle.

Good luck and enjoy your holidays.