One in four people hide medical conditions when buying travel insurance in order to save money, it has been revealed.
But this puts them at great risk of huge bills if something does go wrong – as claims could be rejected as a result.
A quarter (24 per cent) of holiday makers intentionally avoid disclosing pre-existing medical conditions when purchasing their travel insurance to save money, new research from Gigasure has shown.
Many fear that disclosing conditions will significantly increase the cost of the policy.
There has been a 19 per cent rise in travel insurance customers who have had their insurance claims rejected because pre-existing medical conditions had not been properly disclosed, Financial Ombudsman Service data shows.
There are lots of common, yet often undisclosed, conditions that won’t impact the price of the insurance policy.
Failure to disclose these, whether intentional or not, can mean the difference between being fully covered while on holiday, or facing expensive medical and repatriation bills.
The Association of British Insurers (ABI) reports its members paid out £472 million across more than 500,000 travel insurance claims last year.
Medical expenses were the most common, making up 34 per cent of claims and totalling £262 million, with an average payout of £1,528.
For example, if you’re visiting France, the average cost of medical procedures for a heart attack and bypass is £6,000 – while a broken leg including repatriation could be as much as £1,800, according to insurance company Admiral.
Altitude sickness in Peru could cost up to £18,000, and a heart attack could cost up to £230,000 in the US.
If your insurance doesn’t cover your medical bills, you’d be forced to pay these yourself.
Conditions that are being managed, for example high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes and asthma should not make your travel insurance cost huge amounts more.
The risk of these conditions affecting your ability to travel, or causing issues while on holiday, is relatively low.
The most commonly declared conditions by travellers include high blood pressure, cholesterol levels, diabetes, arrhythmia, ischaemic heart disease (coronary artery disease), hypothyroidism, back and/or neck problems, coronary angioplasty and osteoarthritis.
Ernesto Suarez, travel insurance expert and CEO of Gigasure, says: ‘Unlike home or car insurance, travel insurance isn’t mandatory – you don’t need to buy it, so what’s the point of buying it but not declaring your medical conditions and then it being invalid? That’s no use to anyone.
‘Whether intentional or otherwise, not disclosing medical conditions when purchasing travel insurance can mean the difference between being able to claim fully on the policy, and not.
‘This can potentially leave the individual with hefty medical bills should they need to seek treatment while away, when the true cost of declaring the conditions at the time of purchasing could be just a few pounds.
‘Each travel insurance provider has its own set of and rules and criteria around its policies and it’s important that holidaymakers ensure they answer all questions correctly when going through the purchasing process.
‘Answering the questions incorrectly could mean that if you need to seek medical treatment abroad, you could be left thousands of pounds out of pocket if the insurance company finds that you didn’t share the right information with them.’
