Travel Insurance.

[telboy]

I have found that upon reaching the age of 70 (the new 50) that my annual multitrip insurance has gone up by 75%.
I only use it once/twice a year to visit family in the USA.
For the cost of it I could b****y fly there. I declare the usual old f**t probs like (medicated hypertension) but can't find a reasonably priced Policy.
Any ideas?

[telboy]

[ceres]

telboy sent you a PM.

[rosebud]

 Sent you a PM.

[GRACELAND]

all theses pms is there a cheep way  then   :D ;) :) ;D

although i have a few years to go yet 

[ceres]

No mystery from me.  I'm a Which? member so have their report on Best Buy policies that's broken down into age groups.  I can't post it here as it's copyright and only available to members but I've given tel a screen grab of the page.

[GRACELAND]

No mystery from me.  I'm a Which? member so have their report on Best Buy policies that's broken down into age groups.  I can't post it here as it's copyright and only available to members but I've given tel a screen grab of the page.

right in a few years  i will ask the same   ;D

[petengade]

As we are going to Thailand next year and saw a young man had no insurance, was ill out there and cost his family £250,000 to fly him home, I paid Churchill £200.00 for insurance two years ago.
One company voted best buy three years running by Which at the bottom of this page page has quoted about £136.00 for one months cover, any Better, Ceres that you know of? age 80 next year, thanks.

[telboy]

Thanks ceres.
I'll study the info. but others beware - when you enter your pre-existing conditions @70+, that's when the barometer goes through the roof & I've only got a couple of well controlled ones which are pretty normal at advanced years. >:(

[ceres]

petengade,
The page I gave tel was for an annual worldwide policy.  Which has tables that cover a single trip Europe policy and a single trip worldwide policy.  I'm happy to copy whichever one is appropriate for you email it to you.  I can't check specific policies for you.

[Lishka]

OMG ! Just written a long reply, pressed 'post' = lost and gone forever :'(

Back later, if this hasn't resolved before then.

Cheers Telboy,

Losh X

[Lishka]

Right! Back on track but this time with an abridged reply.

Tel, like you I have annual worldwide cover - I not only visit NC as and when (one year it was 3 times) but also take other hols as they come up, both home and abroad.I've full cover.I'm now 67 and have to declare the Big C as well as high BP etc. After insuring with Norwich Union for some years, that policy was then switched to their travel offspring, Aviva. Like you, I've noticed a small hike in price over the years but that I reckon is, in part, the general rise in prices + the big hike in the Insurance Premium Tax. I renewed on the 16/09 this year and the annual all-cover cost had risen to £103.46  - the largest hike it's been during all the years, but I'm still really reassured to be with them. I've made a couple of claims over the years which have been dealt with v. promptly.

The policy is for trips of up to and including 31 days - when I've had longer stays I've phoned them & a one-off extra premium for that trip has been applied. When, for instance,one year I stayed in Thailand for 10 weeks during a winter (I really DO have friends/family living in lovely places!) at that time my annual cover was something like £70+ and although I don't remember now the extra, I would have remembered if I'd squealed in horror - and I didn't.

Hope this helps, Lish

[Lishka]

Me again, for everyone.

Please note that a company insuring you one year (single trip) doesn't automatically mean that the same company will insure you affordably for another trip some months later.

I was dx with C in Jan 2000, surgery February, chemo started end Feb/beginning of March for 6 months, at the end of which - well, I deserved a holiday before going on to radiotherapy, I reckoned. ;) And that was to the USA for a couple of week. So, a holiday mid C treatments then.. I phoned Direct Line, my car/house insurers at the time and got a fabbo and affordable quote, no probs, immediately over the phone WOWEEE - Manhattan and Miami here I come 8) That was in the September. The following Easter, all treatments finished, I wanted to visit a friend in a lovely place - Lorca, Spain, which apparently has the 2nd largest Easter week-long party in Spain. And Spain is in the EEC. No problems? Wrong. Direct Line gave a stoopid quote of £300+ for the week. When I asked why I was told that p'raps the company had had to pay out a lot over the preceeding months and therefore they're raised their bar? So that's when I found Norwich Union. And that's why I've been with them since on an annual basis.

For Telboy, my premiums had a hike when I reached 65 and I was told to expect another at 70 - it's the way it goes, I reckon. The other hikes, as I've written in the previous post, I think reflect the general rise in prices + enormous hike in tax. Keep persevering mate, but it's horrible to face the fact that  while anyone will happily insure your baggage they don't rate your body at all >:(


Lishka

[telboy]

Thanks Lish,
Didn't you do well @ £103.46! with declared!
I was paying £235 (two of us mind), which is now £412. If I bump OH off I suppose I could save a few quid but who then would wipe my botty when I'm 95 and frail?
Gonna study more then get back peeps.
;D

[Lishka]

Way to go Tel! It needs a pretty strong frame of mind to move on to the next on your list when the person before just doesn't want to know (see my Direct Line comment above!) but even dividing £412 by 2, assuming you're both the same age with the same meds, it seems high?

It's good, tho, to read the small print and think of the if and but scenarios - sometimes cheapest ain't best.

Mind you - p'raps a benefit of Old Age is that we might have our teeth safely in a jar by the bed & that chipping/breaking one isn't the expensive holiday-wrecking tragedy it would be when younger?

(struggling desperately to think of  other 'benefits' of Old Age here  ;D

[telboy]

I've had a good gander at the group of Policies on ceres' suggestion which has been interesting.
I phoned two of the best recommendations for my/wife age group and found only a £4 difference (including declared med conditions for myself - wife is as fit as a butchers dog).
I had to ring Medical Screening numbers for that part of the premium but they were the same outfit & quotes!

You may be interested to know that the best quote was £352.18!

So Trish, you've still done well!!

[ceres]

The Which? Best Buy policies provide what Which? considers to be an acceptable level of cover for the countries concerned. 

Which? Best Buy travel insurance policies provide the cheapest cover that meets stringent criteria. All of our Best Buys include at least £2 million of medical cover for Europe and £5 million worldwide, £1,500 of cover for baggage and personal belongings and £3,000 for cancellation or curtailment.

We have also analysed the 22 most important elements of your travel insurance policy to see which providers offer the best all-round cover. Along with the standard features, we've assessed insurers for their policy on missed departures, delays, holiday and airline failure, terrorism cover and volcanic ash. Insurers that have a policy score of less than 65% are not included in the table.

If you want less cover, you should be able to find a policy that's cheaper. 

[grawrc]

(struggling desperately to think of  other 'benefits' of Old Age here  ;D

Failing eyesight means you can't see the wrinkles?

[OllieC]

Can I mention a company called "World First" for people with pre-existing conditions/history? A year after testicular cancer & treatment, Aviva messed me around and then dumped me upon renewal (perhaps they're still hurting from the Critical Illness insurance payout - although you'd think they'd like some of it back!).

World first were cheaper than Aviva, even covering me for the pre-existing, and in the USA. They were also well priced for my mother who has had a few fairly normal things for a 60 something year old.

Haven't had a claim yet, so they might be rubbish, but at least the policy covers the main stuff and isn't stupidly expensive.

[Lishka]

For Ol, I've put your recommendation in my travel file for next year in case I want to move, so thanks for that. BUT, please can you give the prices they quoted you, both for you and for your mother? Ta.

[OllieC]

I know my details - will check mum's when she's back from her hols.

2 adults (35 YO) , 2 kids (2 & 5), annual multi-trip including USA, £147.46. It would have been around £30 less without cover for pre-existing.