Holiday insurance

Hi ,

Thanks for getting in touch and I’m sorry to hear about the difficulties you’re having getting travel insurance.

For people who are struggling to find quotes that they find affordable, we have found that one of the best ways to find companies who may be able to offer you cover is to use other people’s experiences.

Our online community and travel insurance blogs have lots of information posted by other people who have been affected by cancer. You can find them here.

There is also a Travel Insurance Directory created by MoneyHelper (a separate organisation to Macmillan) which you can use to search for FCA approved travel insurers who may offer cover to people with pre-existing medical conditions. You can visit their directory here.

It’s also worth checking if you have any cover available through any bank accounts or credit cards you have, they won’t usually automatically include cover for problems related to a health condition like cancer – but they may offer full cover if a top-up fee is paid (but they may also decline to offer cover). Also sometimes Trade Unions can offer travel insurance to members and their families.

Some insurance companies use medical screening systems to assess the risk of offering cover, but many companies use the same or similar systems – so often the questions you’ll be asked will be the same. If you’re struggling to explain your cancer diagnosis fully, you may find it worth asking if someone can manually underwrite the policy. This will mean a person, rather than a computer, will look at your health situation and decide whether they can offer cover and if so, how much it will cost.

You may find some companies willing to offer a travel insurance policy with a cancer-related exclusion. This means the person insured wouldn’t be covered for any claims relating to the cancer. If you choose to take a policy like this, keep in mind it’s important to consider the risk of not being covered if you experience any problems related to the cancer while you’re away.

I hope this information is helpful, if you’d like any further support on subjects such as insurances, pensions, mortgages or estate planning, then please get in touch again.

Kind regards,

Joe
Financial Guide

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