7 Reasons British Expats Get Travel Insurance Wrong

More than 10 years after ‘Brexit’, British expats living in Europe are still getting it wrong when it comes to travel insurance.  This is the viewpoint of a specialist provider of travel insurance to expats of all nationalities, who are now resident in a European country that was not their original country of residence but which is now where they call ‘home’.

The travel insurance specialist in question is Europesure Travel Insurance, which offers travel insurance policies, written in English and underwritten by Lloyds of London, to expat travellers.

Europesure has offered travel insurance protection to expats in the EU, EEA, Monaco and Gibraltar, for decades, understanding the issues that expats can face when trying to arrange their travel insurance in Europe, for whichever destination is in their sights.

Having reviewed the situation, these are the top 7 reasons that Europesure has identified, when it comes to why and how British expats get things wrong.

1)    British expats mistakenly buy a travel insurance policy that is offered by a UK travel insurance provider.  They fail to realise that these policies will typically only cover policyholders who are permanently resident in the UK.  These policies also usually require the start and end of the holiday or travel trip to both start and end in the UK.

2)    British expats wrongly think they can rely on an S1, plus an EHIC issued in Britain.  Here, some travellers have discovered that the travel insurance provider they chose to use, in their new country of residence, will not offer any medical protection on their policy, because the EHIC was issued in Britain.  Whilst some expats are aware of this issue immediately, others may buy travel cover and not have a clue that they would not be covered for any medical issues they suffer during their travels.

3)    Expats forget to declare their pre-existing medical conditions or believe that conditions that were covered by one expat travel insurance provider (like Europesure Travel Insurance) will be automatically covered by an insurer in their new country of residence.  In fact, many travel insurance providers based in European countries offer only narrow coverage for pre-existing medical conditions, or totally exclude some common ones.

4)    Expats overlook the requirement to check that any sporting activities will be covered by their local-based travel insurance provider.  In many cases, activities they have taken for granted as being covered will not be so.

5)    Expats, who are new ‘residents’ in their European country of choice, often do not realise that many local travel insurers will not even consider insuring them, unless they have acquired full residency or been in residence for quite some period of time.  Having left things to the last minute, these travellers then depart with no insurance in place, not realising that specialist expat travel insurance providers like Europesure exist and could probably offer immediate and comprehensive cover.

6)    Expats over-rely on either the UK’s GHIC card, or an EHIC issued in Europe, not to mention the S1.  They believe these are all the protection they need, not understanding that these health cards will not pick up any costs incurred in private medical facilities overseas and will not provide any medical repatriation cover from these countries or any mountain rescue required.  Many expats only discover the error of their ways when it is too late.

7)    British expats fail to understand the terms and conditions of their Europe-provided travel insurance policy, because they are frequently not fluent in the language of the country in which they now reside.  Insurance policies are notoriously difficult for many people to understand, even when they are written in the insured’s mother tongue.  Jargon and technical language can be lost in translation, even when you speak the language in which they are written.  Unless a British expat buys a travel insurance policy that is written in English, there are many policy terms that could exist, of which they are unaware, because they do not fully understand the policy document.

Europesure Travel Insurance’s sales and marketing director, Paul O’Sullivan, says, “All of the reasons above have often been blamed on Brexit and post-Brexit confusion.  However, 10 years on, we have the same issues arising, time and again, because British expats, who now live in Europe, use the wrong travel insurance provider and do not understand the limitations on cover that UK and European health cards provide.  Many expats fail to engage with their travel insurance policy, or still – and very alarmingly in many cases – totally ignore the fact that travel insurance can be a financial lifeline, should the worst occur.  Far too many expats travel without any travel insurance at all.

“Add to this those expats who have bought totally inappropriate cover, because their travel insurance documentation and policy is not provided in English, and many expat holidaymakers and travellers are vulnerable and over-exposed to risk.”

Europesure urges any British expat who wants help finding comprehensive and affordable insurance that will cover them and their specific scenario, to contact its team on enquiries@statusglobalinsurance.com    Ten years on from Brexit, it is determined to ensure that as few British expats as possible become case studies of travellers who got their travel insurance requirements sadly wrong and paid the price.

Ends

Editors notes

Europesure Travel Insurance is a respected travel insurance provider, offering a range of travel covers to residents of the UK, EU, EEA, Monaco and Gibraltar. With the added peace of mind of having policies backed by Lloyds of London, holidaymakers and travellers can gain peace of mind of knowing their cover will be comprehensive and ready to step in, to offer whatever level of protection was selected, in line with the policy wording and terms and conditions.