AIBU to ask you for advice re travel insurance as the folks in chat blanked me!

[Theas18]

Yes I know .... just don't tell me off I'm fed up enough as it is and I got no replies to my query in chat!

My parents are very old. Dad is 90 , Mum 86. Mum is in hospital. She's pretty ill. Looks like she will survive this episode but might not if it happens again.

I have holiday in august that I have, stupidly it seems not booked anything for as I didn't know what would happen.

We have lloyds crapstastic gold travel insurance. THey have categorically told us that they wont cover a new holiday booking made now.

I need insurance that will cover if I couldn't go away. I can see that she's poorly, but we haven't got a terminal diagnosis etc.

Does this mean noone with an old poorly parent can go on holiday , without risking their money ever??

Best insurance provider please?

[wowfudge]

Have you claimed before because your mother was taken ill or have you queried something in the policy?

[Theas18]

No we've not claimed. we stupidly called to ask if we'd be covered, we are too honest for out own good!

[OberonTheHopeful]

Look for a travel insurer that covers pre-existing medical conditions. It's been a few years since I had to so this, so unfortunately I can't remember the name of the company I used (found them from Google). They let me effectively add my dad to the policy, even though he wasn't travelling, so I would be covered if he became ill and I had to cancel the holiday.

[TallGiraffe]

Have a look at Freedom travel insurance. They used to guarantee cover for everyone including the terminally ill. The last time I used them they covered me despite the fact I was in hospital at the time (and had been for 4 months) and left for holiday the day of discharge!

[Waggamamma]

It's really unlikely you will be able to make a claim on a policy if your parents were already ill when you book the holiday.

We had a successful claim in May, however my relative was completely healthy when we booked the holiday and it was a sudden and unforseen illness. Had she been unwell when we booked we wouldn't have been able to get our money back.

[gordyslovesheep]

she's NOT after cover for her mum - the OP wants cover for if she has to cancel because her mum takes a turn for the worst

Sadly OP I don't think you will find it

maybe best to book last min and get a bargain or take a chance?

[gordyslovesheep]

at least that's how I read it - sorry if I'm wrong x

[Waggamamma]

gordy - yes my relative wasn't coming on holiday with us, we just couldn't travel because she was so unwell we had to be at home in case the worst happened. Our claim was upheld because the illness was not preexisting. As the OPs parent's illness is preexisting I doubt she would be covered.

[greenfolder]

sorry, i really dont think you can get cover- usually excludes anything that is ongoing at the time of booking. i did wonder about whether we would have been covered a few years ago when dfil was ill. he had been ill off and on for years with heart problems. lucking dh is one of 4 siblings so they always had an agreement between them not to all book hols at the same time.

[gordyslovesheep]

Wag I wan't responding directly to you :)

[Theas18]

Oh gosh, are you really all saying that because Mum is ill already I can't ever take a holiday that I shall be insured for?

Surely that can't be the case? someone of 86 or 90 pretty much has, by definition a catalogue of things wrong that they might die from whilst their relatives are away. Even my " well" dad has... dementia, cerebrovascular disease, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hypertension, depression and lymphoma that has been treated palliatively.

when mum gets home she's going to be back to her pre existing knife edge balance of all her medical issues that has been the situation for a couple of years.

Do I have to wait till they die till I can go on holiday insured? Oh and then DH parents will be in that situation and we will still be stuck....

I dunno. I've been holding things together so well and this has broken me :(

[Phantomteadrinker]

Well you can buy a policy that will cover you for everything else, but as you know before buying that there is a chance that you may need to make a claim for curtailing then no, you will not be covered under any policy. There are policies that cover pre existing conditions but that is for the person with the condition, not relatives that might need to come home early.

It's not that you can't travel, you'll be fully covered for everything else but if you cut short your trip, you'll have to pay those costs, I.e flights yourself.

[gordyslovesheep]

oh course you can HAVE a holiday - and no one here is saying you can't - we aren't insurance companies - slightly odd response OP

IF you go - she has a worsening in her CURRENT condition - and you cancel - they wont pay because it's something that is likely to happen

If you went and , god forbid, something happened to your dad etc than you would be covered

Sorry she's ill

[Theas18]

Gordy I actually said " I can't take a holiday that I shall be insured for", which seems to be the case at least as regards Mums health

[OberonTheHopeful]

OP, as I said earlier in the thread, you can but travel insurance that will cover you if a non-travelling relative or dependent is ill and you have to cancel your trip because of that, it's just harder to find.

The combination of age and pre-existing conditions narrows it down, so suggest you search for specialist broker (I just found this one on Google: www.orbisinsurance.co.uk/ ).

[Theas18]

thanks oberon I shall pursue this tomorrow with as many places as will speak to me.

[Helyantha]

Hello. Have a look at age uk insurance. It is absolutely possible to insure yourself with the explicit understanding from the insurer that you may have to return because of a relative's pre-existing condition. I have been on holiday on many occasions over the years despite having a DS with a complex, unpredictable condition. There is very little, if any, additional cost. My parents go on holiday regularly despite being responsible for my 90-something year old grandma. As you point out, there would be a lot of people unable to go on holiday with insurance if you were excluded because of aged/ill/etc relatives.

[offtoseethewizard64]

I have,in the past, tried to get travel insurance that would cover us for cancellation in the event that my DD (who has a life limiting condition) took ill and we were not able to travel. We were never taking DD with us, she was staying in respite in this country. I was told (ironically) that I could not get cover against cancellation due to DD because of her pre-existing conditions, however, if she had been travelling with us, we would have been able to insure her.

[OberonTheHopeful]

offtoseethewizard64 which insurers did you try? I actually found out that it's possible by accident. I was taking out travel cover for pre-existing conditions for my then partner (nothing life-limiting but I wanted to be sure), and mentioned to the agent on the phone that my dad was ill (heart disease and Parkinson's) and that if he took a turn for the worse that was a risk I had to take. She immediately offered, if I could get the details of his condition and medications, cancellation cover for a non-travelling relative, so that if, say, he was hospitalised before our holiday I could claim the cancellation costs.