Should the UK leave the EU on October 31 as scheduled, yet in a no deal Brexit, EHIC cards will no longer be valid, making travel insurance health cover all the more important.
This has been flagged by AllClear as potentially sparking huge costs for procedures such as dialysis.
Today, the CEO of AllClear said how the policy changes to include pre-existing medical conditions needed to be implemented in a particular way in order to prevent more harm than good.
CEO Chris Rolland said: “Consumers should only be signposted to providers who are able to cover almost every scenario, and that means the true specialist providers.
“Consumers will need to have faith in the system, and this will quickly evaporate if they are declined cover by a provider to whom they are directed.
“This could happen a second or third time if the correct providers are not included on the list, leaving the consumer further frustrated.
“We actively support the FCA in helping raise awareness and consumer understanding of travelling uninsured and underinsured.
“We regularly publish details comparing the costs of medical treatment abroad to improve customer understanding, and proactively host forums with diabetes, stroke, kidney, heart disease and mobility charities to share experiences and best practice with the wider industry including experts at Verisk Risk Rating and the British
Insurance Brokers Association (BIBA).
“This initiative is helping the industry to better understand the challenges and requirements of people living with medical conditions and providing charities with collateral to help them communicate to their stakeholders the importance of comprehensive medical travel insurance.”
This weekend, it was exclusively revealed how one particular cancer patient, Pav, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2016 and how travel insurance worries have marred her holiday experiences.
She told Express.co.uk: “The first huge disappointment was finding out that I’d miss my brother’s milestone birthday, his 60th, in Greece.
“My insurers put an immediate restriction on my account and told me not to travel.
“I always thought that if I was honest, it’d be fine but instead when I tried to find alternative quotes, they would often be more than the cost of a holiday.”
The FCA believes around 0.7 per cent of Britons are flat out declined any cover every year.
Christopher Woolard, executive director of strategy and competition at the FCA, said: “We want to reduce the numbers of consumers, who are currently faced with a choice of not travelling or travelling without insurance, and running the risk of incurring significant costs, including medical bills abroad.
“The changes proposed today will be an important step in helping people to navigate the market more easily and also in reducing the number of customers who are over-paying significantly for travel insurance.”
