Travel Insurance

Hello everyone, as promised I am giving you the response from the travel insurance company which has just arrived in my inbox.  The good news is that my complaint has been upheld. Below is some of the response-

"After speaking with Verisk, the team responsible for developing medical warranty questions, they were able to provide further clarity regarding the question asked in relation to autism. Verisk clarified that 'daily living' refers to essential activities such as getting dressed, personal hygiene, bathing and eating.  While there may be additional elements that some individuals consider part of their daily routine, for the purpose of this question, the focus is on the key functions listed above.  The answer must reflect the customer's ability to carry out these core tasks"

The letter contains much more detail but I have chosen what I think is the important part.  I have responded to the letter and have just received a response stating that all call handlers will now be given clearer instructions.  Hope that helps everyone in some way. 

Brandy5cat said:

why this new question now?

I think autism diagnoses are growing (currently around 2% of the UK are diagnosed with a probable max of 5% potentially) and autism is gaining more media coverage (think RF Kennedy Jr and his crusade to "cure" autism at the moment) so it will become something that is an identifiable risk which can be mitigated by charging a premium to cover.

This is just how insurance companies work - identifying a risk amd making you pay more for coverage or excluding it should you try to claim means they get to keep more of your money.

Hi everyone, just an update.  By changing the 'yes' to a 'no' the travel insurance company put up the price by £72 so I cancelled.  This new question now seems to be on all insurance sites (have checked 3 so far).  Still waiting for an official response but in the meantime a manager in the call centre gave his version of 'fully independent'  -  If you are 95% independent but still have 5% needs then you have to say 'no'.  Figure that covers quite a lot of autistic people!  I know it is all about risk but why this new question now?  Perhaps the insurance  industry is short of money. Took a few hours but eventually found a reasonable quote.

Brandy5cat said:

My interpretation might not match theirs!  For instance, someone at university might be classed as 'fully independent' but they may require classroom support.

You need to look at it from the insurance companies risk perspective. They essentially want to know if there are forseeable situaitions (stemming from her autism) which could lead to a claim.

That is the binary aspect I was suggesting. If it is reasonably forseeable then you would not be covered if it happened. However if it is a bizzare combination of events never seen before then it is not reasonable to think it should be excluded.

Insurance companies are all about calculating risk so if they think it is possible to forsee then they will exclude it from the coverage. It is the same for all types of insurance - a known risk will not be covered unless explicitly stated when there is a pre-existing risk like this.

Do you think that there is a reasonable risk that you may have to use the insurance cover for an autism reated incident? If you can think of a reason that you could then you would need to declare it. The insurance company will either then exclude this from coverage or charge you extra to include it.

For them it is just a business risk calculation so it helps to look at it as such.

Thank you all for your replies.  My worry is that the question is open to interpretation.  My interpretation might not match theirs!  For instance, someone at university might be classed as 'fully independent' but they may require classroom support.

I'm being cynical I know but is this just another way to avoid paying?  I have spoken to someone at Zurich Insurance and I will update you all when I get a reply.

You are doing exactly the right thing by asking for clarity on the question. The Financial Ombudsman says insurers questions should be clear and specific, but also that customers should take reasonable care in answering. 

If I were to guess at the meaning I'd say they probably mean independent of Activities of Daily Living. This term is used by the NHS and includes washing, dressing, self feeding, toileting and mobility. However, this is only a guess so don't take my word for it. Wait for clarification. 

www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/.../misrepresentation-non-disclosure

I seem to remember some unclear medicla related questions when I was getting travel insurance towards the end of last year. When I asked about it, I think they said I should contact a medical professional, which is bonkers. I doubt a medical professional will know what it means either, and I doubt they would be willing to make themselves liable if they give an incorrect answer for something which is nothing to do with them.

The medical questionnaire bit was stupid as well. I think it asked me 3 times if I have anxiety.

Brandy5cat said:

This time they are asking is my adult daughter 'Fully Independent'.  Computer says yes or no

It does seem to be a binary question - are there situations you can realistically anticipate where your daughter could not function on her own.

The would exclude factors that affect "normal" people such as language barriers.

If your daughter has a history of meltdowns in unfamiliar situations then clearly she is not able to be fully independent.

Are there any situations when she would end up puting her self into harms way or where she would be willing to follow strangers, accept drinks from them etc.

This seems to be what they are getting at - is she capable of functioning as an adult in all situations and remain in control of herself.