Travel insurance when waiting for a diagnosis

I was diagnosed in 2018 and have had no issues getting travel insurance and not seen any noticeable change to travel insurance premiums. I think most insurers are clue up to the fact that its a way we see the world issue not we are going to need medical assistance and a flight home issue.

Think of it like this - would an autistic meltdown cause you to need to make a claim? I.e. will you need to see a therapist/end up in hospital? Will the country you're traveling to have the facilities to treat you?

In my case, if I had a mega meltdown/burnout abroad (it's happened before), I'd just buy a plane ticket home. I.e. I wouldn't make a claim. Even if I made a claim, because autism is still not considered by many travel companies a spectrum condition, I doubt they'd fund a ticket home for you.

I don't disclose autism on my travel insurance because I don't need to claim for it, therefore.

I can imagine how frustrating that must be!  Travel insurance can be tricky when you're in a situation like this. I'd recommend reaching out to different insurance providers and explaining your circumstances.Sometimes, it's about finding the right company that's willing to work with you. It might take some extra effort, but it's worth shopping around and comparing quotes from various providers. I've used [link removed by Mod] to check out different options myself. It's a good starting point.And don't hesitate to ask for advice from others who've faced similar challenges. They might have some valuable insights or recommendations.

If you haven’t been diagnosed you don’t need to declare it.

if / once you are diagnosed the danger is that an insurance company will refuse to pay out for something related to a pre-diagnosed condition which hasn’t been declared.

I am bipolar (fortunately type ii not the more extreme type I) as well as autistic and in my case it’s possible although unlikely that the something could be the equivalent of being sectioned and having to stay in a mental hospital for a prolonged period of time. It’s therefore probably not wise for me to travel without declaring my bipolar and there are some countries which are probably prohibitively expensive for me to visit because of the cost of insurance. (USA and some European countries - it depends on the cost of healthcare in the country)

in the case of autism however I personally struggle to think of anything which I wouldn’t be prepared to risk having to pay for but it depends on your (undiagnosed) autism and what medical help you have required from the NHS in the past which in hindsight could be linked to your autism and what help you imagine you might need in the future.

DVLA Yes BUT only if your autism effects your driving. You could however be fined if you fail to disclose it.

it’s therefore up to you. I imagine the only way you would be fined would be if you had a serious accident and the accident was caused by your autism.

I don’t drive but discussing the issue with my sister I think it depends whether driving is something that interests you or not. If it is the.autistic ability to focus on things of interest for long periods probably makes you a safer driver all other things being equal. If however driving is not something that interests.you then you may get distracted too easily and would be a less safe driver.

Spam?

I can imagine how frustrating that must be!  Travel insurance can be tricky when you're in a situation like this. I'd recommend reaching out to different insurance providers and explaining your circumstances.Sometimes, it's about finding the right company that's willing to work with you. It might take some extra effort, but it's worth shopping around and comparing quotes from various providers. I've used [link removed by moderator] to check out different options myself. It's a good starting point.And don't hesitate to ask for advice from others who've faced similar challenges. They might have some valuable insights or recommendations.

I never declare autism for travel insurance. I think of it like this - would I be likely to claim for this abroad? For me, if the holiday put me in sensory overload/burnout I would put myself on an earlier flight home rather than making a claim. I don't need to claim for it, so I don't put it on my insurance.

While it may be challenging without a diagnosed condition, have you considered checking out [link removed by mod] They offer insurance that adapts to your trips, and they might have options that cater to your specific situation. Hang in there, and I hope you find the insurance solution that works best for you. 

Hey there! I can understand how frustrating it must be to navigate travel insurance when you're on the ASD diagnostic waiting list. It's important to have the right coverage, especially for peace of mind during your trip to Europe in July. 

Is it a legal obligation to inform people (insurers, mortgage companies, DVLA...others?) of a ASD diagnosis? 

Thanks for the advice everyone, it's very much appreciated, I have some time before my trip to sort this out and will post back once I sort something out.

I found an article that talks about travel insurance for people with ASD:

https://adultswithautism.org.uk/autism-mental-health-conditions-the-extra-cost-of-insurance/

I think the site may make a cut on the insurance so please use your own judgement before buying any through them as it may be cheaper going direct.

Good practive when shopping for insurance is to always do it using a private browser window so they can't check your cookies to see if you have been looking elsewhere and adjust what they offer accordingly,

I don't know about having to disclose autism as I was only diagnosed about a month ago. I do have a diagnosis of schizophrenia though and have been in hospital with it in the last 5 years and that bumps it up by quite a lot. I don't know if you have to disclsoe autism though.

If you have no diagnosis then just get insurance as before - you can notify them once you have it confirmed that you are on the Spectrum which is likely to make it a lot more expensive. There are no rules broken as you don't actually know if you are.

You could always get a private diagnosis but this will cost more than the insurance I expect.

Do we need to delare this anyway? Anyone hace experience of this?