Limitations of Area of Cover

Our clients can purchase our plans with a geographical Area of Cover which is not fully ‘Worldwide’, e.g. ‘Europe’ or ‘Worldwide excluding USA’. Those clients have chosen to restrict their core medical benefits to a specified Area. However, they enjoy a special ‘bonus’ benefit which is ‘Out of Area’ cover. This will cover them for emergency in-patient medical treatment during any trips outside their chosen Area (for example to the USA), up to a maximum annual value of €60,000 and for up to 42 nights per year. As it is obvious, we do not intend to provide full cover outside of the chosen core Area, but we provide a useful ’safety net’. In January 2018 we had a recent claim under this benefit from a member who had been in a car crash during a short trip to the USA.

If there is a need for a medical evacuation for someone who will be starting from a location which is outside their chosen Area of Cover then we do not cover those costs. Our optional Evacuation / Repatriation benefit operates only within each client’s’ chosen Area of Cover.

For someone visiting the USA, there is therefore still a high risk relating to possible medical costs. If a client were to need intensive care treatment or any kind of prolonged stay in a hospital then the bills in the USA become very large very quickly. It is therefore wise to purchase a travel insurance plan which can be used to supplement our own coverage.