Holiday travel insurance key as medical care costs abroad rise

Medical care costs abroad are rising so making sure you have appropriate travel insurance is even more important.

According to Direct Line, the average claim for medical care abroad was £427 in 2007 but this rose to £678 in 2008 and they could rise further.

Whilst the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), previously know as the E111, does provide access to healthcare abroad, it may not provide all the cover that may be required.

Buying travel insurance, from such as Direct Line, which includes cover for a wider range of costs could clearly be worth while.

You can compare travel insurance by using a price comparison website such as Confused.com or Gocompare.com.

For example medical repatriation costs are not included under the EHIC and whilst you might think these might only be required for severe medical cases, even a broken leg may result in them as an airline may not be able to accommodate the patient with the extra room required and associated expenses.

To put it into perspective, average medical repatriation costs from Spain to London are £17,500, from the Canary Islands £22,500 and £21,000 from Cyprus.

As Chris Price, Head of Direct Line Travel, said, ‘Being caught without insurance in the event of an accident or falling ill could lead to you paying out hundreds, if not thousands, of pounds in medical care and repatriation costs.