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Wondering what medical conditions do you have to declare for travel insurance? Read our guide to understand what conditions to declare.
According to a study carried out by Dawid Gondek, the UCL researcher, more than one in three middle-aged British adults are suffering from at least two chronic health conditions. Chronic conditions include health problems such as; recurrent back problems, poor mental health and high blood pressure. Unfortunately, health conditions that develop in midlife often follow us into our golden years.
No matter you’re age, it’s important to declare all of your pre-existing medical conditions when buying travel insurance. However, it can be confusing to know exactly what medical conditions to declare. For instance, you have been in remission for several years. Likewise, if you haven’t experienced any symptoms for several years.
It’s important to know what pre-existing conditions are classed as for the purposes of Travel Insurance. When buying Travel Insurance, a pre-existing medical condition is any health condition you’ve experienced symptoms, a diagnosis or treatment for in the past few years. For example; if you’ve been diagnosed with Epilepsy and it’s managed and controlled with medication, you’d still need to declare it as a medical condition when buying Travel Insurance even if you haven’t had a seizure in years.
Travel Insurance providers need to know all of your pre-existing conditions as it enables them to calculate risk. Travelling can increase personal health and well-being risks; your risk may be higher if you have pre-existing medical conditions.
Clinical Nurse Specialist, Kay Greveson, explains: “A pre-existing medical condition can be affected by changes in temperature and climate and should always be declared, even if it is being controlled by medication.”
In short – your Travel Insurance policy may become invalid. A standard policy does not usually cover pre-existing medical conditions. If you don’t declare your medical conditions – you could be left with extensive medical bills should the worse happen while you’re away.
The best way to protect yourself is to declare all pre-existing medical conditions.
If something changes concerning your health after taking out travel insurance – you’ll need to update your Travel Insurance provider. Providers often refer to this process as an ‘ongoing duty of disclosure’.
By updating your medical information, your provider will ensure that you continue to have the right level of cover.
At AllClear, we provide Specialist Medical Travel Insurance as we believe everyone deserves the opportunity to travel. So, far we’ve covered over 1300 conditions and over 3.5 million people.
Author notes
Written by Lydia Crispin, MA Content Creator at AllClear Edited by Letitia Smith, M.Sc. Content Manager at AllClear
* With a purchase of an AllClear branded policy, you’ll automatically enter the £500 prize draw. Plus, you’ll get 20% off the base price of your policy. Discount does not apply to any premium generated to cover medical conditions and optional extras. This offer cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer. Offer ends at 23:59 on 4/12/23. T&Cs apply
Written by: Lydia Crispin | Travel Insurance ExpertLast Updated: 30 August 2023
[1] Based on Trustpilot reviews of all companies in the Travel Insurance Company category that have over 30,000 reviews as of January 2023.