Have EHIC card, going to Brittany for 2 weeks in September, do I really need travel insurance?

Yes you do! Never travel without insurance as you never know what is going to happen in the future! Shop around , we got annual insurance for both of us for £140 👍

Yes you do

Yes you do. My friend's husband died very suddenly when abroad, the travel insurance covered the cost of bringing his body home, otherwise she would have needed to finance everything herself. It is stupid not to have travel insurance, I simply cannot understand why you would consider not having it, on which planet are y living?

I had an accident in Italy 2 year ago. The insurance was able to organise an earlier flight home etc.

Definitely have insurance

I bought Tesco insurance because I, too, never travel without travel insurance. It allowed me to use my ClubCard (not my points) and gave me a much cheaper price. It was by far the least expensive of all those I received quotes from

Absolutely yes! I used Stay Sure for my last holiday, it wasn't prohibitive in terms of cost but it gave me peace of mind

I don't travel abroad but if I did would never do so without insurance or without disclosure of full medical history

A salutary tale in the news today, not about taking out insurance but stating everything relevant when taking it out.
A man didn’t say he had consulted a GP about a lump which he was told was probably fatty tissue.
It was cancer and he died racking up a bill in the 10 s of thousands in hospital care.
If he had told the insurance company, while the cost may have gone up, he would have been covered.
The policy will cover cremation abroad but not the very expensive hospital stay

Ah yes, 32 weeks. I never knew that in my 50+ years sailing with them.
I guess if you end up in labour and have to be airlifted off the ferry, the bill would be quite large.
How do they actually check if you're a passenger in a car?

seventhfloorregular

Brittany ferries are great but their rules are different than the Dover- Calais routes for fitness to travel. The pregnancy cut off is earlier.

Really? That's interesting. What's the latest you can travel on BF?

no such thing as EHIC card any more. You can use it if it's still valid, but you need a GHIC otherwise

Brittany ferries are great but their rules are different than the Dover- Calais routes for fitness to travel. The pregnancy cut off is earlier.

We have just returned from a fortnight's holiday in rural Normandy. We are 80 and 79. We both have EHIC cards, and didn't bother with travel insurance as it is just too expensive - we'd rather spend that money on some lovely French lunches!

If you can afford a holiday then you can afford travel insurance.

God forbid, but don't be one of those whose family has to set up a 'Go Fund Me' page

I bought inexpensive insurance for France from Asda online, very simple. You need it if one goes into hospital as need accommodation for the other one, to be flown home in case of accident or illness.Wouldn’t risk not having it myself as bills can be huge .

Wise decision Bluebell - happy holiday.

I have heard of the worried well, using their travel insurance as a means to get a good look over once on holiday 😳

Humbertbear

Frankly, it should be illegal to travel abroad without travel insurance and I think you should have to prove you have it before you board a plane or ferry. Do you not see the appeals for Just Giving every year because someone is ill abroad and can’t afford the medical bills? Or , worse still, they are trying to raise money to bring a body home. If you are taken ill, travel insurance will pay for the expenses of any family member staying with you and for medical repatriation if needed. The EHIC only covers whatever the locals get for free and that can just mean A n E. Also, please remember to inform the insurance company of anything that is wrong with you or any changes in medication. If you don’t, they will try to wriggle out of paying up.

Good idea- should bring it in here 👍🏻

We all hope not to need insurance. It's not for the minor stuff that you could pay for or use the GHIC for, it's there for the catastrophic costs. If you had an accident and needed medivac back home at a 6 figure cost.

Frankly, it should be illegal to travel abroad without travel insurance and I think you should have to prove you have it before you board a plane or ferry. Do you not see the appeals for Just Giving every year because someone is ill abroad and can’t afford the medical bills? Or , worse still, they are trying to raise money to bring a body home. If you are taken ill, travel insurance will pay for the expenses of any family member staying with you and for medical repatriation if needed. The EHIC only covers whatever the locals get for free and that can just mean A n E. Also, please remember to inform the insurance company of anything that is wrong with you or any changes in medication. If you don’t, they will try to wriggle out of paying up.

I don’t know how anyone could relax on holiday knowing they had no insurance.
My aunt who has heart failure, along side other health issues, takes a chance every time she goes away. It will be the family who has to sort it out, if anything bad occurs 😩
Glad you are now sorted 👍🏻

BluebellGran

Thank you all. I’ve bitten the bullet and taken out insurance!

Great update, thanks. Here’s hoping you don’t need it

You definitely need insurance . It doesn’t just cover you for illness or worse on holiday . It will also cover you if you need to return home early due to the death of very close family , or if you’re the victim of theft . You should take our instance as soon as you book as you’re covered if you need to cancel due to illness or death of someone in your party .

I would.
A SiL of mine broke a hip in France, where they have a 2nd home. Their own insurance covered everything after she finally left hospital, including IIRC an escorted return to the U.K. (Dbro had already returned) and an ambulance all the way back to their house.

Also, while we were staying at a BiL’s place in France a few years ago, a fellow guest was taken ill in the night. We visited him the next day in Dijon hospital (he wasn’t conscious) and the first thing I was asked was whether he had his own insurance.
Luckily he did - I had sat with him until the emergency services arrived, and he had told me where to find all his documentation.
Sadly, after a 2nd heart attack his life support eventually had to be switched off, but his insurance covered the return of his body to Scotland.