 Poster: A snowHead
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@pisteoff, personal liability?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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And it's easy to discount the importance of the insurer being responsible for repatriation. The cost of a separate medical flight for repatriation is a big incentive for them to get you home and why they don't baulk at things like flying out an 'assistant' and paying for their transfers, extra seats on a scheduled flight, accommodation costs for recuperation, and so on. It's also an incentive for them to translate and review the local A&E Discharge Report before issuing a 'Fit to Fly' declaration for the airline. All this means that they really work hard to get you home ASAP on scheduled flights if it's at all possible, which is generally what you want too. If you don't have travel insurance and just rely on the GHIC and skipass assurance then there's no one there who has an interest in helping you. So for me, travel insurance is as much to do with streamlining the repatriation process as obviating the associated costs.
When my wife was being repatriated after a broken arm, LV=/CEGA somehow got four seats on a GVA>LGW flight which was indicated as already full when I looked. I've no idea how they did it. So she got an empty seat each side and I got my seat. I've also no idea how I would have got a Fit to Fly Certificate for her, either. As far as I could see, if I'd been organising things myself, we wouldn't have got on another flight home 'till at least the next day, meaning having to find somewhere to stay in Geneva etc. etc. All this would be hassle and stress that is the last thing you want after an accident/illness.
Last edited by Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person on Wed 3-11-21 16:18; edited 4 times in total
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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@LaForet, Excellent thoughts, thank you
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| Quote: |
@pisteoff, personal liability?
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Ah yes - important. Although if you have few assets, having no PL cover is probably better no-one will sue you.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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After losing the will to live reading policies, my findings were:
Direct Line, seem to be the only ones I can find who cover if you need to cancel due to foreign office advice to not travel. Their annual policy is cheaper than a single trip, but by the time I added on my asthma it was £82 (a lot when you really are going away for 1 week). Plus I can imagine that they would try to get out of this if your tour operator offered you alternative dates should this happen.
I ended up with a bog standard winter sports policy from Compare the Market (coverforyou.com)- includes off piste with a guide, for £25. It seems to do all I need, and our ski company seem to be on the ball about changing dates should the worst happen. The insurance covers me if I get covid in the 2 weeks before travel, or if I'm told to isolate by track and trace. At that point I just went for it, wasted a whole morning getting it sorted though, but at least I'm insured now, just the balance to pay on our holiday!
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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carre neige is an interesting one
in the past I've bought it just for the ease of getting me off the mountain, which I haven't needed thankfully, without the faff of 'showing I can pay' when I'm in pain etc.
It happened to a family member who had lots of insurance cover and EHIC as it was then, but still had to fork out £700 for a small sled ride and a doc seeing him.
In the terms of cover it does talk about the payment of medical bills in france etc and repatriation, but it doesn't mention if it is purely within france or if it will take you to the UK
We used Insure and Go previously as they paid out with little fuss on a theft claim when in Dublin for a wedding, and did pay extra pre covid for more days, I think we got to 45 which wasnt enough, so we had to buy another cover as a top up which isnt ideal
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@LaForet, in my experience (twice personally) "fit to fly cert'" was given to me by the clinic/doctor when I asked for it. Insurance company had nothing to do with it.
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@adithorp, same with me and MrHL in Alleghe
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Just had a look at the Austrian Alpine Club - Britannia edition ... Looks too good to be true. Sadly the incredible 75% off they are offering elsewhere in Europe is not available to us brit, but otherwise £57 pa for some pretty robust looking rescue, repatriation, liability and healthcare cover looks good.
Can anyone comment - is it suitable - perhaps alongside carre neige, to cover you in resort?
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Even more remarkable is that AAC membership appears to reduce, to £44, for over 65s!
One factor in the low price will be that all the normal travel insurance cover (baggage, cancellation/delay, loss of card/phones/cameras, lack of snow cover etc) is not included - and it is probably these elements that give rise to the majority of claims, and the associated claims handling expenses (which I guess could easily be more than half a standard premium).
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| pisteoff wrote: |
Staysure: Looked good and cheap, and apparently cover off piste BUT they have an avalanche risk level clause - you wouldn't be covered if 3 or above - BEWARE! Wonder how many others will add this trap (or already have it?)
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So you can only ski off piste when you wouldn't want to ski off piste? 
I have Carre Niege and my bank policy (off piste with a guide only) and whilst the CN may get me off the hill, I doubt the bank policy would repatriate me for an off piste accident, without a guide. What a mess this all is!
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Virgin travel insurance…I have done all the research with different companies and booked with virgin…they cover off piste without a guide as long as you are observing safety requirements. The policy I booked is multi trip worldwide cover and the COVID cover includes refusal of boarding the plane which a lot of policy’s won’t cover for COVID within 14 days of departure.
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MogulMonkey, well done for your research.
Unfortunately Virgin Travel would not do for me.
1. Maximum number of days covered in ski policy is 24.
2. The actual quote for off piste skiing is: "Off piste skiing/snowboarding (except in areas considered to be unsafe by resort management). No sure how you would determine which areas are considered by resort management to be unsafe
3. They add on £125 for blood pressure controlled by one medication (amlodipine at lowest dose) and a statin (also at lowest dose).
Takes the premium to £391.60.
(Other companies do not add anything for controlled blood pressure on one medication.)
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You know it makes sense.
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Anyone used Staysure?
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Come back MPI!!!
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Poster: A snowHead
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Insurance shopping is just wildly exciting!
So SCGB annual multi trip looks on the surface to be pretty decent, not the cheapest but the cover seems good,
Up to 24 days single trip
45 Days skiing PA
Off piste with or without a guide
Heli included
Am I missing anything?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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SCGB annual multi trip insurance does not cover motorcycle trips even on your own motorcycle. So not sujitable for me.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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As I don’t ride a motorbike my own or otherwise the lack of motorcycle cover isn’t a deciding factor.
I’m only looking at the insurance for the skiing and it seems to be pretty comprehensive there. Other than skier cross which with no racing allowed is a tier 3 activity which bumps the premium up to ~£500 so I guess I just won’t be doing any little skier cross runs.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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@pisteoff, as pointed out on page 1, AAC is tops. All my seasonaire chums (and me) have just relied on this and our EHIC's for 7 seasons. One of our number is a specialist insurance broker and he just tops up with extra cover as a type 1 diabetic. It is however largely just insuring your body. It isn't any kind of holiday insurance. That suits us fine.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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@HammondR, anyone ever make a claim?
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Bad news from MPI today, I'm afraid, here's a quote from a letter to a friend of mine:
"We had some bad news last week, whereby the insurer we hoped to have in place shortly has delayed. Incredibly frustrating for us all!
So we are really sorry, but we can only suggest you try one of the another providers that we work with. If you follow this link it will show two buttons one to Voyager Plus and another Travel Plus, hopefully one of which can help with your trip - MPI Brokers
I know this is not the news you hoped for. We are still discussing options with a couple of insurers, but this will not be ready for your trip unfortunately.
With kind regards
Catherine Lowe
Sales and Marketing Manager"
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That's unfortunate. Their 2 alternative suggestions don't have a limit on total days on snow that are too limiting for me (21days) and off piste cover isn't unequivocal like MPI"s was.
What are people's experiences of Snowcard?
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looking at the small print on the carte niege it does state that it is available to all eu citizens which unfortunately we are not.
please be careful if thinking of this option
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| adithorp wrote: |
That's unfortunate. Their 2 alternative suggestions don't have a limit on total days on snow that are too limiting for me (21days) and off piste cover isn't unequivocal like MPI"s was.
What are people's experiences of Snowcard? |
Not quite: Travel Plus (Premier Plus Policies: Cover up to 45 days maximum during the period of insurance)
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| Grinning wrote: |
| adithorp wrote: |
That's unfortunate. Their 2 alternative suggestions don't have a limit on total days on snow that are too limiting for me (21days) and off piste cover isn't unequivocal like MPI"s was.
What are people's experiences of Snowcard? |
Not quite: Travel Plus (Premier Plus Policies: Cover up to 45 days maximum during the period of insurance) |
Missed that (despite another look) but... "If off-piste must be accompanied by qualified guide and in areas that local resort management consider to be safe"
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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@Grinning, Yes, we have had the Travel Plus policy (Premium Plus level) for many years with 45 days cover, I'm sure I posted that several pages back. We use Harrison Beaumont as brokers. £250 for annual multitrip (up to 60 days per trip) for a couple in early 60s.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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looking at the small print on the carte niege it does state that it is available to all eu citizens which unfortunately we are not.
please be careful if thinking of this option
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Resort based insurance is varied the term "Carte Neige" is specifically for the whole seasons insurance and normally sold alongside a season pass in the Savoie.
"Carré Neige" is normally a short term insurance sold through the resorts and the ESF alongside short term lift passes typically 1-15 days also mainly in the Savoie
"SnowRisk" sell season and short term insurances in the Portes de Soleil.
These are all underwriten by Europ Assistance and have different T's & C's.
Specifically SnowRisk on their website state
"MESSAGE TO RESIDENTS OF UNITED KINGDOM
Good news !
If you are resident in the UK (Outside UE), you can take out
our ski insurance and benefit from all its guarantees included repatriation ! *
Enjoy now of the most complete ski insurance on the market during your stays in France !
* The border closures of the countries visited or crossed, administrative decisions and generalized confinement are excluded from the guarantees.
A with all insurance read the small print
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Yes, @adithorp, there’s still that qualification/obfuscation despite the more useful duration
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You know it makes sense.
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@Layne, funnily enough no, but one of our number did his best during his Alpinist phase. 4 scenic rides with the PGHM airborne division before his wife made him give up. Had he had the misfortune of requiring rescue in Switzerland then the promptness of the AAC to pay up would have been tested.
Plenty of good stories on climbing forums of the reliability of the AAC service over the years. I have never come across any evidence of significant shortcomings. In fact the much more expensive BMC cover compared pretty unfavourably a few years ago when called upon to cover rescue costs. I think the BMC ended up changing their underwriters as a result.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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@Layne, actually I am losing the plot. One of us made a claim last month, and in Switzerland to boot. He suffered an unfortunate accident en route to climbing the North Face of the Matterhorn, which necessitated a helicopter evacuation to the nearest hospital where 30 or so stitches were inserted. The AAC took care of everything, including the 3700 Chuffs for the helicopter.
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Poster: A snowHead
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HammondR, glad your friend was dealt with so well, and hopefully fully recovered from his experience.
There has been mention here that an advantage of carte/carre neige is no quibbles about payment at point of rescue. Presumably AAC insurance is similar?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| Quote: |
Anyone used Staysure?
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@skilegs, I came here to ask the exact same question. We usually use NFU and have found them to be excellent, but they only cover for covid medical costs when you are on holiday. Hopefully this will not be required after being double vaccinated. They don't cover for missed flights in either direction (and associated costs) should you test positive for the 48hr pre-flight test, which is our biggest concern. The girl at NFU recommended Staysure to us saying they do cover this.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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@Jonpim, yus. Just brandished the AAC card and off he went. As also mentioned earlier, only 5 overnights in CAF/CAI/SAC huts and the card has paid for itself anyway.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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surely nobody (who dont need any special insurance) need to look further than nationwide flex account?
£100 cashback if you switch to them as well.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Hi Guys,
My name is Chris and I work for Big Cat Travel Insurance.
Having a look through this thread I believe we could assist some of you in regards to Travel Insurance for Ski / Snowboard trips, seasons, instructor courses etc.
We specialise in longer term Ski Season policies.
Some key points about our policy.
- Cover up to 69 years old
- Up to 2 years cover including Unlimited Skiing/Snowboarding
- Off-piste (outside of resort boundaries) including Heli-Skiing
- Snow / Terrain parks
- Ski / Snowboard instructor courses (including Cancellation / curtailment)
- Helicopter / mountain rescue included
- Underwritten by Allianz
Feel free to get in touch if we could help.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Mr.Egg unfortunately - a statement on Nationwides website .... "If you have European travel insurance with your FlexAccount, you’ll have received a letter or email from us letting you know that we’ll be removing this benefit from 31 December 2021." 
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- Cover up to 69 years old
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So ruled out immediately
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| cv101 wrote: |
Hi Guys,
My name is Chris and I work for Big Cat Travel Insurance.
Having a look through this thread I believe we could assist some of you in regards to Travel Insurance for Ski / Snowboard trips, seasons, instructor courses etc.
We specialise in longer term Ski Season policies.
Some key points about our policy.
- Cover up to 69 years old
- Up to 2 years cover including Unlimited Skiing/Snowboarding
- Off-piste (outside of resort boundaries) including Heli-Skiing
- Snow / Terrain parks
- Ski / Snowboard instructor courses (including Cancellation / curtailment)
- Helicopter / mountain rescue included
- Underwritten by Allianz
Feel free to get in touch if we could help. |
Thanks, I've just had a look at the link in your post. Have I understood correctly that your Winter Sports add-on only covers for 14 days of winter sports? That seems very low.
Additionally, the wording of the Winter Sport add-on w.r.t. off piste includes the term "resort boundaries." How do you define this?
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Hi there,
Our 'Annual Multi-Trip' policy can only provide 14 days of Winter sports, yes.
Our Single trip policies, however, can provide continuous cover for the duration that you have set, so up to 2 years.
Additionally, any single trip policy over 4 months long has unlimited home visits back to the UK.
Generally speaking, the boundaries of the resorts are defined by the Piste maps, if you are skiing well outside of this you can assume you are Skiing Off-piste (outside of resort boundaries) and so would require a group of 3 or more / with a qualified instructor.
If you are simply skiing off-piste from one piste to another within the resort, you would be covered to do this solo.
Best,
Chris
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| dode wrote: |
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Anyone used Staysure?
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@skilegs, I came here to ask the exact same question. We usually use NFU and have found them to be excellent, but they only cover for covid medical costs when you are on holiday. Hopefully this will not be required after being double vaccinated. They don't cover for missed flights in either direction (and associated costs) should you test positive for the 48hr pre-flight test, which is our biggest concern. The girl at NFU recommended Staysure to us saying they do cover this. |
The off-piste wording seems a bit fuzzy:
"skiing or snowboarding (off-piste but within the confines of the ski resort on recognised and authorised areas only)"
I'm not sure what would count as a "recognised and authorised area".
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FAQ
