The little lady is on her in a week or two(for a holiday) and no doubt looking forward to getting here. Buying a plane ticket was bad enough, i,m trying to get some accident insurance, some kind person has directed me to Blue Cross (BUPA) Thailand. But its a pain and can,t be paid for in this country(easily). Has anyone managed to buy insurance in this country ?????????

It will be easier for her to arrange and pay for it in Thailand.

AXA and AIG are two other big companies with offices in most major towns and cities. They provide travel and most other insurance services.

Regards

yes your right there but i,m trying not to worry her. Shes stressed out enough about the trip, first time flyer, never been out of thailand etc

Is it 'accident' or 'medical' insurance you are looking for? I would strongly advise 'medical' insurance as if she became ill in the UK she would not be entitled to free NHS treatment and her 'accident' insurance would not cover her for 'illness'.

sorry a bit vague i guess, medical insurance i guess, given how difficult it is to buy i,m wondering how people manage as holiday makers in this country or do they just "wing it"

I personally believe it would be very foolish to travel to a foreign country without adequate travel or medical insurance.

yes your right, what made me say this was a conversation i had with an insurance broker in west london that has a large asian community locally. I asked the broker how local families managed when they brought families over for holidays. He shrugged his shoulders and laughed, i think we both know what he was saying. Like you i prefer to sleep at nights and buying insurance for the little lady is indication of caring for her. Buying said product isn,t exactly easy

This keeps coming up as a subject. For example have a look at this thread.

In my opinion the level of travel insurance cover available to purchase in Thailand is woefully inadequate for travel to the UK. Best to buy cover internationally.

john..........its keeps coming up because nothing works and folks get exasperated, thanks for the thread unfortunately I,m non the wiser. It amazes me that the airlines don,t try and cash in, seems like a painfully obvious business opportunity.

Gardener,

Where is your lady located in Thailand? If she is in or near Pattaya, pm me and I will send you an insurance company contact address/tel that she can go to and get all sorted. It is owned by a Brit and he is a good friend of mine (all my insurances through him). His staff are Thai and so your lady would have no problem. If serious about a policy for medical insurance in Thailand and UK for her, I will call him and ensure he personally sorts it out..RayBan

Yes she is in pattaya, but i,m trying to buy it myself and save her the stress as i appreciate the relatively high cost of medical treatment in the uk. I also understand what level of cover is required. Blue cross aren,t very impressive with a top limit of 2 million baht which is,t much and probably would not cover a protracted period in intensive care. But be kind to me and let me see what i can do over the phone.

Just a bit curious Tobias about what you said concerning foriegners coming here & not being entitled to free NHS treatment. I have nothing against that policy...only how would a hospital know you were not a resident of the UK & how would they bill you?

Rayban .I,m curious as to what provision your planning for your family when you visit us next year

Casey Jones..........i think you will find that many hospitals have staff whos job it is to extract money from foreigners. They may decide to only provide limited treatment. if she had an accident i would not be happy for to go home until fully treated and if when she does return know that medical costs in los would be covered albeit cheaper.

ah John ............now i understand what you mean by international insurance, i had a look at some of the us websites and quickly found insurance cover $75 deductable, $65 premium for 4 weeks emergency medical cover up to $100000 worth of cover, slightly more than Blue Cross for 3 times the cover and payable over the net with no fuss or bother and specifically for non us citizens. I,m going to double check in case i have missed something. Seems to good to be true

Sorry to be boring but as an Insurance man albeit commercial ie Factories etc most policies state the applicant has to be resident in the country the policy is issued in ie I can't do a policy in UK for g/f (Thai) so I believe the policy should be "incepted" in LOS.

There are peculiarities however in that if I marry g/f in LOS and it is UK legal (LOS is I understand) then I can add her to my Company Health Insurance Scheme as a Spouse which gives her full Travel cover ie Medical/Baggage etc!

My advice is get an Insurance expert to check the conditions of any policy before purchasing! (small print is a killer after the incident and I know this) (its what I do)
colin244

Gardener,

We are all fully insured through the info I have pm'd you. Health, car, house, golf policies all with this chap. He takes care of most of the resident golfers in Pattaya area and beyond.......good luck....RayBan

Rayban,
with respect I believe you have a Thai policy and you reside in Thailand so my point stands ie "country of permanant residence"

By the way I would love a way out of UK so if your broker/mate has any vacancies let me know.

Gardener
My post was a general Insurance answer as I work in this unfortunate Insurance business.
colin244