Travel insurance for breathing and lung conditions

Feeling protected on holiday with travel insurance for breathing conditions

Tell us about your breathing conditions, so you have personalised travel insurance in place, just in case the worst happens. If something does go wrong, we’ll always aim to put it right.

Flexibility to change details online

When you buy a policy from us, you can manage it yourself by logging in to your My Avanti account. Here you can:

• access policy documents
• update traveller details
• change your single trip dates (limits apply)
• renew an annual policy if you have no changes to make
• and more.

If you have questions about Covid-19 and how it affects your holiday plans, visit our Covid-19 help page.

Why having personalised travel insurance is important

Liz ¹ bought her travel insurance at the same time as booking her cruise.

She was then unexpectedly admitted to hospital for a couple of days. Liz contacted us to let us know and we happily added her new health condition to her policy.

Unfortunately, the day before she was due to travel, Liz developed a new health problem and was advised by her doctor not to travel.

Liz gave us a call and as her travel insurance policy was up to date, she was covered for having to cancel her holiday.

We processed her cancellation claim as quickly as possible and the money reached Liz’s bank account within three working days.

Keeping your personalised travel insurance up-to-date means you can relax knowing you’re protected if you have to cancel your trip.

Do I need to have had both my Covid jabs to be covered?

As long as you’ve had the vaccines you’ve been offered for Covid-19, you should be covered. If you haven’t been offered both doses yet or you’re medically exempt then you can also be covered.

If you’ve refused any doses of the vaccine or haven’t been able to have a dose you’ve been offered, you won’t be covered.

Do I need to tell you about my breathing conditions when I get my travel insurance?

We want to make sure you’re properly covered, so it’s essential you let us know about your pre-existing medical conditions, including your breathing condition, when buying your travel insurance.

Telling us about your conditions and covering them on your travel insurance means you’ll be covered if you have a medical emergency that could have been caused by your condition.

By not telling us, you wouldn’t be covered for anything related to existing health conditions you may have.

We understand breathing conditions affect people in many different ways and that treatment varies.

We cover most breathing conditions, including:

• Chronic bronchitis
• Asthma
• Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
• Lung cancer
• Cystic fibrosis

Can I get travel insurance if I have lung cancer?

If you’re living with lung cancer, or you’re in remission from lung cancer, we may be able to offer you full cover.

We would need to know that:

• You have been declared fit to travel by a doctor.
• You are NOT awaiting surgery, radiotherapy or chemotherapy for your lung cancer.
• You are not travelling to have medical treatment.

If you’re waiting to have surgery, radiotherapy or chemotherapy for your lung cancer, we may still be able to offer some protection, although it wouldn’t include cover for any pre-existing health conditions.

This reduced cover means you wouldn’t be protected against any medical emergency caused either directly or indirectly by your pre-existing health conditions. This includes having to cancel your trip.

If we can’t offer you cover, we can recommend The British Insurance Brokers Association (BIBA) who can help you to find travel insurance with another provider.

What questions will you ask about my breathing conditions?

We will take you through a series of questions so we can build a level of cover that’s personalised for you.

There’s no need to worry. We’ll take you through the questions at a pace that suits you.

We’ll never rush you.

Here are some of the questions we may ask:

• Have you ever had a diagnosis of COPD (chronic bronchitis or emphysema)?
• How many medicines are prescribed for your breathing condition?
• How many times have you been admitted to hospital for your breathing condition in the past year?
• Have you ever been prescribed oxygen (apart from when in hospital)?
• How many episodes have you had requiring antibiotic treatment in the last 12 months?
• Have infections been fully resolved?

Is my breathing condition covered by my Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC)?

If you’re planning a holiday to Europe, you’ll need to take a free GHIC (or an EHIC) as a condition of our travel insurance.

When the United Kingdom left the European Union, the GHIC replaced the EHIC as the means for accessing free or subsidised healthcare in selected European countries. Before you travel, make sure you check that your destination is covered by GHIC, just so you’re ready if you do need any emergency or necessary treatment for your breathing condition during your trip.

Remember, your GHIC is not the same as having good health conditions travel insurance. For example, it won’t cover you if you need to cancel your holiday.

Your GHIC helps reduce your medical costs where subsidised healthcare is available. If you can use your GHIC and have to pay a subsidised fee for your treatment, we’ll remove the excess fee on medical emergency claims for you.

I’ve bought travel insurance for my breathing condition already. Should I tell you if my health changes?

Yes, it’s really important for you to let us know if any of your health conditions change. That way you can relax with the confidence that you’re protected by a policy that’s up-to-date and personalised to you.

If you forget to let us know of any changes to your health, this may affect any claims you may need to make further down the line.