Travel Insurance and Alcohol

By insurance in travel insurance

Jun 16

Whilst we are by no means suggesting that you abstain from alcohol whilst on holiday it’s important to release the implications that heavy drinking will have on your holiday insurance policy. Take the example of Theo Paget, a 20-year old male who suffered a spinal fracture when plummeting 50 feet from a balcony in Marmaris, Turkey. It was a miracle that Theo survived a fall from such a large height and whilst the tabloids have dubbed him ‘rubber man’ one thing that he won’t bounce back from so lightly is his astronomical hospital bill. You see after Theo admitted that he was on a cocktail of drugs and booze at the time of the fall his travel insurance policy refused to pay the price of his hospital admission. And why would they? We do a lot of things drunk that we certainly wouldn’t do with a sane mind and if under the influence of alcohol we believe that we can successfully jump 50 feet from a balcony, it is unfair to make our holiday insurance company pay out when we soberly face the consequences in a foreign hospital bed.

What are even more alarming are the sozzled skiers that admitted to being drunk on the slopes. A whopping 14% of people surveyed by a British holiday insurance provider admitted that they had indeed taken to the slopes drunk. Whilst we’re all for having a warming cup of mulled wine we prefer to enjoy our beverages apres ski and with the French medical care being so costly who can blame us? Whilst the EHIC card has a reciprocal health care agreement with many people, France is one of the few countries which this doesn’t extend too. If you invalid your travel insurance policy by drinking over the reasonable limit, then you should expect to pay around ?,000 if you break your limb under drunken circumstances. This price will rise if you need to be airlifted from the mountains.

So what is the number of units set by holiday insurances that you shouldn’t exceed if you don’t wish to invalidate your holiday insurance policy? Well there actually isn’t a set number, claims are considered on a case-by-case basis but if a medical report or the travel insurance company considers that excessive alcohol intake was a factor of your claim then they are unlikely to pay out.

Whilst tales of drunken balcony plunges and sozzled snowboarders may have left you suitability alarmed, the most common holiday insurance claim often rejected due to excessive alcohol intake is the missing passport, camera or mobile phone. When under the influence it is not always possible to be aware of your surroundings, especially whilst in a foreign climate. However, remember that as well invalidating any travel insurance claim made, drinking can also make you a prime target for thieves. So whilst it’s great to let your hair down, be careful not to overdo it whilst on your summer holidays.

Patrick Chong is the Managing Director of Journey’s Travel. Their commercial travel insurance website, Insuremore, offers travel insurance for families, couples and singles with a quick and easy online claims feature.

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