16-07-2025
I was £4,000 out of pocket for five months because my travel insurance mistook euros for pounds
Dear Gill,
On February 8, the final night of a family holiday in Lanzarote, I became unwell with a violent sickness. At the airport, the following morning, I required wheelchair assistance to reach the gate where staff called for a medical assessment. An ambulance was called and I was taken to hospital where I spent four days recovering from a serious bout of gastroenteritis.
My wife liaised with the emergency assistance company nominated by our insurer, Good to Go, with whom I had an annual Gold level policy.
We were told that we should pay for the treatment and all costs would be met once we submitted invoices on our return. On my return, I duly completed the claim form and prepared an Excel spreadsheet listing the 29 attachments (invoices, bank statements, medical treatment notes, etc) which were sent by recorded delivery to Global Response (IMG), the insurer's claims handler, on February 14.
It is now July and my claim for just under £4,000 remains unpaid. Please can you find out why there has been this inordinate delay.
– Paul Furlong
Dear Paul,
Since Paul's submission in February, IMG's agents have claimed that the delays were due to missing original documents (since found in their offices) and issues with verifying the accuracy of his policy's medical health declaration with his GP's submission.
After Paul complained about the delay, IMG's 'Quality Assurance Team' reviewed his case and sent a rambling cut-and-paste letter saying it was waiting for a flight booking confirmation (already supplied) and that there remained disparities between the amounts on the hospital bills and the bank statements supplied.
It turned out that the claims handler hadn't clocked that the hospital's bills were in euros and the bank statements were in sterling until Paul pointed out this simple explanation for the discrepancies.
I contacted the Ancile Insurance Group (Good to Go Insurance is one of its brand names) and asked it to find out why IMG was taking so long to authorise payment of Paul's claim.
Within a week of my complaint, Paul's claim was paid out in full, together with an extra 10 percent in compensation for the mismanagement of his case.
Ancile admits there were 'internal administrative errors' and acknowledges that communication could have been clearer.
'We've since addressed the issues raised and have made broader improvements to the claims process,' says a spokesperson, 'including communication, streamlined document handling, and simplified currency conversions'.
If you are admitted to hospital abroad, try to obtain a printed signed copy of the doctor's report confirming your illness and treatment and the originals of all paid bills before leaving the hospital, as obtaining copies later can prove troublesome.
