The Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) move to look into travel insurance access issues concerning cancer patients has received a wide welcome, with Travel Insurance Facilities Group (tifgroup) saying it is hopeful of “change across the industry to allow for a more inclusive approach.”
Addressing problems raised in last year’s
“Access to Financial Services in the UK” paper, the UK watchdog is in the process of gathering views and evidence of the challenges related to travel insurance provision and access for cancer-stricken or recovering patients.
The new probe will also delve into pricing differences in premiums quoted. The FCA said the findings should read across to many other pre-existing medical conditions and insurance products.
Reacting to the announced consultation, Richard Smith of tifgroup said they are hopeful that the FCA’s work will address some of the key insurance issues faced by those affected by illness and that the travel insurance industry will adopt a more individual and inclusive approach to assessing the actual risk that patients actually present.
“For many years people with medical conditions such as cancer and complex genetic conditions have struggled to meet the criteria of many insurers and have therefore not been able to obtain appropriate levels of protection when travelling,” he commented. “Customers are either faced with eye watering premiums or are allowed to purchase cover with exclusions applied to specific conditions on their policy.”
Smith said neither are in the best interests of the consumer as often the premiums applied are simply unnecessary, as they are based on the perception of risk rather than the actual risk presented for travel. Either that or policyholders unfortunately see their claim refused “having not understood the implications of the exclusion applied at point of sale.”
The tifgroup managing director, having worked with medical professionals over the years, pointed out that the actual travel risk of someone travelling with a metastatic cancer can, in many cases, be less than someone who travels with high blood pressure.
Meanwhile, Smith said they will be actively working with the FCA during the consultation period and look forward to the outcome. The watchdog, for its part, sees this as a critical time to fully explore the issues and consider potential solutions.
Christopher Woolard, FCA’s executive director of strategy and competition, said being able to access financial services is critical for people to fully participate in society.
“We hope that this will encourage discussion on access issues to examine the challenges for firms and consumers,” he said.
Related stories:
How much did travel insurers pay out every day last year?
Want to sell insurance in this £12.5 billion market? Get an affinity partner
