# Son heading off to America - should he have travel insurance?



## gussy (22 Aug 2010)

Lads,
       My son is heading off to america for 1 month his plan is to drive around Califonia. I am a bit worried about this as he has never done anything like this before. I have not spoken to him about my concerns as I would/could not stop him. But my question is should I take out an insurance plan on him just in case of emergencies and what cost would i be looking at or am I barking up the wrong tree altogether. You lot have been great before with other enquiries so your best advise please.


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## niceoneted (22 Aug 2010)

I always use travel insurance. He would need it especially in the US as medical costs are so high if he got sick/had an injury. 
How old is he? Let him organise it himself. Can be done easily on line. I pay about 60 annually for worldwide including winter sports.


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## hopalong (22 Aug 2010)

if he is old enough to go to america for a month dont you think he should take out his own insurance.


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## mercman (22 Aug 2010)

If he is under 21 put him on a family plan, and if over 21 place him on his own policy. My daughter (over 21) has an annual Policy with Aviva as I have found their offerings very competitive. 

e.g. My daughters policy (with Private Medical Health Insurance was €46.00), but does not cover travel to the US. Call them and get a quote and / or try others to obtain the best cover.

So to answer you original question, Yes he should have Insurance, to protect him against the unexpected.

*Error -- Daughter's Insurance is with Allianze Insurance*


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## Chocks away (22 Aug 2010)

Insurance is a must in the States. For the price of a round of drinks you should not have the worry that young people can eschew. And as we all know - they are invincible.


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## AlbacoreA (22 Aug 2010)

Definately get insurance that is valid in the US.


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## tiger (22 Aug 2010)

definitely a must.
If he doesn't have it already, you could suggest you'll buy it for him as a "going on holidays present"


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## gussy (23 Aug 2010)

much appreciate all the answers and yes he is 24 and possibly will get insurance. If an accident was to occur on the road over there and god forbid he needed serious medical assistance I would like that to be there for him. And as you all will definitly understand as parents you never want to say to yourself "I should have" and as have been mentioned all our children think they are invincible. I am just wondering if travel insurance will cover all the angles or should I take out an insurance that will give me piece of mind.


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## PaddyBloggit (23 Aug 2010)

Cover as many angles as you can ~ an accident in a foreign land without proper insurance leads to big bills.


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## huskerdu (23 Aug 2010)

gussy said:


> much appreciate all the answers and yes he is 24 and possibly will get insurance. If an accident was to occur on the road over there and god forbid he needed serious medical assistance I would like that to be there for him. And as you all will definitly understand as parents you never want to say to yourself "I should have" and as have been mentioned all our children think they are invincible. I am just wondering if travel insurance will cover all the angles or should I take out an insurance that will give me piece of mind.



Just to clarify, are you saying that he is taking out travel insurance, but you want to take out more insurance on top of this. 

If so, then the answer (I think)  is no. Two travel insurance policies does not increase your cover, unless one of them is weak.

Maybe you need to see his travel insurance policy to see what is covered to reassure yourself. 

A travel insurance policy should give you the following cover ( I am just trying to cover the major issues here, not all the details)

- cancellation insurance, if you cant travel for medical reasons, or a death in the family 

- Insurance against theft of property ( there is usually a big excess and oftern lots of T&Cs and exceptions, so I wouldn't be too dependent on it)

- Medical cover. Once you specify that you are travelling to America, then
the cover should be sufficient for a BIf medical bill and an Air ambulance home if necessary.

Are there any other scenarios that you are concerned about ?


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## asdhaque (24 Aug 2010)

Thanks for the healthy discussion... Great


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## Mrs Vimes (24 Aug 2010)

I would talk to him about making sure he has decent car insurance too, it's not necessarily a legal requirement in every state and may not be included in car hire like it would be here.  He could find himself open to being sued for someone else's medical bills if he was unfortunate enough to get into an accident.
Sybil


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## gussy (24 Aug 2010)

Never thought of that mrs vimes but I will mention it to him this evening.
 I will take out the cover on him as a going away present as suggested on this page. I will make sure it covers all that i could reasonably expect it to cover. I am going to make a few calls to find the best option.


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## steevo51 (27 Aug 2010)

/.


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## droileen (30 Aug 2010)

Your son needs "his head examined" if he is even considering going to the States without medical insurance - he would bankrupt your family, in the event of any type of serious medical event.  Talk about "young & dumb & living off mum" !!


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## Sue Ellen (30 Aug 2010)

huskerdu said:


> Two travel insurance policies does not increase your cover, unless one of them is weak



Also lead to problems with companies arguing over who pays the claim and if they will go 50/50 or not.


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