Health Insurance Young adults and keeping them on family policy

M

Mothergoose

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My daughter, 22, is going travelling for three years in October. She will be on the family policy until mid September when it is renewed. She feels there is no point in continuing to have her on the family policy as she will be away for three years. What do others do who have young adult children. It adds about another 1k per year to the family policy to have her on it, but wonder also if I should be concerned about her not having some health insurance in Ireland.

Also, what is best in terms of health insurance when she is abroad for three years - she will be travelling to Indonesia, South East Asia and New Zealand. Is it better to have a yearly back-packing policy or to have some sort of ex-pat health insurance. She will be working at times, such as in New Zealand, but only to fund her travels.
 
If it was me, I would get her the lowest level/cheapest plan just to keep the policy active and she can up the cover when she gets home.
 
Waiting periods will still apply for any upgraded cover when she is back so not sure the benefit of maintaining the policy at a lower level pre age 35
 
I'm pretty sure that you have to be resident in Ireland for a minimum period during thr cover year for cover. Best to check your policy docs or with your insurer.
 
Positives:
-no minimum waiting periods for pre-existing conditions once you keep continuous cover with an Irish insurer. All three insurers in the Irish market apply the maximum five year period for pre-existing conditions if there is any gap in cover.
-if your daughter has serious health issues she’ll probably want treatment back in Ireland anyway
-some policies have cover for repatriation in event of serious illness

Negatives:
-cost


Early 20s is statistically your healthiest period of life and many people will take a chance of not having cover.
 
Thanks for all the replies. After Sue Ellen's tale about her son and his broken ankle, I think I will just keep my daughter on my policy. Sue Ellen, I looked at the link you posted for international health insurance - it's really expensive with the basic policy coming in at over 2.8k pe year . It seems to say, if I am reading it correctly that she has to have a country of residence when abroad. My daughter will only be spending about 6 months in each country - World Nomads have a backpacker's policy for two years costing about 700 per year. It doesn't seem that they cover more than two years, but at least it would e us over te first two years - maye this might do as well as her own Iris health insurance.
 
I would strongly recommend that you contact your insurers to make sure she would be covered in your policy, given her travel plans. I suspect she won't be.
 
Thanks, Misemoi, I'll give them a call. Maybe they would be likely to ask how long she has been abrad if she ever needed to be repatriate home.
 
Sue Ellen said:
Wouldn't recommend it. Son broke his ankle in Canada and was flown home 1st class accompanied by nurse paid for by insurance. Whole treatment cost many thousands.
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Chance of getting cancer or needing a knee replacement in early 20s are extremely low.

Lots of older Irish people don’t have private health insurance at all even.

You have to play the percentages and it comes down to means and risk appetite.

In OP’s shoes I would probably keep most basic cover.
 
Mothergoose said:
I think I will just keep my daughter on my policy.
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I would consider that to be a waste of money as she will be away for so long and I do think the best thing is to speak to your health insurers. Read up on the small print before speaking to them on your policy/cover as it could possibly be the case that her being out of the country for such a long time would exclude her either way which is what misemoi referred to above. I think I have read something about that in the past.

My son's policy was expensive and we had to get it from the U.K. and that firm have ceased the cover now.

Mothergoose said:
Sue Ellen, I looked at the link you posted for international health insurance
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Yes that's why I mentioned price above for the travel insurance. It is expensive and mainly applies to VHI. I will say that when on our annual holidays we had to use VHI twice in emergencies and the service was excellent. All it took was one phone call and they stepped in and sorted everything. It was a long time ago but when abroad it can be so reassuring.
 
I tried to keep my insurance live while I travelled and it was not possible due to me not being resident. But I was able to get a back packer style policy instead which covered things like emergencies, repatriation etc. And I used local health services where needed for day to day stuff and just paid for it.

So while the Co might just let you renew, I would not like to have to be discussing the small print if my child was sick or needed help. I am sure that in the renewal you are agreeing to certain facts being true and I bet residence is one of them.
 
Thanks Misemoi. I see the problem in keeping my daughter on my policy and then she trying to claim on it if she has been non resident for two years. With the backpacers policies in Ireland, they only currently cover being away fr one year, whe my daughter will be away for three.
 
Mothergoose said:
I see the problem in keeping my daughter on my policy and then she trying to claim on it if she has been non resident for two years.
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The insurer will take your money and not ask questions as to her whereabouts. She will maintain a residence, bank account, etc, in Ireland.

If it comes to a claim she will just be on or returning from a holiday which all policies allow for.
 
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