How much will your travel policy pay for medical treatment abroad, and who pays the hospital?

How much will your policy pay for treatment abroad?

Up to USD 50,000 to USD 1,000,000, depending on the policy and plan. Schengen plans pay EUR 30,000 to EUR 40,000, or USD 60,000 at Allianz Partners.

Sources for Table 1

Salama,¹ GIG Gulf,² AIG,³ Liva,⁴ Allianz Partners,⁵ Orient,⁶ Mastercard,⁷ Daman.⁸

The limit is a ceiling on charges that pass a test. Salama and Daman pay usual, customary, necessary and reasonable costs.¹⁸ AIG and Allianz Partners pay reasonable and customary costs.³⁵ Mastercard does not recognise charges above regular and customary levels for the locality.⁷

Daman’s limit and deductible are in its Schedule of Benefit and Schedule of Deductibles, and GIG Gulf’s table has no Family column. If you hold either, ask the insurer for your medical limit.

Does your policy pay for any treatment, or only emergencies?

Orient, Daman, Liva and AIG limit the benefit to emergencies. Orient says its policy is not private medical insurance.⁶ Daman says its wording is not a health policy, pays until you are stable, and requires further treatment to be in your usual country of residence.⁸ Liva excludes treatment its medical advisers consider can wait until you are home.⁴ AIG excludes treatment and medication that began before the trip.³ Orient pays follow-up treatment abroad for up to 30 days after discharge if the treating doctor asks for it.⁶

Conditions you had before you travelled are covered in pre-existing medical conditions.

Who pays the hospital?

It depends on whether you contact the insurer’s assistance line first. None of the policies says it pays every hospital bill direct.

• Orient guarantees fees to hospitals or doctors if the claim is valid. Liva’s assistance partner may guarantee fees where appropriate.⁶⁴
• Allianz Partners may be able to guarantee or advance payment for an in-patient admission, where the hospital accepts it.⁵
• Daman tells you to contact its Assistance Company to avoid reimbursement procedures.⁸
• AIG’s medical section pays by reimbursement, to you or another appropriate party where necessary. Its assistance services include direct billing to medical providers, and you must contact AIG Travel for in-patient treatment.³
• Salama will not reimburse costs that were not approved beforehand, except in an extreme emergency with vouchers and original invoices.¹

Notice deadlines differ. GIG Gulf asks to be told of a hospital stay within 48 hours, and needs prior approval for benefits. If you could not reach GIG in an emergency it may still consider the claim, but not if you made no contact within 30 days.² Orient must be told on admission or once costs pass USD 250, and excludes costs over USD 250 and in-patient treatment it has not authorised.⁶ Liva asks to be told of an in-patient stay over 24 hours as soon as reasonably possible.⁴ Claim filing deadlines are in the claims guide.

Does your UAE health insurance pay first?

Under Allianz Partners, yes. Its medical benefit is secondary: if you have health insurance you claim there first, and any payment is deducted. With no health insurance, or a plan known not to cover the area, you claim from Allianz Partners direct.⁵ Daman says its Assistance Company is not liable where another insurance covers the same event, and may consider reimbursement at its discretion.⁸

Ask your health insurer whether your UAE plan pays for treatment abroad.

Are you covered for treatment in the UAE?

No. Each benefit applies outside your home country or country of residence. Liva names the UAE in its exclusion.⁴ Mastercard excludes the country of permanent residence and the country where the card was issued, and the card-issue part does not apply to a cardholder’s parents.⁷ Mastercard also excludes treatment in a government hospital and services that carry no normal charge.⁷

Visitors to the UAE are a different case. See visiting the UAE.

What medical cover does a Schengen visa need?

At least EUR 30,000 for urgent medical attention, emergency hospital treatment and repatriation, valid across the Schengen states for your whole stay. This is a rule for visa applicants, not a term of your policy.

Sources for Table 2

Visa Code Art 15, consolidated text.⁹

Consulates add their own terms. Italy’s Dubai checklist asks for full and unlimited hospital cover,¹⁰ and its Abu Dhabi checklist does not.¹¹ Consulate terms are in the Schengen visa insurance guide.

The small print

• Clause names. Salama, Section A, 1. GIG Gulf, Chapter A and Procedure A. AIG, Section 2. Liva, Section B, 11. Allianz Partners, F. Emergency Medical/Dental Coverage Abroad. Orient, Section 1 and the 24-hour Emergency Medical Assistance terms. Mastercard, Travel Medical Benefits. Daman, Section 2, Personal Assistance, 1.
• GIG Gulf Family plan. The Table of Benefits says benefits are per family on the Family Plan and prints no Family medical figure.²
• Mastercard excess. No medical excess figure appears in the Mastercard Summary of Cover.⁷
• AIG in-patient contact. The instruction to contact AIG Travel for in-patient treatment is in AIG’s disclosure document.³