Travel insurance with high blood pressure explained

Whenever you jet off somewhere overseas, it’s really important you have a travel insurance policy in place. 

Travel insurance protects you financially if unfortunate circumstances unfold, and the added security it brings definitely makes it worth considering. 

However, things can be a little more complicated if you have a pre-existing medical condition, including high blood pressure. 

Why is it so important to have travel insurance when you go away?

It’s easy to take for granted that we receive free healthcare at home, or that your devices could be replaced through your home insurance if something happened to them, but this won’t be the case when you head off on holiday. 

Travel insurance policies provide you with cover in several areas, including: 

• Personal belongings cover, for the possessions you bring with you, provided they are covered under your policy. You would want this to rely on, if your suitcase got lost or one of your devices was stolen.
• Medical cover, to pay out for the cost of emergency treatment you might require while you were away.
• Travel disruption, to reimburse your losses if your flights or accommodation fell through, through no fault of your own and under the circumstances established in your policy.
• Legal cover, if you had to go down the route of legal action over something stemming from your trip.
  
  

If you didn’t have insurance cover in these areas and something were to go wrong during your trip, you could be faced with huge bills to pay on your own – whether that’s replacing lost items, paying hospital charges, booking new flights or taking a case to court. 

How does having high blood pressure affect your travel insurance?

Pretty much all travel insurance will include standard medical cover that would pay out on charges you received for emergency treatment overseas. But to get a feel for your level of risk, insurers will ask you to declare any pre-existing medical conditions. 

Taking this into account, they will either adjust your premium accordingly or, in more serious cases, refuse to insure you. It’s important that you’re honest, as failure to disclose a pre-existing condition would invalidate your policy. 

So, do I have to declare my high blood pressure?

High blood pressure is one such condition that must be declared. 

As with many other conditions, you may be required to submit information from your GP or agree to a medical screening when taking out travel insurance with high blood pressure. This is so insurers can get an understanding of the nature of your condition, the level of risk involved and what level of cover you’re likely to need. 

Can I get travel insurance with high blood pressure?

Yes. High blood pressure is a common condition and one that most insurers will have dealt with before. Almost all travel insurance providers will be able to cover you, but you will pay a slightly higher premium than you otherwise would. Some providers may also insist you take out an alternative package or extra coverage add-ons as a precaution.  

If you’ve got your next getaway booked, it’s always good to sort your travel insurance sooner rather than later. See what Rias could do for you when you get your travel insurance quote today >