ABTA warns of rising aeromedical costs
The UK travel agent association has recommended that travellers overseas purchase comprehensive travel cover when booking their trip
UK travel agent association ABTA has reported a “substantial” rise in medical costs for travellers overseas since 2019.
It noted that according to data provided to it by AXA Assistance UK, an air ambulance flying from the European Union (EU) to the UK in 2019 cost approximately €15,000–€20,000. This rose to between €25,000–€30,000 in 2023.
Further afield, worldwide air ambulance costs are even higher – more than doubling from €35,000–€40,000 in 2019, to €75,000–€85,000 in 2023.
In light of these rising costs, ABTA recommended that British travellers looking to go abroad should take out a comprehensive travel insurance policy “as soon as they book their trip” to protect their finances.
The association also recommended checking whether any specific activities – such as winter sports – may require additional coverage on top of the regular policy.
Travellers should not rely on GHIC or government support
ABTA also warned against over-reliance on the General Health Insurance Card (GHIC), which allows UK citizens to access state medical care in the EU and a handful of other destinations. It highlighted that not all services are covered by GHIC, while others are not provided free of charge to those who have the card.
Additionally, it confirmed that the UK government is under no obligation to cover any medical costs – making the traveller solely liable to pay the full cost of treatment.
“Every year we see very sad stories of uninsured people who have fallen ill or had an accident whilst overseas and are running up large medical bills,” said Graeme Buck, Director of Communications at ABTA. “They often resort to setting up a GoFundMe page or similar, but they will now find they need to raise substantially more money, with air ambulance and other medical costs having gone through the roof.
“It is simply not worth the risk of financial ruin, simply to save a few pounds, so always take out travel insurance at the time of booking your holiday or other travel arrangements,” he added.
Australian comparison site Finder recently reported that 17% of Australians had been left out of pocket due to insufficient insurance of some kind in the past three years.