A huge element of risk in "living the dream"

I've been planning to make a return trip to Thailand as a break from the UK for quite some time now but in addition to the long haul and hassle of getting there another factor has now very much reared it's ugly head - health costs and insurance.

In trips to different parts of the world I've never thought much about that before, just routinely fill in a bog standard insurance form and you're covered, for the usual £50-60 or whatever. But I realise it's not that simple anymore, and probably never was.

I'm still fit and active in my 60s but like many I do have a couple of "underlying conditions" which don't affect daily life at all but are on my medical records and that is a problem. Health costs in Thailand - and private hospitals are the only places you'd get the treatment to survive if you had a major "health crisis" like a heart attack - are extraordinarily high. A two week stay with an emergency operation in a Thai hospital could cost £50,000. That's fifty thousand. Or more. They'd want a significant sum upfront and you wouldn't get out till you'd somehow paid.

And it gets even worse. I've looked over every insurance company in sight and without exception there are scores or hundreds of reports on Trustpilot and other sites over how hellish difficult it is to get serious money out of them for hospital costs. All of them. Yes, they'll sell you insurance easily, and sound very nice, and may even cough up for a lost suitcase or whatever. But when claims run into the thousands it's very different. They employ investigators specifically to find ways of not paying. And they find them. They have full access to your health records and they'll dredge up something in your history as a reason to disqualify your claim.

I think many older guys are completely unaware of this. They should be aware if it. They head off for a month to Thailand with a fifty quid insurance policy and think that's all they need. In reality if they do need emergency hospital treatment they are well and truly fucked.

I'm weighing it all up and am undecided. On a three week holiday there's no reason to expect you'd be hit by serious illness but it could happen and would turn into a ruinous nightmare. It's an exciting place but is it worth a huge hospital bill potentially running into the tens of thousands if things go badly wrong? It may be worth taking the chance. I don't yet know.

As for vloggers on YouTube who have "retired to Thailand" to "live the dream" and openly declare they have no insurance of any kind because it's too expensive - Peter Hopkins of Thailand Bound and Welshwebby are two that spring to mind - I can only say enjoy the fucking dream while it lasts. Both have underlying conditions. In fact anytime I see or read online of some guy in his 60s who's decided he's "sick of the UK" and has decided to go and "live the dream" in Thailand - and there are so many nowadays - I conclude he's either someone who has bravely decided to make the most of whatever time he has left, regardless of risk......or else he's a complete and total fucking idiot.

The UK scene may not be the best in the world but it's not going to cost you thousands in hospital bills, or kill you. For now, and unless I can find a solution I'm satisfied with to this insurance problem, I'll stick with it.

Interesting stuff and something i have not thought about..

Think i will stick with the London companions for now..

Yes, I never thought about it before either, but I see it as a real problem now. This is a punting site so I used a Thailand scenario. But the next question is, who can go ANYWHERE outside Europe and be assured they're covered for a medical emergency, as in for an "innocent" sightseeing trip to Africa or Asia or wherever? I just don't know. All I do know is that there are countless reports on Trustpilot and elsewhere of insurance companies including top High Street names that you'd think you're safe with being incredibly difficult in settling medical claims.

This applies much more if you have "underlying conditions" like high blood pressure or asthma or diabetes or whatever. The list goes on. It seems a total minefield. They might pay up, but from what I've seen and read they are mainly determined to find a way not to pay up. And with specialist investigators combing through medical records they can usually do that.

Without cast iron insurance - if it exists - I'd say a trip to Pattaya for example would be risky for an older guy with say, a heart condition of any kind. Let's face it, that puts stresses and strains on the system that don't occur at home. What I am 100 per cent certain of is that getting a cheapo £60 or £70 insurance cover would leave you totally up shit creek if you collapsed and needed emergency treatment in a private Thai hospital. Showing them an insurance form is no use whatever. They want money upfront and aren't interested in contacting insurance companies. That's for the patient to try and sort out after he gets home. And bills can run up into the tens of thousands for a major operation and hospital stay.

I don't know why this doesn't get more publicity. I suspect because no one making money including the media with travel advertising wants to discourage people from travelling, so they look the other way. There's also an argument that "it's better not to know, why worry". I went to Thailand last time with cheap insurance and that was fine because I had no health problems. But having looked at it now I know the realities and couldn't bring myself to do that again.

The good news is that UK residents don't have this problem in Europe. I've applied online for a free Government insurance card which makes you eligible for free hospital treatment in Spain, France, Germany, Greece, Italy etc. Definitely worth having.

And if you do need emergency treatment in a European country make damn sure you are taken to a public hospital, the same as we have here. There was a guy from my area earlier this year who was sent by his hotel in a taxi to a PRIVATE hospital in Tenerife after he fell ill, maybe they had some kind of covert deal. He ended up with a £20,000 bill for just a four day stay. And his insurance company refused point blank to pay up. If he'd been sent to a public hospital it wouldn't have cost him anything. It wàs this that sparked my interest in all this. His relatives had to start one of those crowdfunding things where they beg for money to try and meet the bill. A helluva an all-round fuck up.

The last time that I went to the US, to spend time with a girlfriend, the insurance cost for a month was one third of the cost of the flight (my accommodation is always free, wink wink). The only change after six years is my age. I was misdiagnosed with hypertension, and given unnecessary medication for two years, but I mentioned that anyway in a test-purchase, just to be on the safe side. Now, a few years later and perfectly healthy, the insurance for a month would be three times the cost of the flight. At least in the US they treat first and ask for money afterwards. If it was a matter of just a suspected broken limb (or minor gunshot-wound, haha) I would simply fly home if the insurance failed.

Good to see you're still around Moravian, if you've been absent for more than a couple of weeks I do begin to wonder, and worry. Your views are appreciated by me as always, but being honest when I refer to health risks to guys going abroad I'm talking about ordinary men in generally reasonable condition, not a scrawny old bag of bones like you who could expire at any moment in his rocking chair. And FFS don't you start thinking of Thailand, for you that's an impossible dream. Yes, there is no shortage of ladyboys out there, but they are now totally out of your travelling reach. I'm afraid you'll have to be satisfied with the blissful memory of that ladyboy who sucked you off under the table in that Paris nightclub.

You are right however about the huge cost of getting anywhere near "proper" insurance, I've seen reports of quotes of £1,000 or more for two or three weeks for guys with underlying conditions. You are right also about the option of flying home for treatment, for broken bones etc. But the problem of course is if emergency treatment is needed and there is no option of flying home. And airlines would be almost certain not to let anyone who was obviously ill, with an oxygen mask or whatever, to board the plane. It all comes back to where I started. If you have a health crisis in somewhere like Thailand without cast iron insurance you are likely to run up a colossal hospital bill which you'll be responsible for and unless you're absolutely loaded you are well and truly fucked.

Having continued looking at insurance companies I'd say "All Clear" probably looks the best to me. Just my opinion based on what I've seen so far. It has a very high rating on Trustpilot, but most of that can be immediately dismissed. So many people saying they are "excellent" because: "They were so friendly and helpful and even agreed to give me the same cover I had for my trip last year at no extra cost. Highly recommended for peace of mind."

When people give a verdict like that or something like it it proves my point. Why can't the stupid fuckers not understand that the ONLY verdict on an insurance company that means anything is about how willing they are to pay out and how easy/difficult it is to get money from them? It baffles me that they'd rate one highly because they were "helpful" when it came to taking their money.

However All Clear seem to have fewer critics than many others. And from what I've seen the main complaints seem to be about late settlement or wanting extra paperwork. If it's late it's late but at least you get your money.

I got a range of quotes from £160 upwards for two weeks in Thailand. That would be fine for me if I was certain they'd pay out. I still haven't made my mind up yet but it's an option that gave me some confidence at least.