Im sorry - this post is gonna make me unpopular but why on earth would you put such a delicate electrical item such as a camcorder in the hold - You only have to look at the state of some of the bags that come through and you would know that there is a high probability of damage(if it wasnt already pilfered by the handlers)

Also we all go on about Insurance Co's not paying out, and granted there are a small minority of cowboys out there, but generally they will pay your claim if it is within the terms and conditions of the purchased policy - You are issued with these T&C when you purchase the policy so why hold the company to blame because you couldnt be bothered reading them at the time of purchase?? Yes the small print is tedious - But its a fact of
life!! The FSA regulation of advised insurance sales next year will help a little - but they will only have go through the main exclusions with you - you will still need read the small print??

Also a thing to remember is you get what you pay for - People now generally shop around for cheaper insurance( i do it myself) - and therefore more often than not you end up with less cover - Pay a few extra pence for that extra peace of mind



Rant off .... I will take my insurance hat off now... and a ho ho ho to you all :x34

leighanne, you were unpopular before the post

i always have put my camcorder in my suitcase, bad habit or not and I've been on lots of holidays abroad, this is the first time anything like this has happened to us, so yes, I know better now.....and agree, I have been rather naive.

so what about the £10:00p we received for 24 hours delay...a fiver each? I'm still waiting for them to send a form for my wife's signature so I can claim for her.

I discussed this claim before they sent any forms out to me, I explained I didnt know what to do as I have never claimed before, the forms asked for receipts and proofs which I had given them, they still have my receipts, why have they not sent them back to me?.

Anyway, they can stick the money where the sun dont shine, they wont be getting my custom again or any of my friends and relatives.
I just wanted to highlight my disgust at Direct Travel Insurance and have done.

Noggs

Have you checked your travel insurance policy to see how much you should have received for a 24 hour delay? It should be clearly stated on the policy.

luci

Hiya Noggs

Agree that £10 for your delay seems a bit measly, but if thats the benefit stated in your pol why would they give you any more??

With regards to receipts - they probably wont send then back to you unless you specifically request them?

I would suggest that you shop around for your next insurance purchase and compare levels of cover for all benefits - Medical costs, cancellation, delays, baggage delays and valuables & Cash limits etc - You will be amazed on how much they vary. When you find a policy that has the level of benefits your happy with then buy - but you will find the premiums much higher than direct.

I have had insurance with Direct b4 and was quite happy - but then i didnt have reason to claim. I have currently got annual insurance with insure & go - Which hasnt got the best levels of cover but it was cheap and im happy with the level of cover in relation to the premium(£54 for annual europe for 3 of us)

I dont think you were naive - you wouldnt believe how many peeps put there valuables in the hold - and this is a general exclusion across every travel insurance product and no company would pay for this loss. A few years ago i done a stint in our travel claims dept so i suppose this raised my awareness on this issue.

Just a quick response to the posts above.

Re smellycat - that is what happened to us. You were spot on to check! We now know that we were very naive in that we took the Travel Agents assurances re what was insured as ok. Sorry, but I actually thought that COOP Travel Insurance was something linked directly with the COOP, and as we'd checked when we booked with them we didn't check the small print when it all came or even think that the policy was someone else's - the underwriters or whatever they're called. Never dawned on us and we're usually very careful!

Silly we now know - that's why we're determined to make sure that other people don't make the same mistake.

It may come across that we have an axe to grind, but we're not into bleating, just warning others - that's what makes this site such a 'must read' for Joe Public who are planning a holiday!

If it helps one person not to make the same mistake then baaa baaa baaa!

I have been led to believe that if your personal posessions are covered all risk with your general household insurance your travel insurance will ask you to claim from your house policy, I dont think you can be covered by two insurances for these posessions so why dont travel insurance companies give you the option of paying less for cover because you are already covered for these items. Perhaps they like grabbing as much money as possible without informing you of this. I once lost a camera but was made to claim through my house policy for it the travel company didnt want to know, legalised robbery I call it . Jayjan

you can buy travel insurance without baggage cover

Have only just found this thread and feel I must defend Direct Travel insurance. Three years ago I ended up in hospital in Ayia Napa and had to have a minor operation. They paid the hospital direct so I don't know the cost. They also paid me £10 bacause I was in for 24 hours and even paid for the phone card for my hubby to phone work to tell them I would not be back on time. No hassle at all.

I also want to stand up for Direct Travel,just under 2 years ago I ended up in hospital before I was due to fly to Tenerife .Although I was discharged after 3 days my Dr advised me not to travel as they could not be sure I would not require further treatment at that point. I was very disappointed and upset but Direct Travel paid out with no quibbles .
I managed to use the money to book another trip a few weeks later once I had the all clear.
I now pay a little more for my insurance with Direct Travel so I will be covered should I ever have the same problem (fingers crossed)
The Holiday Which Magazine has a good article this month on holiday insurance.

My hubby was rushed into hospital 10 days before we were due to fly to Faro for emergency surgery. He was told by the surgeon not to fly due to a risk of DVT and also he had 40 staples in his stomach. To top it all he contracted chicken pox while in hospital. We did all the necessary things like getting cancellation confirmation from the flight company together with the surgeons report. Direct insurance acknowledged this and sent us the original forms back but then said we needed a gp's report. How much evidence do they need, he wouldnt have been allowed to fly with chicken pox anyway or 40 staples in his stomach. We didnt get a penny reimbursed from Direct Insurance and I will not be using them again. The only time it works i think is when your taken ill while on holiday or are involved in an accident and need hospital treatment. They are very good at taking your money in the first place & dont play fair as far as I'm concerned, once again I say legalised robbery. Regards Jayjan

Hi Jayjan,

I assume that your GP was able to provide the report requested so what grounds did Direct Holidays give to justify their refusal to pay your claim?

SM

They already had the documentation needed from the hospital with full medical information regarding this unforseable emergency operation as it was the surgeon who told him he wouldnt be able to fly and it had nothing to do with the GP, They even asked us for the cancellation notice again from the airline of which they had already had. So we gave up on the claim as numerous phone calls to them got us no where at all. Regards Jayjan

I'm at a loss to understand as to why you were prepared to write this money off rather than request a letter from your GP confirming the overall position. Or did your GP refuse to provide the report? I originally read your message to mean that Direct Insurance turned your claim down but it now seems that you dropped the claim because you didn't see why you should have to get the requested letter from your GP which is a different issue.

In somewhat similar circumstances with multiple medical reasons for the cancellation my brother received a complete refund because the insurance company was happy to accept the GP's letter summarising the overall medical picture and preferred this to multiple letters from all the other medical staff who had been involved when my niece had a medical emergency just before a holiday. Could it be that Direct Insurance wanted something similar and had you provided it, would have paid up in full?

SM

Hi Sm just to clarify things we had booked flights only costing £135 return, (I actually flew out on my own as we have property in Portugal so it was only hubbys claim) he had a £50 excess on policy and when they requested a Gp's report costing £50 which to me was totally uneccessary as all information was given by the operating surgeon who said he couldnt fly whats the point of claiming £35, when after numerous phonecalls regarding this and the cancellation notice to the airline which they had already had, which they say they hadnt received,but they must have because it was in with the original documents which they returned to us makes you feel you are banging your head against a brick wall. Maybe its incompetent staff at their end what cant file documents they receive. I'm just glad I aint insured with them only the hubby, I have insurance through my bank account but one never knows what they will be like until I try and claim for something. Regards Jayjan