All you need to know about the EHIC
Posted on October 19, 2009 – 11:36 am by mathew.sabri33@gmail.com
All holidays require travel health insurance, and holidays to Europe are no different. The majority of holidaymakers now arrange their holiday insurance on the internet, often using one of the many travel insurance comparison websites to find the cheapest policies. One of the advantages of booking a family holiday within the EU is that you can save further on holiday insurance costs. Thanks to the European Health Insurance Card Scheme, or EHIC, you can save money on medical costs should you require them on your trip.
If you travel to any EEA or European Economic Area countries or Switzerland, then a European Health Insurance Card will enable you to claim free or subsidised medical costs while abroad. You may well have had to use an E111 form for this purpose in the past, but these E111 forms have now been replaced by EHICs.
Not everyone can obtain an EHIC, but if you are a UK resident then this should not be a problem. Those who are under the age of 16, or those who are resident in the Isle of Man or Channel Islands are not eligible.
If you require any medical attention while on holiday, your European Health Insurance Card will ensure that you receive subsidised or free medical care as long as this medical care is not private.
Should a relative need to stay with you while you are ill, your EHIC will not cover the costs of their accommodation either. And not all treatment costs will be covered by an EHIC, so it is still highly recommended that you obtain separate travel insurance cover too.
The EHIC works by giving you a unique number with which you can claim back any of your incurred healthcare costs from the UK government. You can make a claim while receiving treatment abroad, or you can make a claim on your return home.
If you are travelling to Switzerland, or within the European Economic Area, then you will be covered. The European Economic Area consists of 30 countries, including all of the EU member states and three others, which are Liechtenstein, Norway and Iceland.
If you would like to apply for a free European Health Insurance Card, you can do so via the Post Office, on the European Health Insurance Card website, on the Department of Health website, or by phoning 0845 606 2030.
If you have been saving up to go abroad in your gap year, you do not want to have to pay a fortune for backpackers travel insurance. offer special rates to provide cheap insurance to protect you and your valuables.
