Blue Bear Travel Insurance Review

Children are aged under 18 on this policy.

At time of purchase:-

Aged 79 or under for Annual Multi Trip

Aged 115 or under for Single Trip

Aged 64 or under for a Longstay Policy

Single Trip, Trip Duration is up to 365 days, there is no age limit on this.

Annual Trip, Trip Duration of 31 days on any one trip (unless the appropriate premium has been paid to increase the duration to 45 or 60 days and this is confirmed in writing).  

Upon payment of an additional premium your policy will cover winter sports – (on piste skiing and snowboarding, for leisure purposes only and not participating in any timed, competitive or off piste/specialist ski/snow board activities) for the entire duration of your Single Trip or for 24 days in one policy year on your Annual Multi Trip.

Group - up to twenty individuals per policy, although there is no group discount for insuring multiple individuals under one policy.

Family - 1 or 2 Adults, with up to twenty children.  (This policy also allows for Extended Family, this is defined as including grandparents, parents, sons and daughters (including foster), aunties, uncles and cousins.

EHIC not Mandatory, but strongly advised. If travelling to Australia you must enrol in Medicare on arrival.

Check the policy schedule. There are nearly 100 activities listed in Activity Pack 1, which are included as standard. Activity Packs 2 to 8 are chargeable and you should check to ensure the activities you plan are included.  Note that those activities underlined exclude cover for personal liability and accident cover.

A note of caution: according to activity pack 1 it appears that only swimming in a pool is covered and if you want to swim in the sea or from a boat unsupervised, or go surfing, you would need to pay an additional premium.

Beach swimming is mentioned in the definitions, but not in any of the activities. We would recommend checking with Blue Bear and obtain written confirmation before travelling.  

It is important that you check the list of activities before purchasing your travel insurance to ensure you are covered.  If you are unsure, it’s a good tip to gain approval in writing from your insurance provider.

Policy states “You, your travelling companion, close relative or business associate being under the influence of:- 

drugs (except those prescribed by your registered doctor but not when prescribed for treatment of drug addiction); alcohol (a blood alcohol level that exceeds 0.19%; approximately four pints or four 175ml glasses of wine); solvents, or;  anything relating to you or your close relatives or business associate prior abuse of alcohol or solvents.

Not Covered under Bronze or Silver, Airline failure is automatically covered under Gold and Longstay.  You are covered under Last Minute for Scheduled Airline Failure after departure.

It is possible to get Blue Bear travel insurance with medical conditions, however you will need to call Travel Claims Facilities on 0203 829 3846. Make sure you have all of your medical details to hand.  Check to find out whether you will be accepted and at what terms.

Any pre-existing medical condition that has not been declared and accepted in writing by the insurer will not be covered.

You are not covered in the event of a failure to obtain any recommended vaccines, inoculations or medications prior to your trip departure.

“Our policies include emergency medical expenses cover for pregnancy and childbirth from week 0 to week 28 inclusive whilst you are away. From the start of week 29 to week 40 of the pregnancy, there is no cover for claims relating to normal pregnancy and normal childbirth or cancellation, however, medical expenses and cancellation cover will be provided if any of the following complications arise:

Toxaemia, Gestational diabetes, Gestational hypertension, Ectopic pregnancy, Post-partum haemorrhage, Pre-eclampsia, Molar pregnancy or hydatidiform mole, Retained placenta membrane, Placental abruption, Hyperemesis gravidarum, Placenta praevia, Stillbirth, Miscarriage, Emergency Caesarean, A termination needed for medical reasons, Premature birth more than 12 weeks (or 16 weeks if you know you are having more than one baby) before the expected delivery date.”

Listed under activities - Manual Labour is excluded except for those listed in Activity Pack 1  e.g Bar Work, Animal Sanctuary (non big game). If your plan is for specific work, it is always best to contact the insurance provider and obtain written acceptance that your planned type of work is allowed under the policy.

We would recommend that anyone planning to work obtains written permission from their Insurance Provider that it is covered under their policy.

Proof of value and ownership of property and money is required for any item with a value exceeding £50. This should be in the form of an original receipt. Lack of this may mean you are still eligible to claim but will be subject to a maximum of £50 and will be considered part of “unreceipted items” in respect of the claim and included in the maximum offered by that policy.

It would be sensible to keep receipts of any new clothes/property purchased for your holiday. If in doubt as to whether you have cover for a specific item, please contact the Insurance Provider for clarification prior to taking out insurance.

You are not covered in respect of all sections other than emergency medical expenses - war, terrorism, biological or chemical warfare, invasion, act of foreign enemy, hostilities (whether war has been declared or not), civil  war, rebellion, revolution, insurrection or military or usurped power.

Not Covered under Bronze or Silver or Longstay, Covered under Gold.

You and all other insured persons must be a resident of the United Kingdom, Channel Islands or British Forces Posted Overseas and have not spent more than six months abroad in the year before buying this policy.