Travel Insurance FAQs

Read our most frequently asked questions.

FAQs

  1. What insurance cover is provided?
  2. What is covered by this insurance?
  3. When will my cover begin and end?
  4. Am I covered for travel outside of my host country?
  5. Can my cover be extended?
  6. How many days holiday after my elective am I covered for?
  7. What documentation will I receive to confirm my cover?
  8. Will my personal belongings be covered?
  9. Am I covered for a splash / needlestick incident?
  10. Will I be covered for ongoing medical treatment?
  11. Am I covered for dental and optical treatment?
  12. Will I be covered for a pre-existing medical condition and do I need to declare it?
  13. Will the cost of my ongoing prescription medication be covered?
  14. Am I covered for dangerous activities?
  15. Am I covered if my flight is cancelled?
  16. If I change my destination or decide to stay in the UK, will I be able to claim for my travel expenses?
  17. Is there an excess on the policy?
  18. How do I make a claim?
  19. Where do I get a claim form?
  20. If I don’t have the original receipts for items which are lost, damaged or stolen can I still make a claim?
  21. Where do I send my completed claim form and supporting documents?
  22. How long will it take for my claim to be settled?
  23. My question is not covered in any of the above points, who can I contact?

1. What insurance cover is provided?

UCL’s insurance provides travel and medical emergency insurance for all students undertaking a period of study abroad and covering:

  • Personal Accident
  • Medical Expenses (including any treatment relating to COVID and repatriation)
  • Personal property
  • Money
  • Kidnap and Ransom
  • Personal Liability/Legal Expenses
  • *Cancellation/Curtailment
  • *Political/Natural Disaster Evacuation
  • *Crisis Management

 * these items are not covered where an FCO advisory against travel is in place

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2. Is travel which is unrelated to my elective covered?

The insurance policy covers students whilst on UCL business (i.e. your time on an elective placement and travel to and from your elective destination). Holiday travel is included an incidental basis and only in the same country as your clinical placement. You will need to buy your own, separate personal travel insurance to cover other holiday time and travel.  

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3. When will my cover begin and end?

Cover is for the duration of your timetabled elective block including the travel time to and from your elective destination. You will be asked to provide the relevant dates when applying for insurance via an online form prior to your departure. Please note that the end date for the UCL travel insurance is the Sunday following the last day of the elective block and so students on elective Block 2 who intend to stay on/travel elsewhere after this date must put in place their own insurance from this point.

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4. Am I covered for travel outside of my host country?

You are only covered for activities undertaken in your host country. Any travel outside of your host country will not be covered by the UCL policy and it is very important that you obtain private cover yourself in advance of any trip outside of your host country.

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5. Can my cover be extended?

It is not possible to extend the policy for personal travel outside the country of your elective placement and you should ensure that you have arranged suitable private cover for any personal travel undertaken elsewhere.

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6. How many days holiday after my elective am I covered for?

Please see the table below to see how many days holiday that UCL’s policy will cover you for. Remember that it will only cover you for a holiday in the same country as your elective.

  • Less than 5 days business trip - 0 days holiday
  • 5-12 days business trip - 2 days holiday
  • 13-21 days business trip - 5 days holiday
  • 22-35 days business trip - 8 days holiday
  • 36-50 days business trip - 12 days holiday

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7. What documentation will I receive to confirm my cover?

You will be sent instructions for applying for your insurance certificate with your step 4 elective approval. You should download your certificate and take it with you when you travel.

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8. Will my personal belongings be covered?

Yes, up to £10,000. This includes clothes and other items if they are lost or stolen as well as laptops, cameras, mobile phones, iPods and other electronic equipment. Although there is cover up to £10,000, the single article limit is £2,000. A deductible of 25% applies for value in excess of this for any item, pair or set.  Please note that there is a £50 excess for all baggage/personal belonging claims

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9. Am I covered for a splash / needlestick incident?

UCL Travel Insurance provides cover for occupational exposure to BBVs including emergency repatriation where needed.

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10. Will I be covered for ongoing medical treatment?

No, the cover is for medical emergencies only.  

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11. Am I covered for dental and optical treatment?

Emergency treatment is covered, routine treatment isn’t.

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12. Will I be covered for a pre-existing medical condition and do I need to declare it?

There is no need to declare pre-existing conditions. You will be covered by the policy as long as you are not travelling abroad against the advice of your GP.

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13. Will the cost of my ongoing prescription medication be covered?

No, only emergency medical treatment is covered, not ongoing treatment

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14. Am I covered for dangerous activities?

If you plan to participate in ‘extreme’ sports or activities whilst abroad, please note the following from UCL’s insurance team:  

  • You are covered for winter sports (skiing and snowboarding). Skiing is only covered when not off-piste
  • You are covered for scuba-diving provided that you do not dive below 30 metres
  • You are not covered for extreme sports such as mountain climbing, bungee jumping or diving from height

Remember that you are covered for UCL business only (e.g. your time as a student on elective) and leisure activities are included only on an incidental basis.

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15. Am I covered if my flight is cancelled?

You should first seek reimbursement for alternative travel arrangements from the airline you are booked to travel with. If your airline will not issue a refund and if you incur additional costs for accommodation and incidentals, you can make a claim. 

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16.  If I change my destination or decide to stay in the UK, will I be able to claim for my travel expenses?

The UCL policy does not cover this.

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17. Is there an excess on the policy?

There is an excess of £50 on the cancellation/rearrangement section of the policy and also for all baggage/personal belonging claims.

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18. How do I make a claim?

Emergency enquiries and claims: If the claim is for a medical emergency, you are advised to contact the insurers on their helpline +44 (0)1273 400 850, which is open 24/7, 365 days a year

Non-emergency enquiries and claims: For all non-emergency claims, a completed claim form is required, with supporting documentation attached. Claim forms are held by the UCL Insurance Team, who can also assist with further questions you may have regarding the claim.

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19. Where do I get a claim form?

A claim for the costs of your cancelled trip can made on the claim form:

rsa-travel-claim-form.docx

Once the form has been completed with the relevant documentation attached, please email the form directly to the travel insurers (their email address is on the form) and also send a copy the Insurance Section insurance@ucl.ac.uk

Policy number: RTT306251/LUPC/28

There is a £50 excess on this section of the policy if your booking was not made through UCL’s travel management company Key Travel. All airlines are obliged to refund the flight tax – this is refundable on all unused flights and the insurers will require confirmation of this to allow them to calculate your settlement amount, however you can submit the claim whilst waiting for it.

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20. If I don’t have the original receipts for items which are lost, damaged or stolen can I still make a claim?

Yes, the insurers accept documents from websites or suppliers which state the replacement value of the item. For lost/stolen passports and driving licences you should attach (to your claim) evidence of the cost of replacing each document.

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21. Where do I send my completed claim form and supporting documents?

Once the form has been completed with the relevant documentation attached, please email the form directly to the insurers at the email address given in the documentation and also send a copy the Insurance Section insurance@ucl.ac.uk

If I have a query about my claim who do I contact?

Please contact the UCL Insurance Team if you have a question regarding a claim:

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22. How long will it take for my claim to be settled?

It can take up to 4-6 weeks for insurers to settle a claim if they have all the documentation.

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23. My question is not covered in any of the above points, who can I contact?

Please contact the UCL Insurance Team if you have a question that is not covered by one of the points above:

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