Travel Medical Subrogation
Posted date : Nov 7, 2017.
I recently read an article where a Canadian couple had to make a significant claim on their travel insurance. The insurance company then went after their in-province insurance company for a good portion of the claim. This reduced the total life claim available from the person’s normal health insurance. If the travel and health insurance companies were the same, it wouldn’t have affected the person’s life amount. This is called subrogation and I wonder if this tactic is used by Medipac?
Donald R.
Salt Spring Island, B.C.
Response:
Ed.: This is not a tactic, but a policy condition. When you buy a travel insurance policy, you assign your rights to the insurance company and they will then seek to recover payments (subrogations) from other insurers and other third parties. I am unaware of any travel policies in which these rights are waived. Medipac has very generous conditions for subrogation and will not subrogate against any amount less than $100,000 of your lifetime maximum. Other insurers may just take it and, in some cases, they may only subrogate over a $50,000 limit. Read your policy carefully!
