I've just booked a trip to Almeria with FE in April and the acknowledgement contains this sentence; "Also at this time we are not accepting insurance policies from Holiday Safe, Travel Master and Infinity. Should you have any questions regarding this, please contact the office." I'm curios as to why and even if they can enforce this? It's the individual that's insured and as long as the cover meets the minimum requirement, that, IIRC they only ask for repatriation, then presumably any company providing this should suffice? Is this a sinister attempt to steer riders back to Kev's preferred/profitable provider or borne out of a genuine concern for participants well being?
its all to do being covered by a private hospital,im going Friday and used bemoto but you have to call them,the online policy will not cover private hospitals
Why do you need private hospital cover? It doesn't say that on the e-mail or booking informational. If a rider is now expected to have top draw insurance that covers him/her for private medical attention then that fact should be made clear prior to the booking not after. While we're still in Europe isn't the reciprocal medical agreement still in place? Isn't this why only repatriation cover is insisted upon?
With the exception of Infinity which has a shit web site and I couldn’t find the levels of cover offered, both Holiday Safe and Travel Master offer a choice of track day insurance where at least one of the options provides insufficient repatriation funds which could be a reason. Andy
Ben Go and Holiday Safe have the same repat cover . If they want a min repat cover then that's what they should be asking for. Surely this down to the individual. If you choose £100k or £10m then that's the rider's choice and responsibility not the organisers. It's not FE that will be picking up the bill.
You get taken to a private hospital when at Almeria, which I believe is further than the normal hospital from the track. Holiday safe etc will not pay the higher fees for medical treatment at the private hospital.
The cynic in me is shouting, surely that can’t be legal but I cast my mind back to Sams big accident and I know he was transferred to a specialist hospital in Barcelona due to the nature of his injuries. Could it be that the nearest Spansh NHS equivalent hospital is not equiped to deal with the potential injuries ? If it is just a case of pushing business the way of a private hospital, that would be just despicable. Andy
I have heard that the track have an agreement with the private hospital but I don't know this for definite.
Okay, had confirmed by an independent source, the Circuito de Almeria has used a private hospital in an agreement predating Kevin's tenure as Circuit Director. My guess is that underwriters are trying to drive down the cost of claims and the policies offered by those 3 brokers do not stretch to private treatment. So hopefully nothing sinister after all. Andy
So, theses' a private agreement between the circuit and a private hospital they they get all the 'business' from the track? It's an ill wind....
I've scan read a few policies and the ones I've read all exclude private medical care. Including a few not mentioned by FE. Even 4 countries, recommended by FE exclude it. Appears riders are being funnelled to wherever makes the most money from thier accident and may cost them more in insurance.
A mate was taken to the private hospital after an off at Almeria a couple of years ago. Broken collarbone. It all seemed very organised (quick) between the track and them - a good thing I think. Very tidy repair too!
I'd imagine it's more to do with the local state hospital sending bills to the circuit. No different to any facility in the UK with a high accident rate being charged for ambulances if it becomes a regular occurrence. Having been to a Spanish state hospital a few years back, I'd happily pay a little extra for a private one
Wouldn't surprise me if KH was putting oil down in the braking area for turn 13 and waiting for the back-handers to come his way.
Just got back from Portimao and found out that the track ambulance takes you to a private hospital. One guy had an off and was taken to the private hospital and they refused his insurance. He had to go to the municipal hospital in Portimao and all they needed to see was his EHIC and passport to treat him. All well and good if it's not too serious but a bit worrying if you can't communicate yourself.
