What Should I Do If I Get Ill or Injured Abroad?

Being injured or ill while abroad can be a frightening and distressing experience, especially when you’re so far from home. The best thing you can do is to keep yourself informed how to handle the situation. This guide will provide you with some information on what to do if you get sick or injured while you’re away, including how to seek medical care, get appropriate treatment, and recuperate your medical costs.

Assess the Severity of Your Illness or Injury

Take some time to assess the seriousness of your injury or illness so you can decide what type of healthcare is medically necessary. If you are suffering from a minor illness or injury, you may only need to go to the pharmacy or see a local doctor. If your illness or injury is life threatening, then you should go straight to the hospital.

Collect Evidence

If possible, gather evidence of the cause of the illness or injury. If your injury was caused by a car accident, then take photographs of both vehicles and the licence plates, get insurance information from the other driver, and record the date and time of the crash. Similarly, if you get food poisoning, try to get photographs of the food you consumed and where you bought it from. Try to get photographs that show the hygiene standards of the establishment. You should collect any receipts and invoices from your medical treatment. Having sufficient evidence will help healthcare professionals treat you more efficiently and will allow you to easily make a claim on your travel insurance policy.

Gather Your Documents

If your illness or injury is serious enough for you to need emergency medical treatment, you should gather all the essential documents you’ll need to receive healthcare or have someone else do it for you. If you’re traveling within the European Union, you should have a UK Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC), which will entitle you to low-cost or free state healthcare. You should also bring your doctor’s letter, vaccination certificates, a copy of your prescription, and the containers of any prescription medication you’re taking. You will also need your travel insurance documents, a form of I.D., and your passport and visa.

Visit a Pharmacy

If you’re suffering from a minor illness or injury, visit a pharmacy for some over-the-counter medication. You should also go to a pharmacy if you have lost or run out of your prescription medication. Don’t forget to bring your doctor’s note and your I.D. along with your prescription. Not all countries will accept prescriptions from the UK, so you should try to make sure you have enough medication to last your whole trip and keep it safe when you travel.

Call Emergency Services

If you need emergency medical care and require an ambulance, call emergency services. You should make a note of what the emergency numbers are for the country you’re travelling to before you leave for your trip. If you can, ask the first responders which hospital you’re being taken to.

Tell Your Family

You should always keep your family in the loop when you travel, especially if you get injured or become sick, no matter how serious you think it is. Your family can get you appropriate medical care, help pay for your medical costs, and make plans for you to come home and receive further care in the UK. Make sure they have copies of all your important documents in case they’re asked to provide them.

Contact Your Travel Agency

If you have booked a package holiday through a travel agent, and have become ill or injured through no fault of your own, you should contact them and make a claim for loss of enjoyment of your holiday. If you were made sick or injured by your hotel or by something included in your package holiday, then you will be due compensation in accordance with the Package Travel and Linked Arrangements Regulations 2018. If you’re not happy with how the situation is handled, you can make a complaint to the Air Travel Organiser’s License (ATOL) if your package holiday included a flight or to The Travel Association (ABTA) if your package holiday included land or sea travel.

Get in Touch With the Nearest Embassy

The British embassy, consulate, or high commission in the country you’re travelling to can provide you with various consular services and support if you become ill or injured while abroad. They can help you get a translator, put you in touch with English-speaking doctors, liaise with your travel insurer, contact your family to let them know you’re ill and which hospital you are in, and help your family send you money to cover medical costs. Before you leave for your trip, make sure you know where the nearest British embassy is and how to contact them.

Contact Your Travel Insurance Provider

If you need emergency medical care while abroad, you should contact your travel insurer to make a claim. They may be able to provide you with advice and inform you about what they’re willing to cover. They may have alternative hospitals or healthcare facilities they would prefer you to go to. As we mentioned previously, you can provide them with the evidence and receipts you collected to support your claim.

When Should You Buy Travel Insurance?

As soon as you book your trip, you should purchase a travel insurance policy that includes cover for emergency medical and repatriation expenses. You can also pay an additional premium for add-ons, including pre-existing medical conditions cover and COVID-19 cover. As a part of your emergency medical cover, your travel insurance policy should cover medical expenses (including medication and treatment), emergency dental treatment, hospital expenses, ambulance expenses, and taxi fares to and from medical appointments. It should also cover the costs of returning you to the UK and the costs of a medical escort.

Some travel insurers will provide you with a hospital confinement benefit and a mugging hospitalisation benefit, where you will receive a benefit for every 24 hours you are confine to your hospital or accommodation while recovering during your trip. You may even receive cover for additional travel and accommodation expenses incurred if you are not medically fit to return home and need to extend your trip. For information on what your travel insurance policy covers, you should read your policy wording.