Sivan Tumarkin with CTV News on Blue Cross travel insurance claim

Interview Summary

A man in Saskatchewan was denied travel insurance after suffering a massive stroke while vacationing in Arizona. Blue Cross denied the travel insurance claim as an increase in the individual’s cholesterol medication had not been disclosed. Are travel insurance claims often denied due to a lack of information?

Sivan Tumarkin, a disability lawyer and national co-managing partner at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP spoke to CTV News Regina on denials of travel insurance and the reasons why.

Interview Notes

“Unfortunately this is not uncommon and I say that in the context of people who are contacting me all the time asking for advice when they are denied these kinds of claims and really any insurance claim for that matter,” Tumarkin explains.

Tumarkin goes on to state that individual claims are denied due to the specific details included or forgotten. “Here’s the catch,” says Tumarkin. “It’s not about how truthful you think you are, it’s about how accurate your answers are. Most of these insurance companies don’t do any homework in the beginning, they don’t check the accuracy of these answers they simply look at these answers and then compare them to medical documents once a claim is made.”

In order to have further protections and ensure claims are not denied, Tumarkin states there are several steps that should be taken.

“When you are getting travel insurance if at all possible do it through a broker,” he says. “They’ll be able to guide you, they are licensed and they are knowledgeable when it comes to insurance products.”

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Another step to protect yourself, Tumarkin explains, is to fill out application forms accurately. “Don’t focus so much on answering as truthfully as you can but more so as accurately as you can. That means if you have to speak to your doctor or whoever handles your medications, make sure that the answers are as accurate as possible, don’t give the insurance company ammunition,” Tumarkin states.

Lastly, Tumarkin states that if a claim is denied, there are options other than simply forgoing rights and benefits.

“Insurance companies would love nothing more than people to just simply walk away and give up. Sometimes insurance companies are correct with their denials but many times they are not and so you need to make sure you get legal advice.”