Travel insurer refuses payout

Bronwyn Ross in her Palmerston home yesterday. Photo: Stephen Jaquiery.
Bronwyn Ross. Photo: Stephen Jaquiery.

An insurance stoush is set to heat up as an East Otago woman, recently confined  in a Malaysian hospital, returns home.

Bronwyn Ross, of Palmerston, was taken to hospital in Kuala Lumpur and is vowing to battle her travel insurance company, which refuses to cover her medical costs.

Ms Ross (58) travelled with family to Kuala Lumpur earlier this month to watch her great-niece compete in an ice-skating competition.

"I was so excited about going because I’ve never been anywhere other than Australia."

On the fourth day in the city, she struggled to breathe and walk and was admitted to hospital  with pneumonia, influenza A and a throat infection.

Her son Kane Beardsmore paid an $1800 deposit to get his mother admitted.

Ms Ross and Kane Beardsmore, of Invercargill, in a hospital in Kuala Lumpur earlier this month....
Ms Ross and Kane Beardsmore, of Invercargill, in a hospital in Kuala Lumpur earlier this month. Photo: supplied.
The 17-day stay in the private hospital cost about $12,500.

Mr Beardsmore said he called his mother’s travel insurance company, Southern Cross, as soon as she was admitted and it took a week for the company to respond.

Southern Cross refused to cover her medical costs because she has severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and did not declare it when signing up for the insurance.

However, Ms Ross said when she applied she met all the criteria, such as her doctor approving her travel, having no change in her medication and not being in hospital in the past two years.

"I thought I was all hunky dory."

The disease made her prone to infections such as pneumonia but she carried medication to control the disease of the lungs.

In a letter, her doctor in Kuala Lumpur, Lim Boon Kahw, said her health problems in Malaysia were unrelated to the disease and her COPD was stable during her time there.

Ms Ross got to see her great-niece compete twice before becoming ill.

She was originally due to return to Dunedin on August 20 and had to buy new flights to get home on Monday night.

Southern Cross  was "standing their ground" and refusing to pay, so she was seeking legal advice.

Mr Beardsmore estimated the extra accommodation and new flights cost about $7500, making the extra cost about $20,000.

"It’s been a pretty stressful three weeks," he said yesterday from Invercargill.

Southern Cross Travel Insurance chief executive Craig Morrison said Southern Cross was satisfied with its decision, based on its terms and policy wording.

"SCTI policies highlight repeatedly throughout the purchase process — and not in fine print — the need to disclose pre-existing conditions.

"It is not unusual or unexpected that a known medical condition may result in a hospital admission overseas — which is why we stress this in the policy document so heavily."

To settle the claim would set a precedent and reflect poorly on the company’s  integrity in settling all claims fairly, based on the policy wording and disclosures made at the time of application, Mr Morrison said.

shawn.mcavinue@odt.co.nz

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