COVID-19 & Insurance: What You Need To Know

Our Silver and Gold Health plans will cover vaccinations, as long as they are administered in the country in which you are resident and are approved for use by the health authority of that country. However, our Life insurance policies don’t offer reimbursement for COVID-19 vaccines.

We have experienced an increase in our life insurance policies for expats over the past 12 months in the UK and Australia. There are no limitations on your plans relating to COVID vaccines.

Yes, it does. If you have a life plan from William Russell, you’re covered if you die as a result of infection by COVID-19 as you would be for any other viral infection.

Yes, as long as you are fully recovered with no ongoing symptoms. We may postpone your policy if you have been hospitalised or have symptoms.

If you have an income protection plan from William Russell, you’re covered if you’re totally unable to work for longer than the deferment period, as a result of an illness or injury. This would include an infection by COVID-19, provided you don’t have applicable personal medical exclusions on your certificate of insurance.

Yes, as long as you have complied with the terms and conditions of your plan.

If you are currently experiencing COVID-19 symptoms, then we will not offer terms until at least one month after you have recovered and are back to good health.

If you have been admitted to hospital due to COVID-19 or you have an underlying health condition then we will need to ask further questions regarding your symptoms, treatment, and recovery. Depending on the answers to these questions, there may be a further delay before we can offer terms.

There are geographical restrictions on some plans, you should refer to your plan agreement.

If you have a health plan from William Russell, you’re covered for the treatment of COVID-19 as you would be for any other viral infection. This is provided that the plan you have selected covers the treatment and you don’t have personal medical exclusions on your certificate of insurance that would apply.

For example, if you have a personal medical exclusion for ‘respiratory conditions’ or any other condition that might be affected by Coronavirus, you wouldn’t be covered for the diagnosis and treatment of your excluded condition.

If you have a Silver or Gold plan with William Russell, you will be covered for vaccinations under your vaccinations for adults or well-child benefit. The vaccine must be administered in your country of residence and must be approved for use by the health authority of that country. You will not be covered for vaccines received outside of your country of residence.

There are no changes to the cover provided while you are travelling. However, your ability to access services may be impacted by local conditions. Before you travel you should check that the plan you have selected includes cover in the countries you are travelling to. You should also check for limitations on cover and trip duration in case you need to extend your stay due to travel restrictions.

If you are currently experiencing COVID-19 symptoms, then we will not offer cover until at least a month after you have recovered and are back to good health. If you have been admitted to hospital due to COVID-19, or you have an underlying health condition then we will need to ask further questions regarding your symptoms, treatment and recovery. Depending on the answers to these questions, there may be a further delay before we can offer terms.

Yes, your right to renew your cover will not be affected if you have coronavirus.

If you have a Silver or Gold plan with William Russell, you will be covered for vaccinations under your vaccinations for adults or well-child benefit. The vaccine must be administered in your country of residence and must be approved for use by the health authority of that country. You will not be covered for vaccines received outside of your country of residence.

If you need a private test, you may have cover for the cost of the test. Most testing programmes are run by national governments or local health authorities. To encourage maximum participation, tests are usually free.

If you have a SilverLite, Silver or Gold plan and you have symptoms of COVID-19, you’re covered for out-patient costs related to investigation, testing, and treatment of COVID-19, provided these are prescribed by a doctor. These costs are covered even if the test result is negative. The normal plan terms and conditions on excesses and co-insurances apply.

If you have a Silver or Gold plan and you’re not experiencing COVID-19 symptoms, you’re covered for the costs of a test under your well-being benefit. The normal plan terms and conditions on excesses, waiting periods, and co-insurances apply.

Sometimes a hospital may include a COVID-19 test as part of pre-operation screening. This is also covered under all health plans.

Most COVID-19 vaccination programmes are run by national governments or local health authorities. This encourages maximum participation and ensures that the most vulnerable or at risk are vaccinated first. As a result, most vaccines are free.

If you have a Silver or Gold plan with William Russell, you will be covered for vaccinations under your vaccinations for adults or well-child benefit. The vaccine must be administered in your country of residence and must be approved for use by the health authority of that country.

You will not be covered for vaccines received outside of your country of residence.

Most COVID-19 vaccination programmes are run by national governments or local health authorities. This encourages maximum participation and ensures that the most vulnerable or at risk are vaccinated first. As a result, most vaccines are free.

If you have a Silver or Gold plan with William Russell, you will be covered for the reasonable and customary costs of vaccinations that you cannot access for free, under your vaccinations for adults or well-child benefit.

The vaccine must be administered in your country of residence or country of nationality and must be approved for use by the health authority of that country.

You will not be covered for vaccines received outside of your country of residence or nationality, or for any travel costs associated with the vaccine.

Yes. The hospital cash benefit is designed to reward members with COVID-19 or another condition who receive inpatient medical treatment at a hospital within a country’s public healthcare system.

Usually, treatment at these hospitals is free for patients, or at least heavily subsidised. As no costs are passed on to us, we pass on some of the savings to our members. We’ll pay a cash benefit for each night you stay in a hospital as an inpatient, where no charge is made by the hospital and where the treatment costs would have been covered by your plan.

Our ability to evacuate members was affected by the pandemic. This was due to international travel restrictions and the limited number of hospitals accepting new patients.

As the world returns to a ‘new normal’, so is our ability to provide medical evacuations where needed.

Whether your case qualifies for evacuation, where you will be evacuated to, and how you will be evacuated are at the discretion of our Assistance Service. You can contact the service on +44 1243 621155.

As long as the face-to-face consultation would have been covered under your plan, then we’ll cover the same consultation that is carried out by telephone or video link. This applies for both COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 conditions.

It’s best to get in touch with us if you have any questions relating to your plan and whether your consultation would be covered.

If you’re admitted to hospital because you need medical treatment (including for COVID-19), you will be covered for as long as your admission and medical treatment are necessary and there are no personal medical exclusions applied to your policy.

You’re not covered for admissions that are not medically necessary. You should contact us if you need to be admitted to hospital.

If you’re admitted to hospital with symptoms of COVID-19 that require medically necessary treatment in a hospital which can only be provided as a day-patient or inpatient, we can consider cover, subject to pre-authorisation. Admissions that are solely for quarantine purposes are not covered.

If you have a travel plan that begins or renews on or after 01/06/20, you won’t be covered for COVID-19.

If your plan is still valid before this date, you can claim if you can’t travel for any of these reasons:

• injury or illness to you, a close relative, close business colleague, or travelling companion
• compulsory quarantine applying to you or your travelling companion
• a government regulation as a result of the pandemic that prevents you from travelling

You can claim for the loss of irrecoverable deposits or payments for any unused travel and accommodation you have either paid for or have contracted to pay.

The EU Digital COVID Certificate Regulation entered into application on 1 July 2021. EU citizens and residents can have their Digital COVID Certificates issued and verified across the EU, and in an additional 37-non EU countries and territories that have joined the system – including the UK NHS COVID Pass.

You should check that your first name and your surname on your passport match how they are displayed by your NHS COVID Pass at least 3 weeks before you travel. If the names are different, contact your GP practice to have your details updated.

If you have not been fully vaccinated, you should continue to follow the entry requirements of the country you are travelling to, such as proof of a negative COVID-19 test on arrival. You should carefully research the requirements of your destination country before travelling.

Entry requirements are subject to change at short notice, so it’s best to check Foreign Office travel advice.

The NHS COVID Pass lets you share your COVID-19 status records in a secure way when travelling abroad to some countries and territories.

The EU-wide Digital COVID Certificate (EUDCC) also allows anyone vaccinated against COVID-19, or who has tested negative, or recently recovered from the virus, to travel within the European Union.

Some countries have only reopened to vaccinated travellers, whereas others are opening their borders – quarantine-free – to anyone with a negative test result.

Entry requirements are subject to change at short notice, so it’s best to check Foreign Office travel advice.

With the exception of the travel plan, there are no general exclusions for pandemics in our plans. You will be covered for infection by COVID-19 as you would be for any other viral infection, provided you don’t have applicable personal medical exclusions on your certificate of insurance.

We understand that times are tough right now. If you’re struggling to keep up with payments for your insurance plan, it’s best to get in touch with us. We’re people too, and our team members can work with you to find a way forward.

William Russell offices are open and staff are working flexibly to ensure the workplace is safe, clean and following government guidance at all times.

Services we offer our members and our usual emails and telephone numbers are working as normal.

Of course, all internal and external communications continue to comply with ISO 27001 and our strict data protection policies.

Yes. If you’re not sure what you need, read our glossary of terms.

If you have questions about how we can help, please call or email our claims team on +44 1276 486 460 or claims@william-russell.com.

Coronavirus belongs to a family of viruses known to cause illness in animals and humans. In humans, coronaviruses generally cause respiratory illnesses. Previous epidemics such as MERS or SARS were caused by coronaviruses. The coronavirus that’s the subject of the present pandemic causes a respiratory illness called COVID-19.

The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are:

• a high temperature or shivering (chills) – a high temperature means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature)
• a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours
• a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste
• shortness of breath
• feeling tired or exhausted
• an aching body
• a headache
• a sore throat
• a blocked or runny nose
• loss of appetite
• diarrhoea
• feeling sick or being sick

The symptoms are very similar to symptoms of other illnesses, such as colds and flu.

For most people, these symptoms will be mild, and some people may not even be aware they have been infected. But some will become seriously ill and develop breathing difficulties. This is most likely in older people or people with underlying medical conditions.

People contract COVID-19 from other people who have been infected with the virus. The virus spreads through small droplets from the nose or mouth, which are spread when an infected person coughs, sneezes or exhales.

It’s best to keep up to date with the latest guidance on the World Health Organization website or from your national health authority.

To reduce your risk of catching coronavirus (COVID-19) or spreading it to other people:

• get vaccinated
• meet people outside if possible
• open doors and windows to let in fresh air if meeting people inside
• limit the number of people you meet and avoid crowded places
• wear a face covering when it’s hard to stay away from other people – particularly indoors or in crowded places
• wash your hands with soap and water, or use hand sanitiser regularly throughout the day
• avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth if your hands are not clean

Ensuring your insurance is comprehensive and up to date could help by providing access to treatment and income support if COVID-19 causes significant illness.