Hua Hin shark attack victim: Insurance won't pay as wife slams authorities

[4MyEgo]

6 hours ago, darksidedog said:

If he had an effective travel insurance policy that gave him cover at the time of the incident, that should not matter.

I dont know who comes off looking worse here, the insurance company for wriggling out of paying or the Hua Hin politicians who were very keen to get a photo with him, but now seem to be washing their hands of it, as it might involve lobbing out some cash. They are both missing a big PR opportunity.

This reply to your last sentence;

 

Or an influx of future hand outs by farangs in trouble....

 

Seriously, we all know its a PR thing for Thai and Western government representatives to go in with baskets/flowers and wish them well and a speedy recovery, has nothing to do with Thailand having to fork out hundreds of thousands of baht for them, its just the right thing to do when someone is down and out because of an unexpected accident.

 

It is every ones choice to have adequate and up to date cover on their travel insurance, so why is the Mrs and others taking it out on the Thai authorities, this is so wrong, what do they want, for them not to turn up with a basket/flowers and not wishing them well and a speedy recovery.

 

Threatening them with media coverage back in their home country to warn others is just plain blackmail, I would put them on the next flight out, after they pay their hospital bill, of course 555

 

A different approach might be to go after the shark and kick the living lights out of it, after all, he started it, not the Thai's, what a beeech the wife is !

[HarryE]

The moral is, dont swim with sharks when your travel insurance has expired.

[johncat1]

He should name the insurance company as a warning to other people 

[jimn]

11 minutes ago, johncat1 said:

He should name the insurance company as a warning to other people 

You obviously havent read the posts in this thread

[Wake Up]

4 hours ago, worgeordie said:

So in  a normal insurance policy,what would a shark attack come under ?

regards worgeordie 

Personal injury, sickness, mosquito bite illness, and trauma like a car wreck, slip and fall etc. just because it is a rare injury does not make it an act of God. Act of God is an event that kills or injured thousands that is impossible to rationally predict. 

[Formaleins]

300K seems rather on the steep side for some stitches, and if I remember correctly, the Thai authorities at the time said it was some cuts due to sharp rocks or coral! Be interesting to see just how bad this guy's injuries really are, seems like there is quite a bit wrong with his leg after all.

[Tilacme]

14 minutes ago, johncat1 said:

He should name the insurance company as a warning to other people 

Did you not pick up on the travel insurance time limits. Have another look before you get on your high horse.

[somchaismith]

Hunt the shark down and get it to foot the bill.

[Jonah Tenner]

7 hours ago, webfact said:

But the insurance company changed their mind after finding out that Mr Danielsen had been in Thailand more than 3 months, said his wife Amornrat Phaengnga.

Travel insurance from Norwegian Insurance Companies are time limited to 7 or 9 weeks a year, depending on Company and type of Travel Insurance policy. One phone call before he left Norway would have told him which. The problem seems to be that  lot of people assume that a Travel Insurance Policy is all encompassing.

[scubascuba3]

It's not really in the small print either with how long you are covered on yearly or Cc insurance.Up to you to have a look at policy

Certainly if you get insurance via one of the comparison sites in the UK like gocompare.com it shows the number of days covered clear as day

[cyril sneer]

an exact 300,000 baht hospital bill would make me very suspicious

[saltire1]

6 hours ago, tingtongtourist said:

another lesson why not to buy into the big scam that is called insurance.

as it says here, typical insurance from home not cover you after 2 or 3 months abroad.

 

sometimes they tell you, sometimes not. doesnt really matter, as for most claims from incidents in Thailand they could find several reasons not to pay anyway

Sooo stupid.  Read the policy.  The policies are always dated and are for fixed time.  This looks like he did not extend his policy after it expired - for whatever reason.  But don't blame the insurance company.  I have worked for an insurance company and have had several claims with insurance companies and whenever I have made a claim WITHIN THE TERMS of the policy I have been paid out without problem.

[scubascuba3]

Only the crapest annual travel insurance limits to 31 days, 90 is not uncommon

Usually travel insurance carries a maximum of 31 days.  After that it is invalid.

[scubascuba3]

Hospitals seem to have the ability to print money, make up a bill, put anything in there, have a good laugh, then get the farang to pay

an exact 300,000 baht hospital bill would make me very suspicious

[Hans Rayong]

In Sweden, normally 45 days travel insurance is included for free in home insurance.

[Bangkok Barry]

The authorities are not interested as it has absolutely nothing to do with them. They are not responsible in any way and did more than they needed to by showing up with a basket of goodies (and a cameraman!). It was bad luck for the (long-stay) tourist who didn't read or forgot about the terms of his insurance.

His Thai wife slamming the authorities is just her being Thai, where it is always always always someone else's fault. No it wasn't. It was her husband's fault.

[Lucky mike]

Insurance good at accepting premiums not so good at paying claims....need a Harvard law degree to understand policy details...the old bullshit baffles brains ?

[Juan B Tong]

Rum go mate.

 

Remember this quote when you deal with Bangkok Hospitals, Inc., and insurance companies.

[mihalis]

Have no idea why people travel with mediocre travel insurance or don’t bother upgrading to a longer term.. gofund me pages have been stuffed for this reason !

[worgeordie]

2 hours ago, Puccini said:

 

Let's take your own international travel insurance policy as an example. The insurance company probably has an English version of the terms and conditions on its website. Please post a link a link to them and somebody will point you to the paragraph under which a shark attack comes.

I dont have my own International travel insurance policy 

regards Worgeordie

[Marley01]

Name and shame this company

[PEE TEE]

Very important to read the terms of insurance /assurance policies. If it's only a holiday insurance then has a time limit . if its a annual insurance  that's for most countries including his own . Then most of them only pay 50% for accidents dependending on the   activity where it happened . some are classed as dangerous sports. and no cover is awarded. read the small print  

[scubascuba3]

Insurance good at accepting premiums not so good at paying claims....need a Harvard law degree to understand policy details...the old bullshit baffles brains ?

If i set up a survey on here i bet circ 70% doesn't read the policy doc. But all those would moan they were conned if they tried to claim but were denied

[Telly]

It is pretty standard for an annual policy to cover 90 days.

That's why on every 89 day I'm on a flight or crossing the border to keep the policy valid.

[Telly]

Ever noticed how these problems happen to those who don't read t n c

[wvavin]

As long as the officials photos were taken right in front of the victim at the hospital it would suffice for a job done! These visits by the officials are totally useless in real need.

[0815]

Slam the authorities? Do they own the shark?
Officials/politicians give help? 
Photo shots are done - job done !
But: Would there be any country where a government would pay his bills? Don't think so.

[Thomas Hannah]

7 hours ago, Tilacme said:

The most i could get travel insurance for was 45 days.

Rubbish.If you get it for the year.It allows you 90 days of stay at anytime.this is what he would have had.But it looks like he was there longer.19 stitches is not a large wound.Looks like the hospital was milking the insurance,300000 baht is a joke.

[captspectre]

with the Insurance I bought in the U.S. I had to fill out the time and date of travel, the time and date of return. the fee varied  with the time spent out of country. I always added a week in case of emergencies. 

 

[SunsetT]

7 hours ago, tingtongtourist said:

another lesson why not to buy into the big scam that is called insurance.

as it says here, typical insurance from home not cover you after 2 or 3 months abroad.

 

sometimes they tell you, sometimes not. doesnt really matter, as for most claims from incidents in Thailand they could find several reasons not to pay anyway

I take out travel insurance every winter for 6 months as a 'single trip'. You provide the dates of leaving and return. Some used to limit cover to 180 days when I needed 183 days but my present UK company 'justcover.com' does not. Some companies also stipulate cover must start and finish in home country.

 

....But you are right in that, although they are some of the richest financial institutions in the World, many are also the scum of the Earth in how they do absolutely anything they can to make it as difficult as possible to claim  or wriggle out of paying genuine claims. Also I dont know how they get away with making their small print so difficult to understand that most people cannot understand it.