Hi,

 

I am a British citizen about to retire to Thailand - arriving visa exempt then getting Non-O based on retirement.

 

I do want health insurance and have investigated the Thai options, however it looks like I can get better (Worldwide) coverage applying in the UK via an international health care insurer.

 

Does anyone have any thoughts on this? Is it generally better to get a Thai insurance policy eg LMG, Pacific Cross etc or are these international worldwide insurers just as good? The international insurer I have found seems to offer much higher level of cover, is worldwide and accepts pre-existing conditions for a lower (or similar) premium to the Thai insurers

 

Any thoughts or experience much appreciated

 

Kind regards

Tim

 

Non-Thai insurers tend to offer a bit broader coverage with higher limits and are more professional when it comes to claims-paying approach than Thai insurers. They're also usually subject to a stricter level of regulation and better consumer protection laws.

 

Thai insurers tend to exclude almost all types of pre-existing conditions. Some non-Thai insurers may cover some pre-existing conditions subject to premium loading.

 

I would suggest you work with a good insurance broker to find a good solution. Note that insurance brokers based in Thailand may not be able to help with non-Thai insurance policies since they are prohibited by local regulations from doing so.

Agree with the above.

 

In addition, you should be aware that Thai insurers can and often will raise rates on an individual basis if you have a claim.  These are on top of age related increases and inflationary adjustments and many people end up priced out at an age where they can no longer get a new policy.

 

Insurers based in Western countries are not allowed to do this.

 

I frankly cannot think of a single advantage to Thai insurers vs international expat policy. 

 

 

So basically Thai Insurers are scum ?