Just sorting out some insurance for the family.

The most important cover areas for us are medical. What with two boys now 7 and 11 and their astonishing lack of self-preservation not to mention their dad who puts extremities where he shouldnt….

However, of the three times I’ve needed medical assistance in Morzine we’ve always ended up at the private medical facility on Le Plan. This has proven costly over the last couple of years: 1 – ran over my thumb with a ski, 4x stitches and a €200 bill, 2 – stitches out of my recently departed finger €40 and 3 – Stoner Jr broken arm, X-rayed, set and cast €800 !!OMGRDD!!!

The problem is it is a Private facility and not a state one so EHIC cuts no ice. More importantly looking at the cover offered by DogTag they are adamant I should go to a state/public facility unless by prior arrangement.

I was wondering, if any of you have had a good quality crash on bikes or skis in Morzine and where did you end up? Did you go private and manage to claim back from insurance? Did you go state and use EHIC or Insurance? And where did you go? Thonon? Cluses? or Morzine?

Finally any good recommendations for family medical cover (other stuff is not important to us like missed flights or lost passport or stolen kit) including mountain biking and skiing?

We have our annual family cover with Yellow Jersey after Snowcard and Dogtag got far too expensive.

Thanks Tracey. Have you or the girls had to call on any of the insurers for medical cover over the years?

EDIT: BTW Yellow Jersey are looking like 2x as much as dogtag for me! £330 for family and Ive not yet seen any mention of wintersport cover on their mountainbiking cover yet…

Whereas Dogtag were about £160 for family multitrip cover with 24days winter cover and mountain biking included.

When the group I was with on a guided tour in france, got our bikes stolen a couple of years ago, the 2 guys with yellow jacket got paid out without a problem (I think they are part of axa), both 5k+ bikes. So I think they are easy to deal with.

With the only medical facilities in Morzine being private is quite a pain, I have always just assumed I would be able to claim it back, fortunately I have never had to test it.

I switched to worlds nomads years ago. Cheaper than Snowcard et al and saw me right in Oz years back.

Not sure their stance on private v state provider though, hadn’t considered it for Morzine, I’ve heard tales (none first hand) of some horrific bills for helicopters and stuff for prangs on Passportes to the extent they’ve offered ins as part of the entry price for years now. I wouldn’t fancy having that conversation mid air ha ha

I always pay the extra few € on my ski pass for helicopter/pisteur insurance in winter to get me off the hill.

Not sure if there’s equivalent during summer. I dont recall seeing such.

I think most “activity” insurance should cover mountain rescue. However a cheap way to ensure you have it, for an annual policy, is to join the Austrian mountaineering club UK.

One of our group did on the first day. He hit one of the water bars on a fire road descent. Concussion and serious facial injury. He was helicoptered to Geneva.
Insured with dogtag who were fantastic to deal with.
He made a full recovery and flew back with us, but missed the remaining 4 days.

I assume he wasnt in a position to call his insurer and get the nod to fly to Geneva first. So just made the claim afterwards etc? What contact details did the helicopters/pompiers take?

EDIT P-Jay – world nomads dont do family multitrip. Strictly for the backpacking trustafarian by the look of it 😉

The time I used the private facility in Morzine-my second fractured collarbone-I had a €300 bill, the EHIC was waved aside, but my insurer at the time paid out without any problem.i explained that there was no other local facility. It was Direct Line and at the time they accepted Mountain biking but I believe shortly after it was excluded. Now I am not suggesting it was my accident that caused this change of heart…..

Might it be worth checking with your insurer the particular circumstances in Morzine?

assur sport
unbelievably cheap cover for all the family for 1 year. french company really good, wont look elsewhere now

EDIT P-Jay – world nomads dont do family multitrip. Strictly for the backpacking trustafarian by the look of it

That’s a shame – they are indeed based around Gap-yah types (which is how I found them way, back when) but I’ve booked them for short trips since and they’re cracking value compared to Snow Card / Dog Tag and include proper off-road, lift assisted any genre you care to mention riding (bar actually racing).

I assume they do actually offer ‘annual cover’ in fact I know they do as I’ve bought it, but it’s for actually being away for a year and not a few weeks a year etc so it would be expensive I guess.

carl that’s fantastic! How did I never hear of it before! Perfect for us.
Thanks

Fixed price €105 for the family all year covering: winter sports, snow insurance (alpine skiing, cross country skiing, snowboarding, freeride skiing, backcountry skiing…) and summer sports (Mountain biking, DH, hiking, trekking, canyoning) Amazing!

Only €5k med expenses but that should cover a broken arm or two.
https://www.assursport.fr/documents/garanties-en.pdf

€5k seems a bit light when most are about £1m aren’t they?

€5k worth of cover is going to leave you seriously under insured if you need to be repatriated etc or have I misunderstood?

Repatriation seems to cost £25k or so based on a quick google. I know first hand of a chat who broke a few vertibre and ended up with a £14k bill, admittedly that was in Canada but I wouldn’t fancy that without insurance to cover.

Not had to claim but I know a few that have and they have been first class. If you got Dogtag that cheap then it’s a no brainer. Ours went through the roof when we added DH and off piste cover. Yellow Jersey were ok with Abigale competing in the EWS without increasing the premiums.

yellow jersey not so good with flexibility like adding triathlon. It prob makes more sense for cycle competition.

Assur cover repatriation within the EU (lets no go there 🙂 )

@Stoner I have a mate who lives in Frenchland a lot of the time, and most people there use them..it has certainly saved me loads of money over the years..

not that it matters but I have a french address.
However if we brexit of course I will be non-eu so in future I might not be able to use it.

Stoner no, optional “carte neige” type insurance isn’t available in the summer. I have asked before.

As for your question not specifically. When I bust my knee in Sainte Foy the private ambulance I paid for, BSM hospital is State so EHIC. All costs inc repatriation where covered by my HSBC bank account travel insurance (worth noting mtb is now excluded on anything above a blue run)

TBH I would look into the local state options, the French aren’t going to pay private if they can avoid it if they bust themselves in Morzine. What is the scoop with getting a Carte Vital as a property owner ?

I have no social security No. as non-national/non resident so Carte Vital not an option.

assur seems like the best value “locals use it” kind of option for pratting around in the mountains.

book marked

Each time we went to Alps We used Dogtag, but you must declare that you are “downhill mountain biking” not just riding bikes, there were cheaper options but they all skimped on cover somewhere. My friend broke his patella and messed up the ligaments in his knee and Dogtag had faxed across confirmation of cover by the time he had finished his initial assessment, they were really good.

They also were really good when i ended up with metal pins in my shoulder in Bolivia, gave me a cheaper number to call, and a person there that that spoke Spanish and they helped me translate with the doctors, the clinic there would not touch me, even though i was bleeding badly from sticking brake lever through leg, until they have confirmation insurance would cover and they did so straight away.

Went with virgin but didn’t use it

Friend had Dogtag and they weren’t particularly helpful. Made him jump through every hoop imaginable