Marooned in Moutiers and feeling powerless.

GTI junior took a jump badly in Courcheval and compressed a vertebra. Off to the hospital in Moutiers, which is full of miserable lonely depressed skiers languishing with broken limbs and backs.

He’s been fitted with a back brace and we are now free to travel. The insurance co, Essential Travel, have been excellent and really efficient and on the ball but now the dossier has been passed to whoever is the travel agent working for them and now…. nothing is happening.

Anybody been in this situation recently and got any suggestions for finding out who are the travel agents and putting some pressure on them? I feel powerless because in my job I would just ring somebody up and tell them to get on with the job, sharpish

I feel powerless because in my job I would just ring somebody up and tell them to get on with the job, sharpish

Oooh, Hark at her!

Thanks for the helpful comment mate! Got kids? I guess not.

Sorry to hear…healing vibes for the wee un!

Soz no advice,good luck with everything!

If you had been my other half you would have obtained contact details for the travel agent’s representative from Essential Travel when they informed you that they had handed the dossier over..

If you were me you would now be calling Essential Travel and sheepishly explaining that you just weren’t organised enough to obtain a contact number and you’d like to rectify that immediately please..

Got kids?

Yes sweety I do, well actually mine are children not goats.

You’re right. I plan to do that tomorrow morning.

One point worth noting is that we’ve met a few British skiers who have taken out insurance with companies whose call centres are in India or Poland. One man who had American Express insurance has gone through a nightmare NINE days dealing with their Indian call centre trying to get a flight home. Always ring a prospective insurer and find out where their call centre is.

How u getting on?

So junior is mobile and there’s a train station just down the road. Walk to the hospital reception and ask for the phone number of the taxi company. Call a taxi and take it to the station. Buy two tickets for Paris. In Paris take another Taxi to Gare du Nord. Buy Eurostar tickets and travel to London. I’m sure you’ll find your own way home from there.

Argue with the insurance/travel companies from the comfort of your own home if they don’t like your solution. When Madame was injured in Spain I just paid for a taxi back home to France. The insurance company coughed up no problem as my solution was clearly the best for Madame and cheaper than anything they would have organised for us.

thats the kinda line i would take in the same situation…a mate ruptured a kidney skiing and had to spend another 3 weeks in the alps before coming home.the insurance co he used was awesome and kept him fed/watered…he only had to pay for early treatment when being admitted.hes an aneathesist not sure if that helped or not but i guess it would have been handy.. 😯

I would take as much care in a French medical institution as possible, rather than return to have to deal with the NHS.

More sensible, more useful and less political response: make your own travel plans and claim cost back. Rather than sitting around at the mercy of others. Take care of your family, money matters not.

Hope you get it sorted. Just come home from a hospitalisation in Azerbaïdjan myself.

Do not do this ^!

Insurance companies only cover pre-approved spending so they would be well within their rights to not cover these costs, adding even more hassle to the situation.

Get back on to the assistance company and get them moving. If they aren’t pulling their weight, get back to the claims dept and explain what’s not happening.

Legend – ex-Direct Line travel insurance monkey

Do not do this ^!

So how long should they sit around waiting? A day (hopefully this was sorted yesterday and all our posts are futile)? a week? a month? At some point you have decide to sort yourself out and argue about it later. For me, that’s from the outset as I don’t insure with Direct Line and I’ve found that despite “pre-approved” contract clauses insurance companies honour reasonable, justified claims made for expenses following accidents. I don’t suppose even Direct Line expect you to phone from the pistes before letting the pisteurs put you in a barquette for the 90e ride down the hill.

Personally I would be usimng my time to repatriate myself and child, by phone insurance company and agent – and not posting on a bulleten board TBH …

When wifey did here knee badly in Chamonix, the services wete really helpful – but you do have to do some work yourself. It’s not likes it’s a limo service.

So how long should they sit around waiting?
For me, that’s from the outset as I don’t insure with Direct Line and I’ve found that despite “pre-approved” contract clauses insurance companies honour reasonable, justified claims made for expenses following accidents. I don’t suppose even Direct Line expect you to phone from the pistes before letting the pisteurs put you in a barquette for the 90e ride down the hill.

Who said anything about waiting? I said get on the phone to the people who should be doing the work.

Obviously emergency expenses aren’t an issue as that would be plain retarded (although other insurers have tried this in the past, generally doesn’t go well, for anyone involved). Indeed insurers often will cover sensible expenditure, but it’s still an extra risk. Dealing with the Assistance Company is the way to go as (if they are worth their salt) they will usually give you an immediate nod or sort something on your behalf.

The OPs situation sounds a bit odd, only mentioning the Insurer and a travel agent. Assuming there’s an assistance company in there too, that’s who I’d be getting to work.

FWIW I couldn’t give a rat’s about DL. it was many, many moons ago that I worked there, but have found their way of doing things comparable to other companies that I’ve used (but their prices too high and the levels of cover unsuitable for what I need)

I worked in meribel for a couple of years…..me and my now wife discovered she was pregnant in that there moutiers hospital………I did discover moutiers has the highest suicide rate in France.

Doesn’t help but….