Winter sports travel insurance

Whether you’re planning a skiing holiday or a trip to Lapland, it’s important to have the right travel insurance. Winter sports travel insurance can cover you for a range of snow sports activities, including tobogganing, sleigh rides and ice-skating, as well as skiing and snowboarding. To make sure you’re covered for all activities, consider a more comprehensive winter sports insurance policy.

Winter sports insurance is typically an add-on to standard travel insurance that offers more comprehensive cover for holidaymakers heading off to play in the snow. It’s specifically designed to cover a range of alpine activities. As well as lost, damaged or stolen luggage, medical costs cancellations and delays, it can also offer cover for:

• Loss of ski pass

• Loss, theft or damage

  to equipment

• Delays caused by an avalanche

• Piste closure for more than 24 hours

• Alternative equipment hire if your luggage is delayed or misplaced on the outward journey

• Personal liability if you injure someone else.

You should check your policy for a list of all activities covered, as terms and conditions can vary significantly among insurance providers.

If you plan to go off-piste or take part in particularly high-risk activities, like winter mountaineering or ice climbing, you’ll likely need specialist standalone winter sports insurance.

A good winter sport holiday insurance policy will typically cover a range of winter sports including:

• Skiing (on-piste)

• Snowboarding (on-piste)

• Cross-country or Nordic skiing (on managed tracks)

• Tobogganing

• Ice-skating

• Snowmobiling

• Dog-sledding

• Sleigh rides.

All winter sports can be considered fairly high-risk because snow, ice and altitude increase the chances of injury. Even something as low-key as a reindeer sleigh ride on a trip to Lapland may not be covered by a standard travel insurance policy.

Remember to check your policy for a full list of sports and activities covered. If your chosen winter sport isn’t listed, you might need to pay more for the extra cover.

If you’re into more extreme winter sports, you may need to pay for extra cover or find a specialist insurance provider to give you the right level of protection.

Extreme winter sports typically include:

• Off-piste skiing and snowboarding

• Glacier climbing

• Snowkiting

• Heliskiing

• Winter mountaineering

• Competitive skiing and snowboarding.

Some insurance providers will require you to wear a helmet while taking part in winter sports, otherwise your policy will be invalid.

And insurance providers will typically refuse to pay out if an accident happens while you’re under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

The cost of travel insurance with winter sports will vary depending on your circumstances. To calculate the cost of your policy, travel insurance providers will consider:

• Your age

• Where you’re travelling to

• How long you’ll be away

• How much cover you want for cancellation and luggage

• Any pre-existing medical conditions.

Worldwide policies are usually more expensive than insurance for Europe, as medical treatment costs more in countries such as the USA and Canada.

It’s important to remember that cheap winter sports insurance isn’t necessarily the best choice for your trip. You need to make sure you’re properly covered. But whether you’re snowboarding or sleigh riding, we’ll compare great deals to help you find the right travel insurance for your winter adventure.

If you have a serious health condition, your travel insurance is likely to be more expensive. Whatever happens, tell your insurance provider the truth. If you give false information or miss something out, your claim could be rejected.

When you declare any medical conditions on our website, we’ll only show you quotes from insurance providers that will cover them with no exclusions.

If your condition is more serious, MoneyHelper has a directory of insurance providers who may be able to provide quotes over the phone. You can call them on 0800 138 7777.

A valid Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) or European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) will cover emergency medical treatment in local public hospitals in EU countries. But it isn’t a replacement for adequate winter sports travel insurance. It should be used in addition to your winter holiday travel insurance, not instead of it.

Without winter sports travel insurance, you won’t be covered for:

• Mountain rescues

• Private healthcare treatment

• Repatriation if you need to be flown home.

It also won’t cover you if you need to cancel your trip or if you lose your ski pass or your (very expensive) ski equipment.

Some travel insurance providers will insist you have a GHIC or EHIC with you when you travel in the EU. So make sure yours is valid or apply for a new one if you’re travelling to a winter resort in an EU country.

If you have an EHIC issued before the end of 2020, it will still be valid until the expiry date. If you don’t have an EHIC or once your EHIC expires, you can apply for a GHIC on the NHS website.

Your GHIC or EHIC won’t cover you in non-EU countries, including Liechtenstein, Norway or Iceland, so if you’re hitting the slopes there, make sure you have winter sports travel insurance with adequate healthcare cover.

Winter sports are exhilarating, but they can also be dangerous.

Follow our top tips to stay safe:

• Wear protective gear – many insurance policies require you to wear a helmet on the slopes. You should also wear goggles and sunblock to protect your eyes and face from the sun, which can be deceptively strong at altitude.

• Check weather reports – snow reports, weather forecasts and avalanche risk levels are available at resort lift stations.

• Know your limits – familiarise yourself with how pistes are rated for difficulty. That way you won’t go beyond your level of ability.

• Let others know your plans – that way if something does go wrong, someone will know where you are and can alert the authorities.

• Be drink aware– drinking alcohol at altitude will affect you more quickly than normal and could endanger you and those around you. And you won’t be covered by insurance if you have an accident under the influence.

We can help you compare winter sports insurance quickly and easily so you can find the right level of protection to suit you. You don’t need any documents to get a quote. We’ll just ask some basic questions, including:

• Where are you going?

• When are you going?

• Do you want any add-ons?

• How many people do you want to insure?

• How much are you willing to pay towards a claim (the excess)?

• How much baggage cover do you need?

• What would your medical cover limit be?

• How much are you willing to pay for cancellation cover?

• Do you have any pre-existing medical conditions?

Don’t hit the slopes without the right winter sports insurance for your alpine adventure. Compare the options in just 6 minutes ^[1].