Unless you meet the criteria below, hip & knee replacement is considered a pre-existing medical condition. This doesn’t necessarily mean you can’t get travel insurance, but you’ll need to disclose your condition when you’re booking your travel insurance.
Please note, there’s a possibility we might not be able to cover you at all, but we will tell you this after you have disclosed your condition and we have made an assessment.
The process is simple and quick. You don’t need to call us and you don’t need to provide doctor’s certificates or other documents. All you need to do is fill out a simple questionnaire when you’re purchasing a policy online.
You’ll be asked about pre-existing conditions during your online purchase and if you select ‘yes”, you’ll fill out the questionnaire. This is where we’ll ask you everything we need to know about your hip & knee replacement.
Once you’ve filled out this questionnaire, you’ll immediately find out your travel insurance options.
What is a knee replacement?
Knee replacement surgeries are usually undertaken by people who suffer from severe arthritis of the knee that continues to affect their day to day activities despite ongoing treatment to relieve pain.
What is a hip replacement?
Similarly, a hip replacement surgery is a procedure which replaces a painful hip joint affected by arthritis with an artificial joint. If someone has exhausted all other treatment options, they may choose to have a hip replacement surgery to relieve hip joint pain.
Travelling requires a degree of mobility, so you should make sure you’ve taken all the necessary steps to keep yourself safe and healthy on your trip.
Please note, the below is general advice only is not intended to replace the advice or information from a registered body or your doctor.
If we are unable to provide cover for your hip and/or knee replacement but are still able to offer you a policy, there are many other benefits we can offer, including medical cover for other unforeseen injuries or illness, cancellation fees and lost deposits, or coverage for lost luggage and personal effects.
If you’re travelling with someone and they’re named on the policy, you will need to make sure that, where necessary, their medical conditions are declared. For adult travel companions, you’ll need to declare their condition if you have their permission to do so and are aware of their health and medical conditions. If you don’t have permission, they will need to do it themselves.
If you meet the criteria for automatic coverage (see the top of this page), you won’t need to disclose your hip or knee replacement.
A pre-existing condition could be anything that is chronic or ongoing, or that you take regular medication for. Visit our pre-existing medical conditions page for our full definition.
Travel insurance provides cover for a wide range of scenarios. While we might not always be able to cover your hip & knee replacement, we could still offer cover for other unforeseen injuries or illnesses, such as luggage & personal effects, cancellation fees & lost deposits, and family emergency.
If you don’t take out travel insurance you will be liable to pay all expenses that you incur when the unforeseen happens.
If you’re sick or injured, we advise that you or a member of your travelling party call our medical assistance team as soon as possible. Our medical team will liaise with the treating hospital, and if you are covered, may provide written guarantees of payment for reasonable expenses (subject to your claim being approved). If you are covered and approved for medical evacuation, they will arrange this, if it’s deemed necessary.
For minor ailments, such as those that only require a GP visit, you may choose to visit a doctor, pay for your visit upfront, and then submit your claim either from overseas or once you return home. Make sure that you keep all receipts and reports from your treating doctor, including the diagnosis and treatment notes and any other documents.
If your total cost of treatment will exceed $1,000 you MUST contact our medical assistance team as soon as possible.
If you are still uncertain about what to do in relation to an injury or illness, please contact our medical assistance team for further advice.
Cover for joint replacements on a Frequent Traveller policy works in the same way as single trip policies. You will need to complete a medical assessment to determine if we can offer the cover for your condition when you apply for a quote
If you’re need to get a hip or knee replacement part way through your Frequent Traveller policy, your new condition will be considering a pre-existing condition for the remainder of your policy.
If you have other pre-existing medical conditions that are not on our automatically covered list, then you will need to disclose them by completing a medical assessment when you purchase your policy.
You should make sure that you declare your condition, because if a claim arises related to an non-disclosed condition, you generally won't have a provision to claim under your policy.
If you forgot to disclose your condition and your policy has not started, we may be able to add it. You can call our Customer Care Team to carry out an assessment for your condition.
Please be aware that depending on the outcome of the assessment you may need to pay an additional premium. We cannot guarantee that we will be able to cover your condition even after you have declared it on an existing policy.
All terms, conditions and limitations will apply in the same way as if you had declared the condition when you purchased the policy.
A pre-existing medical condition is something that must be disclosed when you’re purchasing travel insurance. Find out what they are and how they affect your travel insurance.
You or someone you’re travelling with is going to have a baby…so you’ll need to find out how travel insurance works for pregnant women.
Repatriation is the process of returning a person home after a medical emergency or at worst case death. Being covered for repatriation, so read the ins and outs.
It’s important that you have all the right vaccinations before you travel. From malaria to meningococcal, find out what you need to know about vaccinations and travel insurance.
Health New Zealand has handy resources for anyone who has a hip or knee replacement. They have general information, but also link through to many organisations who could help with any questions you have.
The risks of Deep Vein Thrombosis are higher for people with hip and knee replacements. Inform yourself of the risks and strategies before you take a long-haul flight.
IAMAT are a non-profit organization who help travellers plan a healthy trip, and connect travellers with reputable English-speaking doctors. They are a useful point of contact for anyone travelling with a health condition.
Air New Zealand has a special section all about travelling while pregnant. This includes medical clearance, when and how long yuou can fly, and more.
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