Sleep Apnoea Travel Insurance

Obstructive Sleep Apnoea (OSA) results in interrupted breathing during sleep. It is caused by the muscles that control your tongue, tonsils and soft palate relaxing and collapsing inwards during sleep. This restricts or completely blocks the airway in the throat. This triggers your brain to wake you from deep sleep so your airway opens and normal breathing resumes. The repeated interruptions to sleep can make the sufferer feel extremely tired.

Untreated, OSA increases the risk of high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke, obesity and type 2 diabetes. There are as many types of insurance policy as there are health problems and fortunately sleep apnoea travel insurance is possible to find at reasonable prices.

Sleep Apnoea sufferers can find suitable insurance whether they suffer from a mild or a more severe form of the condition.

Do I need to declare I have Sleep Apnoea?

We would not suggest travelling without adequate travel insurance for any pre-existing medical condition - even when a condition is mild. It is better to have mentioned it to the insurer and find you do not need to pay any additional premium than find you are not covered in an emergency.

Sleep apnoea is relatively common but often goes undiagnosed. The NHS estimate that up to 5% of adults have undiagnosed sleep apnoea. However, if you have been diagnosed with sleep apnoea you should declare the condition to your insurer. If you have a claim on your insurance, your insurer may check your medical history with your doctor. Any discrepancy between what you have declared and your medical history could result in a delay before your claim is accepted. If your insurer considers the root cause of your medical problem was your sleep apnoea, you may not be covered and face significant medical costs. Medical costs abroad can be very expensive and without adequate insurance cover you can end up facing financial ruin if you suffer from a health-related problem while abroad.

We have listed some of the companies on the left which will cover your condition, including some who do not load premiums for sleep apnoea at all, although this may be dependent on other factors such as age and medical history.

Benefits of Sleep Apnoea Travel Insurance

The main benefit of this type of insurance is that it allows travellers with Sleep Apnoea to go abroad with peace of mind and without having to worry about extra medical costs in case something happens. With this service, Sleep Apnoea holidaymakers are free to enjoy themselves as any other person on holiday does.

If possible, try to use the same company to provide travel insurance for the whole party. If you have separate travel insurance policies and have to cancel because your travelling companion with Sleep Apnoea had to cancel, your travel insurance company may not pay out. If you are in this situation and are unable to get cover on the same policy discuss this with all travel insurers involved.

What are the requirements for Sleep Apnoea Travel Insurance?

In order to make an accurate assessment of your risk, an insurance company will ask for your medical history in order to tailor the insurance to your specific case. Typical questions are the following:

• Are you awaiting treatment (including surgery), specialist referral, investigations or results of tests?
• Do you use a CPAP machine when you sleep?
• When were you last admitted overnight to hospital for this or a related medical condition?
• How many hospital admissions have you had for this in the last year?
• How would you describe your weight?
• Have you ever been a smoker / how long ago did you stop?

The price you pay for travel insurance with Sleep Apnoea can vary widely depending on the specific type or circumstances.

Tips for finding the best Sleep Apnoea travel insurance

Something to bear in mind when looking for relevant travel insurance to cover a specific health condition is to remember that you should always tell the truth when making an application for insurance. If you do not reveal your full state of health and make a claim on your insurance at a later date, it could be invalid and you'd be left to cover full medical and repatriation costs back to the UK.

Where can I purchase Sleep Apnoea travel insurance?

Sleep Apnoea travel insurance can be purchased in many ways. You can even get a quote for pre-existing Sleep Apnoea travel insurance online or over the telephone. These days there are numerous platforms available, so purchasing travel insurance when in bad health can be solved within minutes.

This content was last reviewed on 20/12/2023