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Visitor medical insurance cancellation FAQ
Please note that these general FAQs apply only to those plans that have any refund under limited circumstances.
If the policy is not refundable (either after the purchase, or after the effective date of the policy), there
is no refund even in any circumstances described below.
Q:
I bought the insurance for my father for 6 months. He was in the U.S. for the entire 6 months.
We didn't file any claim (we didn't use the insurance). Can I get a refund?
A:
No. Refund, if any, after the effective date of the insurance, is made only in case
of early departure or early termination. If you kept the insurance for the entire duration,
the insurance company carried the risk for the entire duration and therefore, the premium is considered
fully earned. In other words, you have fully used your insurance and there is no refund. As long
as you are insured, it is considered that you have continuously used the insurance and using the insurance does not mean going
to the doctor/hospital or making a claim.
You want the insurance company to pay lots of money if you get sick or injured. And if you don't, you
want the insurance company to refund your premium. From where will the insurance company get all the money
to pay the claims and make any profit if they returned everyone's money who didn't claim?
If you have a car insurance for years and if you don't get into an accident, you don't get the refund
of all your money. Visitors insurance works the same way.
Q:
I bought the insurance for my father for 6 months. The refund policy says "As long as no claims
have been made since the effective date, you will get a refund for the pro-rated duration minus $25 cancellation
fee". I made a claim in the first month. My father is leaving after staying in the U.S. for a total
of 4 months. As I will not be making a claim in the last 2 months he is not here, can I get the refund
for the last 2 months?
A:
No. As long as any claims have been submitted since the original effective date (that is, first day
out of those 6 months your father was insured), there is no refund.
Q:
I bought insurance for 2 months and subsequently extended for 4 months. I had a claim in the first 1 month.
Now, my father is going back in 2 months.
However, I had no claims since the effective date of the 4-month extension period.
Can I get the refund for 4 months?
A:
No. When you extend the policy, everything carries over and it is considered that you have one
consecutive policy for the entire 6 months, in your case. And your effective date is when your insurance was
originally effective. Therefore, as long as the claim has been submitted
since the original effective date, there is no refund.
Q:
I bought insurance for 3 months and subsequently extended it for another 2 months. However, my father is returning home
at the end of 3 months. Therefore, I would like to cancel only the extension. Would I get the full refund for the money that I paid for extension
or would there be any cancellation fee?
A:
Many insurance plans provide full refund before the effective date. After the effective date, many plans provide pro-rated (or some other)
refund minus a cancellation fee as long as long claims have been submitted.
When you extend the insurance, the effective date for your insurance is the original effective date of the policy. Therefore, in this case,
it is considered as if you had purchased the insurance for the entire 5 months. (This works to your advantage when there is a claim because
everything will be looked at according to the original effective date and that is the advantage of buying the renewable insurance rather than
repurchasing the insurance or purchasing the one that is not renewable.)
When you extend the insurance, you get the same certificate and
that is your proof that you are extending the policy and not repurchasing the policy. (Even if your new insurance card says the new effective date,
the insurance company's system keeps track of your original effective date, from the same certificate number.)
As you are cancelling the insurance after the original effective date, you will be charged a cancellation fee.
Q:
I bought insurance for my father for 6 months. He fell sick and had to go to a doctor and the doctor billed
directly and the insurance company paid directly to him. I didn't make any claim myself. He is now leaving
2 months early. Can I get a refund?
A:
No.
Even if the doctor billed directly and the insurance company paid directly to him, it is still considered
a claim. The doctor filed a claim on your behalf. Therefore, there is no refund.
Q:
I bought insurance for my father for 6 months. We filed a claim and the claim was denied due to
pre-existing conditions. He is now leaving
2 months early. Can I get a refund?
A:
No. As long as the claim has been submitted, there is no refund.
Q:
I bought insurance for my father for 6 months. We filed a claim and the claim of $200 was considered
an eligible expense. However, my deductible was $250 and therefore, all $200 that the insurance company
agreed to pay went towards the deductible. Therefore, the insurance company effectively didn't pay anything.
He is now leaving 2 months early. Can I get a refund?
A:
No. As long as the claim has been submitted, there is no refund.
Q:
I bought one policy for both my parents together. Both of them are leaving early. My father had a claim
but my mother didn't. Can I get the refund for unused duration for my father?
A:
If you applied for both of your parents in one application, the entire policy has a claim and therefore there
is no refund for your mother, even if she didn't have any claim. Therefore, we recommend everyone to make
separate applications to avoid any such issues.
Q:
What exactly do you mean by a claim has been submitted?
A:
Submission of a claim means demanding money for medical expenses or any other benefits in the insurance,
either directly by you or by a provider.
As long as you filed any claim form yourself or you went to the provider and showed the insurance card
to them (who in turn filed claim with the insurance company), the claim is considered submitted.
A claim does not occur only when you or the provider are paid any money. That is actually the payment of the
claim.
Important disclaimer:
Please note that due care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of the information provided here.
However, we make no guarantee of the accuracy of these answers.
We will not be liable in any case, for any problem
arising out of relying on this information.
If there is any discrepancy between this information and
the actual policy details, the policy details will override this information.
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