If things go wrong on holiday: how to claim back or avoid some of the costs

Get a Ghic card, use the flight compensation scheme, or claim refunds via your credit card provider

The UK Global Health Insurance Card is not actually global – it just covers the European Economic Area (EEA) and a handful of other countries including Montenegro, Switzerland and, surprisingly, Australia. It gives you access to the state healthcare that a resident of that country would receive, so not everything may be free. It doesn’t help you get home if you are sick or injured, so does not replace travel insurance, but it is worth having for emergencies. And some travel insurers insist you have one. Luckily, Ghics are free – apply via the NHS website and don’t fall for services that try to charge you. You need to apply for each family member and take the cards with you. They last five years. HO