Macular Degeneration Travel Insurance

In the last 12 months, you have not been referred to a specialist due to worsening or destabilisation of the condition.

You have not ever had any hospital admissions in relation to the condition.

If the above statement and restrictions do not apply to you or you have any other medical conditions, you can get a quote and policy by following this link:

GET A QUOTE

• Cover Highlights
• Summary of Cover
• Dry or Wet AMD?
• Planning Your Trip Around Eye Injections
• Sudden Changes to Your Vision Abroad
• Getting Help at the Airport
• What to Pack
• Does It Affect Sports and Activities?
• Driving Abroad
• Macular Degeneration and Other Conditions
• Useful Websites

Emergency medical expenses abroad - up to £5 million, including urgent eye treatment, with repatriation to the UK where medically necessary.

Cancellation - £7,500 per person on Platinum and £3,000 on Gold, where a doctor confirms you are not fit to travel.

Spectacles and sunglasses - covered under personal baggage, subject to the single article limit and a deduction for wear and tear.

24 Hour Emergency Assistance Line - +44 (0)1444 465 579, any time, anywhere.

*Excess payables vary depending on the claim benefit.

Please read the Policy Wording for the complete list of Benefits.

Healix Insurance Services Ltd, on behalf of Hamilton Insurance DAC, arranges this Travel Insurance policy for Jade Stanley Ltd. Healix Insurance Ltd is registered in England and Wales under No. 5484190 and authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority under No. 437248. Hamilton Insurance DAC is registered in Ireland, No. 484148, authorised by the Central Bank of Ireland, and subject to limited regulation by the Financial Conduct Authority and Prudential Regulation Authority in connection with its UK branch. Jade Stanley Ltd is registered in England and Wales under No. 03570857 and authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority under No. 306205.

Dry AMD (age-related macular degeneration) - there is no treatment for it, so nothing here applies to you.

Wet AMD on regular maintenance injections - fine. Ongoing anti-VEGF injections are routine treatment for the eye, much like any repeat medication, and do not affect the terms above.

What does matter is a specialist referral in the last 12 months because your sight changed - if your AMD has recently turned wet, or you have been referred back because it worsened, call us on 0800 043 0020. Same if you have an inherited macular condition such as Stargardt disease.

If you are having injections, the timing of your trip matters more than almost anything else on this page.

Talk to your eye clinic before you book. They can often move an appointment or adjust the interval so your trip sits neatly between injections.

Do not let a trip straddle an injection date without checking first - missed treatment can cost sight that does not come back.

Injections abroad are not covered. Planned, routine treatment sits outside the policy, and travelling in order to get treatment is excluded altogether.

Take your clinic’s number with you, along with the name of the drug you are given - useful if you do need to see anyone while you are away.

Do not wait until you are home if you notice:

Straight lines looking bent or wavy

A new dark or blank patch

A sudden drop in central vision

Get to an eye clinic, and call the 24 Hour Emergency Assistance Line on +44 (0)1444 465 579.

Book assistance when you book the flight - and at least 48 hours before travelling. It is free, and covers help through check-in, security, boarding and baggage reclaim.

Ask for the safety briefing in person - cabin crew will happily talk you through exits and controls rather than leaving you with a printed card.

Photograph your boarding pass and gate number so you can enlarge it on your phone rather than squinting at departure boards.

A magnifier - and your phone. The camera zoom makes short work of foreign menus, timetables and small print on tickets.

A bright pocket torch. Restaurants, hotel corridors and stairwells abroad are often dimmer than you would like.

Sunglasses and a brimmed hat - glare is harder work with macular degeneration, and strong sun abroad makes it worse.

Your supplements and any drops, with enough for the whole trip.

Spare glasses, and a copy of your prescription. Losing or breaking your only pair hits far harder when your sight is already reduced, and getting them replaced to prescription abroad is rarely quick.

A free GHIC for Europe from gov.uk - it works alongside your insurance, not instead of it.

Central vision goes; peripheral vision, balance and stamina do not. So anything involving a small, fast-moving object gets harder - everything else barely changes.

Golf - the swing is fine, spotting where the ball went is not. A playing partner solves it.

Swimming - barely affected. Take more care on wet edges and steps.

Walking and hiking - kerbs, steps and uneven ground are the difficulty. Poles help.

Cycling - fine on quiet lanes; potholes and signs are the problem.

Racquet and ball sports like Tennis - the hardest of the lot.

Most activities need adding to your quote - see the full Sports and Activities list.

If your macular degeneration affects both eyes, or you can no longer meet the DVLA eyesight standard, you must tell the DVLA - the Association of Optometrists sets out what that involves.

Our cover for driving abroad relies on you holding the right licence and insurance, so it is worth being certain before you hire a car.

Macular problems can also arise from diabetes (diabetic macular oedema), and both conditions are treated with the same injections. If you have diabetes as well, that is on our accepted list too and needs to meet its own terms - so check both before buying online.

Macular Society

RNIB - Anti-VEGF Treatment