There are so many medical insurances in Canada for instance, there is Super Visa Insurance, destination Canada insurance, Insurance for Critical Illness, Disability Insurance etc. Therefore, the additional travel and visitors insurance can understandably get pretty confusing. To assist you with your insurance selection, here are the five most common insurance problems in Canada and their solutions.
1. Moving to another Canadian Province
If you are already a Canadian resident and thinking about moving to another province, then private insurance might be something you are after. A Private Insurance Plan is curated to supplement your plan during the waiting period.
Before the insurance plan of the province that you are shifting to starts off, there are agreements between the provinces to provide you with temporary coverage. However, there are a few issues that you can face. First off, there is no direct billing involved, therefore, you would first have to pay the bills yourself and later on wait for reimbursement. In addition, submitting your claim you there is a lot of paperwork involved. Therefore you are expected to wait for very long to receive your money, the time period usually lasts for several months.
As a result of the internal guidelines of their provincial standards, after your transfer, your previous province will only cover the minimum. Therefore, the previous province of yours will only cover a small portion of your billing. The new province will also have different standards, which might charge you a lot more.
In order to protect yourself from going through a financial dilemma during your transition, you should purchase private insurance. Doing so will help you to claim faster and with fewer hurdles. It will also cover the shortfalls your previous province couldn’t.
2. The coverage gap
When you are immigrating to Canada or returning to Canada after a long period of time, you are likely to wait for several months before the provincial insurance could kick in. That’s why you need to be mentally and financially prepared.
3. Reviewing the wording of the policy
Mostly all Insurance plans contain similar policies and provisions, but if your circumstances are slightly unusual then it is vital to take a closer look. Even if your circumstances are very common, you still need to make sure you miss no word before you buy the plan.
There are times that your condition does not permit you to purchase the plan at all. For instance, if you have a specific medical condition, you should check the eligibility criteria, as some companies exclude some of the medical conditions from their coverage.
Irrespective to what your case is, you will be required to have a stable condition before the insurance companies agree to cover your expenses. Furthermore, if you find out that you are eligible for a plan, then make sure you meet their stability criteria, which last for 4 months to six months before your arrival. Also, make sure you review the definition of the stable with a trustable insurance advisor.
Always check out the exclusions in your policy. If you happen to be a sports enthusiast, you must make sure the policy is covering the activities you are most interested in. Recreational sports are usually part of most plans- unless it is professional or extreme.
4. Travelling abroad
Whether you need to leave Canada to study abroad or whether it is a long term journey, you should consult with the provincial plan to extend the duration of your coverage during your absence, or at least most of it. Always keep in mind that the travel insurance is only an addition to your provincial plan, otherwise your travel coverage is void. In case your provincial coverage expires, you should check international insurance options that do not require you to have provincial coverage.
5. Keep updating the insurance company
Always immediately notify the claim center, whenever you need to claim. Insurance companies always need to be updated about your situation, therefore it is your job to inform them all the time.
