THE VIRGIN MONEY TRAVEL ASSISTANT

Transcription

1 THE VIRGIN MONEY TRAVEL ASSISTANT Virgin Money Travel Assistant is a helpline service that helps You sort out all kinds of travel problems before You travel and whilst You are away. You can obtain a wide range of travel advice, from information on visas and inoculations to sorting out emergencies overseas. Please do not call this number for policy queries or changes. The Virgin Money Travel Assistant helpline service is available 24 hours a day. To use the service please call from overseas. Advice before You travel Virgin Money Travel Assistant helpline service will give You advice on any necessary vaccinations and inoculation requirements and where You can get them done. While travelling Your Virgin Money Travel Assistant arranges access to the following services while You are away on a Trip: Medical Referral Our emergency assistance provider will endeavour to arrange for medical attention and hospitalisation if necessary. Medical Monitoring Our emergency assistance provider will endeavour to provide continued medical monitoring of Your condition if necessary. Emergency Medicine If special medicines are not available locally, Our emergency assistance provider will endeavour to assist You with obtaining and despatching these medicines. Evacuation When medical facilities are not available locally, Our emergency assistance provider will endeavour to arrange emergency evacuation under the constant medical supervision by whatever means necessary to the nearest facility capable of providing the required care. Repatriation In the event of Your repatriation home, Our emergency assistance provider will endeavour to make all necessary arrangements Return of Mortal Remains In the event of death, Our emergency assistance provider will endeavour to assist You to obtain clearances and arrangements for the return of the remains. Transmission of Urgent Messages Our emergency assistance provider will endeavour to transmit urgent messages on behalf of or to You in the event of a medical or travel problem. Embassy Referral Our emergency assistance provider will endeavour to provide You with relevant details of diplomatic representatives wherever possible. Emergency Travel and Accommodation Requirements Our emergency assistance provider will endeavour to provide all reasonable, possible and practical assistance in arranging for emergency alternative accommodation and onward or return transportation if necessary. Legal Assistance Our emergency assistance provider will endeavour to locate a source of legal counsel and if necessary as advance of funds for bail. The bail funds or bonds are Your responsibility.

2 Bail Our emergency assistance provider will endeavour to assist with the posting of bail on Your behalf from funds provided by Your representative for this purpose, subject to foreign exchange approval. Loss of travel documents Our emergency assistance provider will endeavour to provide all advice regarding the replacement of Your lost or stolen credit cards, travel and other documents required to continue with Your Trip. Cash advances When as a result of theft, loss, Injury or Illness You require funds to pay for travel and accommodation Our emergency assistance provider will advise You or Your representative on how to obtain additional funds. Our emergency assistance provider will charge an administration fee for this advice 24- Hour Worldwide Medical Emergency Assistance The cost of the Medical Emergency Assistance Service will be met under this insurance. The service will be governed by the terms, conditions and exclusions in this Travel Insurance Policy and will be operated by Our appointed Medical Emergency Assistance Provider. If You need help, please phone An experienced Medical Emergency Assistance co-ordinator will deal with Your enquiry and make sure that: Where necessary, hospitals are contacted; Necessary medical fees are guaranteed; and Medical advisers are consulted. If as a result of an Illness or Injury You need emergency medical treatment, it is very important that You contact the helpline before You make any admission arrangements. If this not possible because the condition is serious, You must contact the helpline as soon as possible after You go into hospital. If You need to return to South Africa for any reason, it is also important that You contact the helpline before You make any return Trip arrangements. If You do not contact the Medical Emergency Assistance Service helpline the most We will pay is R 2,000. What is not covered? 1. This is not a general health insurance Policy. It only covers You if there is an Accident or if You fall ill unexpectedly. It does not cover non-emergency treatment. 2. We do not cover payment, which You would normally have made during Your travels and/or which does not fall within the events insured under the terms of this Policy. Note: There may be charges for some services and You will have to pay these, together with travel costs resulting from the advice You are given. IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR POLICY This is Your Virgin Money Credit Card Travel Insurance Policy. This Policy wording and Your Policy Schedule form the contract of Insurance and give You full details of what is covered, what is not covered and the conditions of cover. Please read them carefully and keep them in a safe place and take them with You when You travel. Important information

3 Please read this information carefully: We will only cover a person named on the Public Conveyance ticket if: 1. All Public Conveyance tickets have been purchased using a valid Virgin Money Card. We have the right to utilise this Public Conveyance ticket to offset our Expenses. 2. The Trip is a round Trip, beginning and ending in South Africa, and is either: a. A Trip outside of South Africa; or b. A Trip within South Africa which includes at least 2 nights Pre-booked Holiday Accommodation. 3. His Country of Residence is South Africa or where his inbound Public Conveyance ticket has been purchased by a Virgin Money Credit Card Holder whose Country of Residence is South Africa. Only the Automatic Cover will be applicable to insured persons entering South Africa. PREMIUM PAYMENTS Virgin Money is liable for the premium on the automatic cover and You are liable for the premium on the optional cover. The premium is payable in advance and We shall not be liable for any claim arising under this Policy in respect of an Accident or Illness that occurs prior to receipt of the premium. We shall not be obliged to accept premium tendered to Us or to any intermediary after such date, but may do so upon such terms as We in Our sole discretion may determine. We reserve the right to ask for proof of payment of premium at any time. Such proof must be to Our satisfaction. PERIOD OF INSURANCE Cancellation cover under this Policy begins from the date the optional top up Policy and Policy Schedule are issued and ends at the beginning of Your Trip. Cover under all other sections applies for the duration of Your Trip, or a maximum of 90 consecutive days whichever occurs first. In addition You will also be covered for Personal Accident benefits (Section E1 24 Hours) while travelling from Home or your place of work to commence Your Trip and returning Home or your place of work following Your Trip (or to and from Your South African Trip destination), so long as each journey does not take more than 24 hours and is undertaken in a direct and timeous manner. CANCELLATION 1. Provided that no claims have been initiated by You this Policy may be cancelled at any time by giving Us written notice 15 days prior to Your intended date of departure. 2. This Policy may be cancelled by Us giving 15 days written notice if You have been in breach of any of its Terms, Conditions, Endorsements, Terminations and Exclusions in accordance with the Short Term Insurance Act of 1998, and any other subsequent legislation that may be enacted, in which case We will refund a pro-rata premium for the unexpired policy period. 3. We may cancel this Policy by sending You notice in writing to Your last known address. If the premium is paid annually in advance and the Policy is cancelled other than at the anniversary date, the Company will refund a pro-rata premium provided that no claims have been initiated.

4 TERMINATION This Policy will terminate on the earliest of the following dates: 1. the expiry date appearing in the Policy schedule unless there is as an Automatic Extension of the Period of Insurance as described elsewhere in this Policy; or 2. on the date the Master Policy is cancelled; or 3. the date on which You Return Home or 90 days from the departure date whichever occurs first; or 4. on the date You reach the maximum age for the cover selected. POLICY LIMITS Each section of Your Policy has a limit on the amount We will pay under that section. Some sections also include other specific limits, for example, for any one item or limits for Valuables. Check that Your Policy cover is adequate if You want to take Valuables away with you. 1. You will not be entitled to more than 100% of the sum insured for any Insured Event as reflected in the Schedule of Benefits. 2. If two or more policies are issued by Us and apply to the same claim, Our maximum liability will never be more than the maximum liability as stated on the Policy with the highest benefits. 3. If any claim under this Policy is covered by another policy or policies of insurance. We will only contribute our equitable share of the claim which will never exceed the maximum Limit of Liability. 4. The maximum amount payable in the event of death or Permanent total disability of a child will be 20% of the Benefit, or in respect of death that amount which is legislated at the Date of Loss, whichever is the lesser. 5. Limit any One Life: Automatic Cover: R1,000,000 Optional Cover: R5,000,000 Combined: R6,000, Accumulation Limit: R5,000,000 any one Virgin Money Card. EXCESS You may have to pay an amount towards Your claim or wait for a period of time before the benefit applies. This is called the Excess and is reflected in the relevant section of Your Schedule of Benefits. REASONABLE CARE You need to take reasonable care to protect Yourself and Your property, as You would if You were not insured. USE OF LANGUAGE Unless otherwise agreed the contractual terms and condition and other information relating to this contract will be in Afrikaans or English, words in the singular include the plural and vice versa. Words in the masculine gender shall include the female gender. AUTOMATIC EXTENSION OF THE PERIOD OF INSURANCE If You cannot return Home before Your cover ends, Your Policy will remain in force at no extra cost to You for: 1. Up to 14 days if any Public Conveyance operating on land, air or water in which You are travelling as a fare-paying passenger is delayed; or

5 2. Up to 30 days if You cannot return Home due to Your Illness, Injury or quarantine. We will also continue to pay for medical treatment under Section B - Emergency Medical and Associated Expenses for the automatic extension period or any further period that is considered medically necessary by Our Medical Emergency Assistance Provider. This Policy will not apply to events that occur once You have returned from Your Trip other than reflected under the Period of Insurance. DEFINITIONS The following words or phrases have the following meanings wherever they appear in this Policy wording: Abandon/ Abandonment means You have to return to your Home before the scheduled return date or You are an In-patient during Your Trip (providing You are an in-patient for more than 24 hours). Accident means a sudden, unexpected and specific event which occurs at an identifiable time and place resulting in Injury. Accumulation Limit (if applicable) means the maximum We will pay in respect of any one Accident arising from one source or cause during a Trip. Children means Your dependent children (from the age of 3 months) who are not in full-time employment or married and are under the age of 21 years or under the age of 25 provided they are in full time students education. Close Business Associate means someone You work with in South Africa who has to be at work in order for You to be able to go on or continue a Trip, and who is under the age of 75 years. Country of Residence means the country where You are a resident or permanent resident and in which country You are entitled to resident health care or medical aid. It also means the country You would like Us to return You to if repatriation is required. Date of Loss: a) for Illness, the first date of diagnosis or the date You first became aware of the Illness whichever occurs first; b) for Injury the date of the Accident; c) for all other sections the date of the Insured Event. Effective Date of Cover means: a. For cancellation, the date the optional top up cover is purchased; b. For all other sections of cover, the date of departure. Excess means the amount You will have to pay towards any claim or any time period before a claim is valid. This applies to each of Your claims, per section, if applicable. Family Member means Your Spouse, parent, legal guardian, step parent, grandparent, grandchild, in-law (son, daughter or parent), natural or adopted child, brother, sister, step brother or step sister. Foot means the entire foot below the ankle. Hand means the entire hand below the wrist. Home means Your home address in South Africa. Illness means any unexpected or sudden sickness or disease contracted, commencing or manifesting for the first time during the Trip. Injury means the physical trauma caused to You as a direct result of an Accident resulting in a valid claim within 24 months of the Accident. Insured Event means an event stated in the Schedule of Benefits.

6 Medical Emergency Assistance Provider means International SOS (Pty) Ltd whom We have authorised to assist, coordinate and negotiate claims on Our behalf. Medical Practitioner means a person registered with a current, legal licence to practise medicine, but excludes You or a member of Your immediate Family. Permanent means the condition that has lasted for at least 24 consecutive months and at the end of that period there is no hope of improvement. Permanent and Total Loss means in reference to a hand or foot the loss by physical severance or the Permanent and Total Loss of use of said member. Permanent Total Disablement means total and absolute disablement which entirely prevents You from engaging in or giving attention to Your usual or any occupation for which You are qualified or have received specialised training and which will in all probability be lasting for Your lifetime. The diagnosis and determination of the Permanent Total Disablement must be made by a Medical Practitioner and must be continuous and permanent for at least 24 consecutive months from the onset of the disablement. Policy means the Master Policy Number VMTI issued in the name of Virgin Money and underwritten by Absa Insurance Company Limited. Pre-Booked Holiday Accommodation means commercially run premises where a fee is charged which has been booked prior to the departure of Your Trip (not including residential homes belonging to Family Members or friends). Public Conveyance means a scheduled or chartered conveyance operating on land, air or water and licensed to carry passengers for hire in which You are travelling as a fare-paying passenger but excluding any taxis, motorcycles, hired motor vehicles and any single engine aircraft. Schedule of Benefits means the sections of cover applicable to Your Policy. Spouse means the husband, wife, partner in a same sex partnership or any de facto partner with whom You have permanently and continuously lived in the same household in a relationship which is not casual or impermanent for a period longer than six consecutive months. Only one Spouse shall be eligible for cover at a time. Terrorism means an act, including but not limited to the use of force or violence and/or the threat thereof, of any person or group of persons, whether acting alone or on behalf of or in connection with any organisation or government, committed for political, religious, ideological or similar purposes or reasons including the intention to influence any government and/or to put the public, or any section of the public, in fear. Total Loss of Hearing means the total and irreversible loss of hearing of all sounds confirmed by medical evidence relying on audio-metric and sound threshold tests. Total Loss of Sight means the total and irreversible loss of sight which will be deemed to have occurred if the degree of sight remaining after correction is 3/60 or less on the Snellen Scale. Total Loss of Speech means the total irreversible loss of the ability to speak or the inability to make a comprehensible verbal language. Medical evidence shall confirm Injury to the vocal cords. All psychiatric causes are excluded. Total Paralysis means the complete and permanent loss of use of both arms or both legs, or one arm and one leg through paralysis. Total Permanent and incurable insanity means You have been diagnosed as permanently and incurably insane according to the usual and customary standards of the Medical Profession. This is provided that two Medical

7 Practitioners, one of whom shall be the attending Medical Practitioner, have personally examined You and concur in their medical opinion that You are permanently and incurable of unsound mind and incapable of managing Your own affairs. Their written statement to this effect shall be signed by them in the presence of two identifiable witnesses who are not related to You by blood or marriage and who would not be entitled to any portion of Your estate. Neither witness may be an employee of the attending Medical Practitioner or the health facility in which You are a patient or any person who has a claim against any portion of Your estate. The permanent and incurable insanity must have resulted directly from Injury. Traumatic Event means a violent criminal act or attempt where such violence is intended or made to overpower or subdue. Travelling Companion means the person who is sharing travel and accommodation arrangements with You without whom such a Trip would not be possible and who is also insured with Us. Trip means a trip commencing when You go through passport control from within Your Country of Residence and continues for a period of 90 consecutive days from the date of Your embarkation or until You enter passport control on Your arrival back in Your Country of Residence, whichever occurs first. In respect of a local Trip, the Trip commences when You board a Public Conveyance to travel for more than 100 kilometres from Your point of embarkation within South Africa. Cover extends for a maximum period of 90 consecutive days from Your date of embarkation or until You return to Your original point of embarkation, whichever occurs first and You must have two nights pre-booked holiday accommodation. Unattended means when You are not in full view of or in a position to prevent the unauthorised taking of Your property unless it is in a locked room, safe, in a locked boot of a locked vehicle or in the luggage space of a locked estate car or locked hatchback under a top cover and out of view. Valuables means Jewellery, antiques, gold, silver, precious metal or precious stone items, watches, furs, binoculars, telescopes, game consoles and equipment, mobile phones and audio, audio visual, photographic, video camera, computer and television equipment. War means war, whether declared or not, or any warlike activities (including use of military force) by any sovereign nation to achieve economic, geographic, nationalistic, political, racial, religious, or other ends. We, Us, Our, Insurer means Absa Insurance Company Limited Reg. no 1992/001737/06. You, Your means the Virgin Money Credit Card Holder and/or person named on the Public Conveyance ticket whose Trip has been debited in full, to a valid Virgin Money Credit Card. This includes reference to the insured person. YOUR COVER SECTION A CANCELLATION We will cover You for the loss of deposits or the costs incurred to cancel Your Trip including: 1. Your unused travel and accommodation costs which You have paid or legally have to pay and cannot recover; and 2. Unused kennel or cattery fees up to R 2,000 which You have paid or legally have to pay and cannot recover.

8 If, after the date of booking Your Trip and taking out the optional top up Policy, You unavoidably have to cancel Your Trip for one of the reasons below: 1. You, Your Spouse, a Close Business Associate, a Family Member or any person You were going to stay with is injured, falls ill, is quarantined or dies; or 2. Cancellation or diversion of the scheduled public transport services, including strikes or other industrial actions, unless there was a media warning 24 hours before the date the particular Trip was booked; or 3. You or Your Travelling Companion are called as a witness in a court of law during the period of insurance; or 4. You, Your Spouse or Your Travelling Companion are Retrenched. This cover does not apply to self-employed people; or 5. Your Home or Your Travelling Companion s Home is badly damaged by fire, storm or flood in the seven days prior to the departure date of Your Trip; or 6. Loss or theft of travel documents, including travel tickets, passports and/or visas; or 7. A Traumatic Event occurring within 30 days of Your date of embarkation to You, Your Spouse, Children or the person abroad with whom You intended to stay, a Family Member or Close Business Associate where medical advice has been sought and You have been advised not to travel. Special Condition All claims resulting from death, Injury, Illness or quarantine must be supported by medical reports or a death certificate (or both) indicating the necessity to cancel Your Trip. Specific Definition Retrenched / Retrenchment means the termination of an employee s services where the specific job no longer exists as a consequence of a variety of possible factors including advances in technology, permanent changes in operations, processes or markets, closure of an operation or is an exercise whereby management decides to reduce the number of employees due to a downturn of the economy or poor performance but excluding: 1. Where You are the owner, or co-owner of the business exercising the Retrenchment program or where You are a director of the company where it is found that the directors were instrumental in the demise of the company; or 2. Illness or Injury; or 3. Resignation from normal occupation or voluntary retrenchment; or 4. Where the Government nationalises or takes over the business; or 5. Prior knowledge that Retrenchment would happen when the Policy was purchased; or 6. The Policy was purchased whilst the company was re-structuring. The most We will pay is up to the maximum amount shown in the Schedule of Benefits. Excess We will not pay the first R500 of each claim for cancellation. However the maximum You will have to pay is R 1,000 if two or more insured persons cancel the same Trip. For loss of deposits We will not pay the first R 100 of each claim.

9 What is not covered 1. Any cancellation claim if any of the following applied when You booked Your Trip or took out your optional top up Policy where You, Your Spouse, a Family Member, Close Business Associate or Travel Companion: a) have received advice, medication or treatment for any serious, chronic or recurring illness, Injury in the last 6 months; or b) are under investigation or awaiting results for any diagnosed or undiagnosed condition; or c) are on a waiting list for in-patient treatment or were aware of the need for inpatient treatment for any diagnosed or undiagnosed condition; or d) have been diagnosed with a terminal Illness. 2. Any claim that results from: a) any anxiety state, depression, mental, nervous or emotional disorder; or b) pregnancy or childbirth where the expected date of delivery is less than 12 weeks (16 weeks in the case of a multiple pregnancy) before Your planned return date; or 3. Any claims made because You don t feel like travelling, or due to Government prohibition; or 4. Any claim for unused travel or accommodation arranged by using Air Miles or similar promotions; or 5. You not being in possession of the required and/or valid and/or correct travel documents, visas or other required documents; or 6. Any business or employment commitment or financial or contractual obligation of Yours or any other person on whom the Trip is dependent; or 7. The inability of any tour operator or wholesaler to complete arrangements for any group or tour due to a deficiency in the required number of persons to commence any tour or travel; or 8. Default of any transport or accommodation provider, travel agency, tour operator or any person acting as Your agent; or 9. Adverse Weather conditions; or 10. Your financial circumstances or insolvency; or 11. Any claim for refund of any costs for persons not named on this Policy; or 12. Any claim for management fees, maintenance costs or exchange fees associated with time-shares and similar arrangements; or 13. Anything mentioned in the General Exclusions. SECTION B EMERGENCY MEDICAL AND ASSOCIATED EXPENSES Section B1 Emergency Medical, Medical Assistance and Related Expenses 1. In the event You are injured, fall ill, are quarantined or die during Your Trip, We will pay for the following: a) Emergency medical treatment outside of South Africa (including medical transport services to take You to hospital); b) Any reasonable extra charges for accommodation of a similar standard to the accommodation You stayed in on Your Trip if You have to extend Your Trip beyond the scheduled return date due to medical reasons. We will also pay the travel costs to get You back Home if You cannot use Your original return ticket to get Home.

10 Section B2 Medical Evacuation, Repatriation or Transport to Medical Centre Expenses 1. In the event You are injured, fall ill or are quarantined during Your Trip, Our Medical Emergency Assistance Provider may: a) Move You from one hospital to another; and/or b) Arrange for Your return to South Africa. 2. We will pay the cost of getting You Home if it is medically necessary and You cannot use Your return ticket. Our Emergency Medical Assistance Provider will arrange this if they and the treating Medical Practitioner think that it is safe for You to be moved or be returned to South Africa. If You choose not to return to South Africa Our liability will end on the date it was deemed safe for You to return. Special Conditions 1. You must phone the Medical Emergency helpline on immediately if You need medical treatment or if You need to return to South Africa. If You do not call Our Emergency Medical Assistance Provider, the most We will pay is R 2, Our Emergency Medical Assistance Provider will decide how and where to move You. The most We will pay is up to the maximum amount shown in the Schedule of Benefits. Excess 1. We will not pay the first R 2,000 of Your claim under the Automatic insurance. 2. We will not pay the first R500 of Your claim for out-patient treatment under the Optional insurance. The excess is waived for in-patient treatment if the Optional insurance is purchased. Section B3 Waiver of Pre-Existing Medical Conditions (Only applicable if additional applicable cover has been purchased and not available if You are 74 years or older). We will pay all Medical Expenses, Medical Treatment or Related Expenses, Repatriation or Transportation You may incur as a result of Injury or Illness, including Medical Expenses that are incurred whilst on a Trip due to a Pre- Existing Condition. Special Conditions You must be hospitalised as an in-patient for more than 48 hours. Special Definition Pre-Existing means any condition for which within the 12 consecutive months prior to the Effective Date of Cover of this policy, You: 1. Have consulted a Medical Practitioner; or 2. Have received treatment or advice; or 3. Have manifested symptoms which would have caused a reasonable person to seek medical advice. It also includes any condition known prior to the Effective Date of Cover that You: 1. are on the waiting list for medical treatment; or

11 2. are travelling for the purpose of obtaining medical treatment (even if this is not the sole reason for the Trip); or 3. have received a terminal prognosis; or 4. have been recommended to continue or to commence any medical treatment of medication after the Effective Date of Cover. What is not covered? 1. Any medical expenses where a Medical Practitioner has advised You not to travel due to medical reasons; or 2. Any medical expenses as a result of cardiac or cardio vascular or vascular or cerebro vascular Illness or conditions or sequelae thereof or complications that, in the opinion of a Medical Practitioner appointed by Us can reasonably be related thereto, if You have received medical advice or treatment for any of these conditions within the 12 months prior to the Effective Date of Cover on this policy, and nor for persons over the age of 70 years. Section B4 Dental Expenses We will pay for emergency dental treatment required to relieve pain and/or restore dental function, provided by a registered and qualified dentist up to the amount stated in the Schedule of Benefits. Where dentistry is required as a result of Injury, these expenses will form part of the benefit amount stated under Section B1 Emergency Medical, Medical Assistance and Related Expenses The most we will pay is up to the maximum amount shown in the Schedule of Benefits and we will not pay for any routine dental treatment. Section B5 Alternative Employee or Resumption of Assignment Expenses (Business Travel only) We will reimburse You for the Reasonable and Necessary Expenses in respect of either: 1. An alternative Employee to send a substitute person to complete the original business commitment and objectives if You are unable to do so as a result of Your unexpected Death, Injury, Illness or quarantine or if You have to return Home following the unexpected Death, Injury, Illness or quarantine of Your Spouse, a Close Business Associate or Family Member; or 2. The resumption of Assignment to return You when you have been repatriated back Home within 90 days of such repatriation to complete Your original business commitment and objectives. Expenses means a) The maximum amount stated in the Schedule of Benefits for either 1) Alternative Employee or 2) Resumption of Assignment. b) Other essential expenses incurred in Your transportation or that of the substitute person.