I concur fully. Further, many insurance co. can 'pull the rug' under you by sending a new rider for many 'group' plans or if you sign up for one time special insurance for a particular trip and don't read the policy properly. I believe UK based health insurances will cover compressions as said here, it may not be honored in all diving locations particularly exotic ones, you'll have to read the policy.
OTAH, if you get DAN insurance, its nearly accepted everywhere although it has its own snags, you're roughly assured it will cover unlimited depth for $60 a year. Given the cost of compression as about $7000
each, not including travel assist for airlift costs etc., for another $5,000-$25,000 [ the latter for airvac to private jets in remote areas like Fiji] it would take about over 100 years to recuperate the cost of a
single compression alone, or 200 years + including the travel insurance, to recoupe that cost based on DAN's premiums.
If you add the mandatory $30+ annual membership fee to the insurance, it still
excellent cost effective coverage, and I didn't mention the other coverages it offers that are not critical, but can help such as the housing coverage.
NB: I am a DAN referral physician and post this as a potential conflict of interest statement. I am not a DAN employee. Further I have treated and assisted in DCI accidents from onset to discharge from hospital and the non-diving insurances did not pay without a fight, and later on DAN took over the rest of the cost.
herman:
Ahhh, but here is the rub. In you first post you listed "guided" as a requirement. Guided dives in North Carolina are almost non existent and are rare in Fla. Same goes for the rest of the US. Other places like Bonaire and Curacao do not often supply guides. I suspect there are many other places as well. In addition, if these insurance companies are like most, 30.000001 meters is enough for them not to pay. Who is and is not a “guide” is another problem. Add to that many medical facilities on this side of the Atlantic will not accept a lot of insurance except DAN. It's cash, CC or go away. Fighting with the insurance company and most likely not being paid is your problem.
The other problem I have with non dive specific insurance covering diving is how coverage is handled. Not having seen the travel policies you speak of, this may not apply but many general medical policies here require "approval" for special treatment. If you don't get approval from their doctor first, they don't pay. If I am hurt diving, I don't want some insurance company doctor who has zero knowledge of DCS deciding if a chamber ride or air evac is necessary or not.
The general travel policies may be a good idea but I would suggest a careful study of the actual policy and some research on their actual payment record before using them in the place of a specific dive accident policy.
