Travel Insurance for Liver Failure

What is liver failure?

Liver failure means the liver can no longer do enough of its normal work, such as clearing toxins from the blood, making proteins that help blood clot and processing food and medicines. It sits within our kidney, liver and urinary conditions, and it is one of the more serious ones on the list.

There are two broad kinds. Acute liver failure comes on suddenly, often in someone with no previous liver problems, and needs urgent hospital care. Chronic liver failure develops slowly, usually after years of damage from things like cirrhosis, hepatitis, or alcohol. Some people are later assessed for a transplant. The NHS liver disease page explains the causes and how they are treated.

Why do I need to declare liver failure for travel insurance?

Liver failure is a pre-existing medical condition, and a serious one when it comes to travel. When the liver isn’t coping, a person can become unwell quickly with bleeding, infection or confusion, which could lead to a stay in a foreign hospital or force a trip to be called off.

Declaring it, along with the cause, gives us the full picture so your cover matches your health. Without that, a claim connected to your liver might be turned down or only part paid.

You won’t need to declare every medical condition you’ve ever had or been diagnosed with, only those that fall into the initial set of medical questions.

Can I get travel insurance with liver failure?

Cover is assessed case-by-case, and for some people with liver failure it can be offered. For others, particularly where the condition is advanced or unsettled, it may not be possible.

With liver failure, the screening pays close attention to fluid build-up that needs draining, bleeding from varices, episodes of confusion and whether you are on, or being assessed for, the transplant list. A condition that has been stable for some time is looked at very differently from one that is changing.

What we’ll ask about your liver failure

Our online medical screening is quick and straightforward. You’ll answer a handful of questions about your liver failure, covering how your liver failure is managed and whether you’re being assessed for a transplant. Once this condition is done, carry on and declare any other relevant pre-existing medical conditions.

When the medical declaration is complete, you’ll move on to the quote page. Where your liver failure and any other conditions are coverable, a list of quotes appears, with the cost of covering your medical already built into the premium. If cover isn’t possible, you’ll find out before you proceed.

If your health changes before travelling

Liver conditions can move quickly. If, before your trip, you have another admission, your medication changes, you’re referred for further tests or transplant assessment, or you receive a new diagnosis, you must let us know. We may need to review your cover or refer your medical situation to the underwriters, and occasionally we may not be able to proceed with cover. Any change in your medical you don’t tell us about could mean a future claim is affected or denied.

What can liver failure travel insurance cover?

When liver failure is accepted on your policy, emergency medical treatment abroad can be covered if your condition suddenly worsens. Say you develop severe swelling or become confused while staying in Portugal and need to be admitted. Hospital treatment there can be covered, and so can repatriation if the medical team agree you should come home with an escort, subject to the policy terms, exclusions, limits and excess.

If you become unwell before departure and your doctor says you shouldn’t travel, cancellation cover may help you claim back non-refundable costs you have already paid.

Treatment you plan to have abroad is not covered, and neither is anything linked to a condition you didn’t declare. Check the policy wording for exclusions around alcohol, as these can apply to claims.

Will liver failure affect the cost of travel insurance?

Liver failure may well be reflected in the price. The exact effect comes from the answers you give during online medical screening, which may ask how the condition is treated and how well it’s being controlled. Beyond that, the usual things such as age, destination and trip length still count. Nothing is fixed until you’ve seen your quote, and you can look at it before deciding.

Single trip or annual cover with liver failure

Most people with liver failure find single trip cover fits best, as each trip can be screened on its own terms. If you are well enough to travel several times a year, annual travel insurance is often sensible, but a diagnosis of liver failure may mean we cannot offer this option.

Travelling with liver failure: practical tips

The suggestions below are general travel advice and sit outside your insurance cover.

Talk to your liver team well before you book. They know how stable you are and can tell you whether a long flight or a remote destination is sensible. If you are on the transplant list, ask how a trip affects your place and what happens if a liver becomes available while you are away.

Vaccines are worth checking early. People with chronic liver disease are often advised to be protected against hepatitis A and B, and a travel clinic can tell you what your destination needs. TravelHealthPro lists the advice by country.

Be careful with food and water. A stomach bug that most people shrug off can tip a damaged liver into trouble, so stick to bottled or boiled water in places where the tap water isn’t safe, and avoid food that has been sitting out.

Many everyday medicines are processed by the liver, including some painkillers and remedies sold over the counter abroad. Ask your pharmacist before you go what you can safely take, and don’t buy anything locally without checking. Our guide to travelling abroad with medication covers packing and paperwork.

1. carry a summary of your condition, recent blood results and medicines
2. keep your medication in hand luggage with some extra for delays
3. if your legs or tummy swell on flights, ask about aisle seats and moving around regularly
4. find out where the nearest hospital with a liver unit is before you arrive

How to get a quote

Enter your trip, answer the screening questions about your liver and any other conditions, then choose the cover you want. The price is shown before you buy.

Get a Quote

Other Useful Kidney,Liver,Urinary Pages

• Acute Kidney Injury or Failure Travel Insurance
• Alcohol-Related Liver Disease Travel Insurance
• Bladder Stones Travel Insurance
• Chronic Kidney Disease Travel Insurance
• Enlarged Prostate Travel Insurance
• Fatty Liver Disease Travel Insurance
• Hepatitis Travel Insurance
• Interstitial Cystitis Travel Insurance
• Kidney Failure Travel Insurance
• Kidney Infection Travel Insurance
• Kidney Stones Travel Insurance
• Liver Cirrhosis Travel Insurance
• Liver Failure Travel Insurance
• Overactive Bladder Travel Insurance
• Polycystic Kidney Disease Travel Insurance
• Prostatitis Travel Insurance
• Urinary Retention Travel Insurance
• Urinary Tract Infection Travel Insurance

Don't worry if your condition is not listed above - we cover plenty more medical conditions.
* Please note that cover will vary depending on individual medical screenings.