Inside
1 How much cover you really need
2 Three dates, not one
3 What you lose if you cancel with us
4 When to buy it
5 Twelve questions to ask the insurer
6 Providers worth a look
7 If you are not UK or EU
8 Quick answers
Start here
Insurance Is A Prerequisite, And The One Thing We Cannot Buy For You.
We are not insurance providers and cannot recommend an individual policy. You need to do your own due diligence and check the contract is the one you need.
What we can do is point you in the right direction and tell you honestly what has caught people out. Your cover has to run the full length of your course and protect your skiing, not just the training days.
How Much Cover Do I Really Need?
The scary medical numbers are built for American hospital bills, not Canadian ones.
Canada's medical system is much like the UK and Europe, without the vast bills of the American system. We have spoken with several Canadian insurers who say they have not seen a medical bill go over CA$500,000, and that is for the most severe accidents.
The catch is that Canada is grouped as worldwide cover, which includes the USA, so even the lowest tier is usually well over a million. Do not worry about taking that lower group for your time in Canada. If you plan to pop into the USA at any point, that is a different story, so check first.
The bit everybody gets wrong
Three Dates, Not One.
Bronze, silver, gold: the medical is usually fine at every tier. What actually differs is the money you get back if you have to stop. Get these three dates straight and the rest of the page makes sense.
From the day you pay the insurer
Cancellation cover
Live from the moment you buy the policy, automatically. You do not have to ask for it. If illness or injury stops you travelling at all, this is what refunds what you have paid us.
From the day you depart
Medical cover
This is the start date you put on the policy. Flying on 1 November? Put 1 November. Travel insurance is cover for being away from home, and the medical side does not exist until you leave.
Once you have flown
Curtailment
You cannot cancel a trip you have already started, so cancellation ends and curtailment takes over. This is what pays out if something cuts the course short.
Read this bit twice
You are not medically insured in your home country. If you are hit by a car three weeks before departure and seriously hurt — lose an eye, break a leg in two — your travel policy pays nothing towards your treatment. That is what your own healthcare is for. Every payout table in the policy wording, all those figures for loss of a limb or an eye, applies to what happens once you have left.
What that same accident does trigger is your cancellation cover, because you can no longer travel. Depending on your limit, you get back what you have paid us. Two different covers, two different jobs, two different start dates.
Adding cancellation and curtailment puts your premium up noticeably, and both only refund what you have not used — so an injury two months in returns very little, and an injury in week one means almost the whole package is gone. Every year someone gets hurt early, and sometimes they have no curtailment cover. We have also had clients hurt before flying who were very glad of their cancellation cover.
What You Lose If You Cancel With Us.
Our current booking terms, so you can see exactly what cancellation cover is protecting. Charges are a percentage of your total booking price.
Ask yourself the honest question
"If, on day one, I break my ankle on the lift and have to fly home, how much of the course fees am I prepared to lose?" In simple terms, it is just about how much you are willing to risk financially. Set your cover against that answer, not the cheapest quote.
When Should You Buy It?
You have paid your deposit. The next question is when to spend on cover.
We require proof of insurance before your final payment
Cover must be in place before you pay the 12-week final balance. Buying the day your deposit clears is often months before you fly, and the deposit is small, so insuring it that early rarely earns its cost. Most clients buy closer to departure.
Buy early only if you have circumstances that create genuine pre-travel risk — and remember that buying early is what extends your cancellation window, not your medical cover. It is your risk assessment to make.
Questions To Ask The Insurer.
Do not buy on price alone. Put these to whoever is quoting you, and if a policy falls short on any of them, keep looking.
What start date do I put on the policy?
The day you depart your home country. If you fly on 1 November, your start date is 1 November, not the day you buy it. This is the one people get wrong, and a policy that starts earlier does not buy you extra medical cover at home.
So am I covered before I fly?
Medically, no. If you are injured at home before departure, however badly, your travel policy pays nothing towards your treatment. Your cancellation cover is separate and runs from the day you pay the insurer — automatically, you do not have to ask for it. So an accident at home gets you no medical cover, but it will refund what you have paid us, up to your cancellation limit.
Do I need winter sports coverage?
Yes. It is not standard, so it has to be added, and you must confirm it covers an instructor course, not just recreational skiing.
Am I covered for an instructor course?
It sounds obvious, but some holiday ski policies will not cover a course because they see it as something outside a holiday. You only need to alert them that it is instructor training, not recreational skiing. You do not need to name the specific course.
What is the winter-sports day limit?
Some policies only cover 14 to 21 days of skiing or boarding regardless of how long the insurance runs, which is useless for a course of several weeks. Check the day limit.
Am I insured off piste or in the park?
In Canada most off piste is within the resort boundary, patrolled, and often covered. Backcountry and park jumps frequently are not. Get the exact wording. Big Cat is one of the few that covers jumps, at a premium.
What are my cancellation and curtailment limits?
Two separate figures. Cancellation is what you get back if illness or injury stops you travelling. Curtailment is what you get back if something cuts the course short once you are out there. Ask for both limits and compare them to what you have actually paid us.
Will my credit card or family policy cover me?
Almost never for a course. They rarely include curtailment to your course cost, and often exclude skiing, the park and long stays.
How long does my insurance need to be for?
The full length of your course and your skiing, not just the training days.
What are the medical and repatriation limits?
Repatriation can cost more than the flight out, so make sure both are included and the limits are realistic.
Can I get money back if I come home early?
Usually only for unused elements, and add-ons are often non-refundable. Ask specifically about early-return refunds.
Do I need to disclose pre-existing conditions?
Yes, always. Not disclosing one is among the most common reasons a claim is rejected. Get confirmation in writing that you are covered.
Providers Worth A Look.
Starting prices move every year, so treat them as a guide and confirm against a live quote. You still need to read the policy wording yourself. These are starting medical prices for each course length, before cancellation cover. Both suit UK and EU residents.
from £165
UK & EU residents
True Traveller
Good cover. Winter sports includes off piste and backcountry with special conditions, and the terrain park with jump exclusions, and it covers a ski or board course. Gives £1,000 curtailment even on the budget policy.
Roughly, with winter sports added: 4 weeks from £165 · 11 weeks from £275 · 18 weeks from £425.
from £162
UK residents only
Big Cat
Similar to True Traveller, and the only provider we have found that covers park jumps, via a winter sports plus add-on. No curtailment on the budget policy, but the premium policy lets you add £10,000 of cover. Our reservation: a smaller company, slower to pay at times, and they want every scrap of documentation.
Roughly, with winter sports added: 4 weeks from £162 · 11 weeks from £225 · 18 weeks from £410.
Acera, a Canada-based specialist
A Canadian insurer specialising in winter sports medical cover for all mountain professionals, and especially strong for anyone heading out of bounds, for whatever reason. They look after a wide range of mountain workers across British Columbia. Well worth a look, even if you are not on a working visa.
If You Are Not UK Or EU.
The two above are priced for Britain and Europe. For everyone else, start here.
World Nomads, for most nationalities
Great value for US residents and reasonable for Australians and New Zealanders, with a wide list of countries. For UK and EU residents they work out expensive next to True Traveller and Big Cat, so we do not recommend them there.
Travel Insurance Saver and Zoom, for Australians
Both offer very reasonably priced packages for Australian residents. Worth comparing the two.
Fast Cover, for New Zealand residents
Reasonably priced packages with winter sports coverage for New Zealand residents.
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