Travel insurance cheaper than 10mins in hospital

Annual travel cover is less expensive than ten minutes in an American hospital, new figures reveal.

But American Express Travel Insurance finds that too many Britons are still taking to the skies without cover.

"One of our customers - who ultimately had nothing wrong - underwent 16 hours of tests in an American hospital to rule out serious illness and incurred a bill exceeding $20,000. That's $1,250 an hour or over £12 per minute," said Joanne Field, American Express marketing manger.

"In effect less than ten minutes in that American hospital costs in excess of our most popular annual policy."

As many as 2.9 million UK residents travelled without insurance last year, and mishaps are all too common.

American Express figures show more than half of travellers have suffered from an upset stomach abroad, while one in twenty has been hospitalised.

And Brits are more at risk over the Christmas period, when they travel outside the relative protection of the EU.

"Apart from skiing in Europe, Britons tend to travel further afield at this time of year to find the sun. Without good travel insurance literally millions are at risk from expensive medical bills," Ms Field explained.

A broken leg in the US can cost £25,000, while an average claim for a hospital stay in the Caribbean was £1,703, American Express reveals.

"Travel insurance is an essential part of holiday pricing and not a luxury extra to be ignored - we would encourage everyone to travel with comprehensive emergency medical cover which a good travel insurance policy provides," Ms Field concluded.