StuartO Posted May 13, 2016 Share Posted May 13, 2016 Our EHIC cards live in the motorhome, so we can't leave then behind - and they last, several years so you tend to take them for granted. We're off on Sunday so we're cleaning and packing up and when we checked the EHICs they had expired in February. I rang the phone number on the back (which is for claiming a refund when you get back to UK if you have had to pay for treatment) and it turned out to be the DWP Office which handles renewals too. Their automated phone system is very civil service (ponderous, pedantic etc) but you do eventually get to request renewals without even talking to a real person - but the new cards then take 5-10 working days to arrive, so this was going to be too late for us. It must happen to lots of people; it's easy to overlook the expiry date. Fortunately there is a system for helping you in these circumstances, so as long as you ring them to apply for renewal, you will be covered as if renewed from the day you ring up, even though you won't have the replacement cards. If you discover the expiry of your cards when you are already abroad and find yourself at a hospital or surgery seeking treatment, you might be refused retrospective cover if you ring up at that stage to request renewal, or at least that appears to be the implication of what I was told. Providing you ring up to ask for renewal prior to leaving UK, even if the new cards don't arrive in time to take with you, you can ring DWP (same number) and they will fax or email the hospital or surgery with a document affirming your entitlement. They will only do this if you do find yourself attending for treatment abroad, so they declined to email this same evidence of temporary cover to me so I could have it with me. So check your EHICs for the expiry date and apply for renewal in good time. Failing that you will need to take the old EHICs with you and phone the number on the back if you need treatment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spospe Posted May 13, 2016 Share Posted May 13, 2016 StuartO, thank you for the timely reminder; it's one of those things that is easy to loose track of. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted May 13, 2016 Share Posted May 13, 2016 Been there done that, in Jan this year discovered my card had run out the previous Jan luckily didn't need to use it & wife's was due for renewal did them on line cards arrived 3 days later, DVLA could do with taking lessons from DWP.:-D Do check both cards even if you renew at the same time they don't always expire at the same time been caught by that one as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxy Posted May 14, 2016 Share Posted May 14, 2016 will expire permanently if we come out of EU :'( :'( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted May 14, 2016 Share Posted May 14, 2016 foxy - 2016-05-14 5:27 PM will expire permanently if we come out of EU :'( :'( No they won't we had agreements in place long before we joined the EU, just scaremongering. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxy Posted May 15, 2016 Share Posted May 15, 2016 lennyhb - 2016-05-14 7:51 PM foxy - 2016-05-14 5:27 PM will expire permanently if we come out of EU :'( :'( No they won't we had agreements in place long before we joined the EU, just scaremongering.[/quote not with all member states we didn`t] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave225 Posted May 16, 2016 Share Posted May 16, 2016 Yes, we were caught out to. Discovered they had expired last month. However went online and applied for new ones and they arrived within a week. Just be careful you use the genuine NHS site as there are fake ones out there that charge a fee to get you something that is free. However their value is a bit in doubt as we have discovered that in France regardless they ask you to pay up front and 'claim back when you get home'. In Spain some areas now will not accept it and want private insurance cover. Fortunately we have never had major issues, except having to pay in France but these were small charges mainly for hypodermics etc. I sometimes feel it would be nice if we were to do the same here for all the health tourists we seem to get. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Basil Posted May 16, 2016 Share Posted May 16, 2016 StuartO - 2016-05-13 1:51 PM......................(which is for claiming a refund when you get back to UK if you have had to pay for treatment) ............This is no longer correct as of 1stJuly 2014 the EHIC now only entitles you to the same conditions as someone living in the country you get treatment, You can no longer claim back any charges that a citizen of that country would have to pay, whereas prior to that you could claim back any charge that you wouldn't have paid in the UK. I found this out when I asked to claim back tests and medicine charges of £384 that I would not have had to pay in the UK. In case anyone queries this was not at private hospitals but normal national health care.See NHS website for details.Bas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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