What the trip cancellation claim is for
iA’s travel coverage pays back non-refundable trip costs when an insured cause, such as illness, injury, or a death in the family, forces a cancellation, an interruption, or a delayed return. CanAssistance handles the claims for iA. When the cause is medical, the claim needs the Attending Physician Declaration completed and signed by the physician of the person who was ill or injured, or an equivalent report from a physician abroad.
The declaration is about one person’s medical condition, who may not be the policyholder. CanAssistance reads it alongside the trip dates on the claim form, so your dates need to line up with when the trip was bought and cancelled.
Who completes it
The policyholder completes the two-page claim form: their details, any other claimants, the trip information, other insurance, the cause of the claim, and the fees claimed. They sign the agreement and authorization, and so does their spouse if the spouse is claiming. The physician of the ill or injured person completes the Attending Physician Declaration and signs it, with their stamp, specialty, and phone number.
Patients usually print the claim package at home, fill in the claim form, and bring the declaration to the clinic, or leave it with the front desk, often weeks after the trip. In Medulla, you send the claim form to the patient over a secure link. They fill it in on the form from any device, and their answers land on the same PDF you complete the declaration on, so CanAssistance receives one package.
How to fill in the Attending Physician Declaration
Patient information
Enter the name, gender, and date of birth of the person you treated, and the contract number if the patient has it. Use the person whose illness caused the claim, even when someone else is the policyholder.
Information concerning the accident or illness
Give the diagnosis or nature of the injury, the date the accident happened or symptoms first appeared, and the date of first consultation. Say whether the person had this illness before, with the date, whether they were hospitalized, and list every visit and treatment date for the condition. Say whether the condition is a complication of an underlying condition and whether another doctor referred the patient. Give each date from the chart rather than from memory.
Medical recommendation as to the capacity of travelling
Say whether your patient is the person travelling and, if so, whether the illness or injury made them unable to travel. Give the date you recommended the trip be cancelled and the dates you advised against travel. If other reasons prevent travel, list them. The policyholder gives the date the trip was cancelled on the claim form, so the two dates are read side by side.
Comments and signature
Add anything the boxes don’t capture, such as a worsening that started before departure. Print your name and address, add your specialty and phone, sign, date, and stamp the declaration.
Common reasons it’s delayed
- No date for when the trip was recommended to be cancelled.
- Visit and treatment dates for the condition missing.
- The “had this illness before” question answered with no date.
- The declaration completed for the policyholder when a family member was the one who was ill.
- An unsigned or unstamped declaration.
Submitting and who pays
The policyholder sends the claim form, the declaration, and the supporting documents to CanAssistance’s Travel Claims Department by email or mail, as printed on the form, and keeps the originals. The declaration also lists CanAssistance’s fax numbers. Any professional fee for the declaration is the insured’s responsibility, so bill the patient.