Kilimanjaro Travel Insurance

We are typically asked whether we tend to are able to get travel insurance on behalf of our clients. However, we have found over the years that climbers prefer to be in direct contact with the insurers, as within the event of a claim, there’s quite a lot of passing information back and forth, and this is generally most simply managed directly, instead of via a mediator.
That said, in the event of an claim, we tend to are typically asked to provide a company letter description what went wrong on the mountain and why it absolutely was within the claimant’s best interests that the actual action (such as evacuation) was taken, from that the claim is derived.

When getting insurance, it is suggested that you just get confirmation direct from the insurance firm, of precisely what’s covered. this is as a result of even though an exact policy could have covered a certain contingency historically, and a friend or travel company could have suggested that insurer or specific policy for that reason, the insurance firm could have determined later on to no longer cover that contingency. This often happens once a large number of claims are made from within such contingencies and therefore the insurance firm decides that increasing the premium value to itigate against the accumulated risk of payouts from is probably going to possess the result of reducing purchases of that premium.

When securing associate policy therefore, in all probability the most vital question to ask so, is:
Does this policy positively cover me to 6,000m altitude (since Kilimanjaro’s summit is after all, 5,895m), and if so, what are the exclusions that apply at high altitude and what’s the edge on the far side that these exclusions apply?
Additionally, while it is typically faster (and so safer) to initiate an evacuation ourselves on foot than to attend at what could became associate unsafe elevation for a patient, for a helicopter to arrive, nonetheless, since there is now a helicopter rescue service based mostly quite on the point of Mount Kilimanjaro, it’s also price asking the insurance firm to substantiate that within the event it is deemed necessary, that helicopter rescue is so enclosed inside the policy.

Which insurance firm is Best for Kilimanjaro?

Again, while you may have to be compelled to satisfy yourself with relevance what’s presently covered inside the policy that the insurance firm proposes to sell you, generally, we’ve got found World Nomads to supply the foremost appropriate insurance cover for Mount Kilimanjaro. us citizens may also wish to consider county Hathaway’s “AdrenalineCare” insurance.
Some insurers do higher for persons of certain nationalities only, so the following insurers are also worth looking at. However, we’d tell once more, that before securing a policy you ensure with the insurance firm that the premium that they are selling you will so include cover for trekking up to 6,000 metres altitude. And if you are ascending via the Western Breach, you’ll have more confirmation that when using ropes and helmets (if you choose to bring these – that is recommended) you’re still included:

• JS Insurance (for UK citizens). Standard mountaineering cover is only to 4,500m so you’ll need to call them on +44 1273 773 017
• Travel Insurance Center
• Global Travel Insurance
• Snow Card
• Worldwide Insure for UK citizens. It’s recommended to call them on +44 1892 833 338

The Flying Doctor Scheme

In the past Africa Joy Tours advised that there was usually no advantage in securing helicopter rescue cover when obtaining an insurance premuim, as there are no fixed-wing landing sites anywhere high on the mountain, and until 2016 the helicopter collection points on Kilimanjaro were as follows:

Horombo Huts, 3714m (some 3-5 hours’ stretcher evacuation from the crater)
Barranco Huts, 3984m (some 3-5 hours’ stretcher evacuation from the crater)
Shira Huts – where an ambulance is capable of reaching in 75 minutes from Londorossi
The inability of Nairobi-based helicopters to reach the likely points at which evacuation is most likely therefore meant that it was highly likely that our staff – working in concert with the KINAPA wardens stationed at the huts on most routes – could actually get a trekker who had succumbed to a life-threatening condition to a place of safety, in less time than it would take for a helicopter to effect a rescue.

Helicopter Rescue on Kilimanjaro Is Now Possible from Barafu and Kibo Huts

However, In 2016 a new Search and Rescue company was established in Moshi that is now capable of landing both at Kibo and Barafu Huts. In the event of an evacuation being necessary, if the trekker has helicopter rescue cover included in their insurance premium, they should disclose details of their premium to their guide and he will call +255 677 12 12 12 and advise the SAR control room that evacuation is necessary, and will then coordinate his crew to evacuate the climber to Barafu – if the point at which the evacuation is deemed to be necessary is higher than Stella Point, or to Kibo Huts, if the point at which the evacuation becomes necessary is between Gilman’s Point and Stella Point, or beneath Gilman’s point on the assault On TK Lemosho or TK Rongai routes.

Weather premitting, we will then await rescue by helicopter from Moshi – assuming the helicopter is not alteady otherwise engaged. In the event that the control advises the guide either that evacuation is unsafe because of limited visibility or high winds, the trekking group must copperate fully with the guide’s decision to continue the evacuation on foot.