For any UK resident travelling in Europe the GHIC – and its predecessor the EHIC – is vital. It allows travellers to access European healthcare for the same cost as locals.
After Brexit, the government negotiated continued access to the scheme. Unfortunately, European Economic Area countries Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway are no longer included, after the UK failed to reach an agreement with them.
However, most respondents to our survey about the card assumed that ‘Global’ meant that it now covered new countries outside Europe. But this isn't the case.
Not all European hospitals and surgeries know what the GHIC is
Some travellers also told us that they’d been met by blank faces when trying to use the GHIC/EHIC in countries, including Austria, Cyprus, France and Greece.
The GHIC has a different design and colour-scheme to the EHIC, featuring the Union Flag, instead of the plain blue of the old EHIC.
Which? Members, Jon and Martine Walsh, said that they weren’t able to use the GHIC at a hospital in France, after Martine was admitted with flu-like symptoms.
But, several months later, they're still waiting to be refunded. The OHS has told them that it doesn’t have any power to speed up the process with the French authorities.
Get free travel advice and recommendations you can trust from the experts with our monthlyEHIC and GHIC save travellers – and insurance companies – millions
Despite occasional problems, most survey respondents were happy with the care they received on European holidays after using the EHIC or the GHIC.
In some countries, such as Spain, British holidaymakers who suffered from illness or injury were able to access treatment for free. In others, such as France, they could show the card to receive a form that allowed them to reclaim the money from the local authorities.
This money is then reclaimed by European governments from the UK. In 2019, this came to £125m. The highest number of claims were made in Spain, where more than 98,000 people used an EHIC at an average of £536 each. In France, 15,558 people used the card at an average of £1,823 each.
This is part of the reason why travel insurance for travel in Europe is much cheaper than in other countries, such as the US, where no such free healthcare exists.
Your questions about the GHIC answered
Where can the GHIC be used?British travellers do have reciprocal health care rights in many countries – Australia, Anguilla, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the British Overseas Territories, Faroe Islands, Kosovo, New Zealand, North Macedonia and Serbia. The UK has also agreed a deal with Norway to allow reciprocal treatment there, based on showing showing your passport. You don’t need the GHIC in any of those countries.
Why is the GHIC not actually global?Do you have to pay for the GHIC?Does the GHIC provide free treatment abroad?Do I need to replace my EHIC with a GHIC? Do I still need travel insurance if I have a GHIC?Can I use GHIC if my card has expired or I forget to take it with me?source https://www.which.co.uk/news/article/british-travellers-believe-post-brexit-ghic-card-offers-better-coverage-than-ehic-anZz00n3Nqsk