Carre Neige

Huwcyn wrote:I've gone to Austria 4 times without a Carre Neige. Have I been leaving myself open to a nasty surprise? :shock:

I think British people can only use the Carre Neige when they're ski-ing in France.

AllyG wrote:

I think British people can only use the Carre Neige when they're ski-ing in France.

Something to bear in mind then if/when I go to France

BTW Thanks for the info

It seems to me a lot of people don't know what their own insurance covers.My ins covers me for everything except off piste which i don't do so their would be absolutely no benefit to me taking out carre neige as well as i'd be insuring myself twice for the same cover so what i'm saying is,if you have winter sports ins that gets you off the mountain and you only ski on piste you don't need c/neige.

Birdy, I'm well aware of what my insurance covers, and it doesn't cover off piste rescue, which is why I asked on this thread about carre neige as I'd been informed this did cover off piste, but it wasn't crystal clear from the info I found if it did,

What is striking is the number of people who seem to use carre neige don't actually know what or where it covers!!!

It covers skiing outside of France according to some info I found.

My insurance covers me on or off piste so can't see what extra the Carre Niege would offer.
Sure I may have to wave my credit card to get carted off the mountain but that's reclaimable.

The Carre Niege won't get me repatriated will it?
It is only for skiing in France?

I guess if you are local it works out cheaper than travel insurance but gets you off the mountain FOC.

Unfortunately I don't think there is an equivalent for Austria :(

Andy, that's exactly what I was led to believe, carre neige stops as soon as you get to hospital or doctors.

Here's what I got from the Natives website, obviously aimed at people going out to work in the alps;





Buying ski insurance has got to be the least fascinating part of doing a season – forking out yet more money (quite a lot of money), and on something very boring and which obviously you'll never need (fingers crossed).

So why not just roll up at the lift office and buy Carte Neige for a mere 35€? Covers everything including off-piste doesn't it?

Well, not exactly! Season worker, Christa Jackson, brings us up to date with the real story regarding insurance cover and Carte Neige:

'Over the past few seasons I've seen several people come unstuck with Carte Neige, mainly because they bought it because it was cheap and didn't understand what it covers and how it works. So here's a basic users' guide…'

What it covers:
Carte Neige covers you for transport off the mountain, either on or off piste. If you show your card to the pisteurs they will take the policy number and their costs will be met by the insurance – you have no further involvement.

They then drop you off at the doctor's surgery in resort. At this point, your Carte Neige is of no help to you at all. Carte Neige is not a full insurance policy – it's a top-up cover designed to act in tandem with your state or private health insurance. It will reimburse only those costs not covered by your main insurance.

How it works:
The treating doctor will want to see your NHS documents (E101/E111) or a valid private insurance. He will probably charge you for treatment, and you will then have to claim this amount back from the DSS or your insurance company. If you need to go to hospital, they will also need to see your documents, though hospitals will usually reclaim costs themselves rather than asking you for payment. However, your NHS cover doesn't always entitle you to 100% of the cost of treatment, so if that's what you're using, you might still have to stump up a bit of cash.

This is where your Carte Neige comes in again – it will cover anything the NHS doesn't, and any excess if you're using private health insurance. But remember that they won't pay until they see receipts for everything you've spent, as well as proof of the amount which the NHS or your insurance company has reimbursed. Lots of paperwork! In practice, this means that you could end up out of pocket for several months, since you have to wait until the DSS/insurance company processes your claim before you can send anything to Carte Neige.

What to do when you ski or board into a tree:
Show the pisteurs your Carte Neige – they will then dump you at the medical centre.
Fill in the Carte Neige initial claim form (you will be given one when you buy the card) and send it to their address in Grenoble. You MUST do this within seven days of your accident or your claim will be void.
Give the doctor/hospital your insurance documents, get your treatment etc. Get receipts for everything you have to spend and keep all the documents you get from the doctor/pharmacist. Send a claim off to the DSS/your insurance company.
Once you have been paid, send your claim to Carte Neige along with any outstanding receipts and proof of the amount you have already been reimbursed.

Common pitfalls:

Q: I've been off-piste – I'll use Carte Neige to get off the mountain and then use my company-provided ski insurance.
A: Watch out! Some employers do not provide insurance which covers you for accidents off-piste, and they certainly won't cover you for any accidents 'out of bounds'.

Q: I couldn't afford wintersports insurance – I'll use Carte Neige to get off the mountain and then use my health insurance.
A: No you won't. If your employer hasn't provided specific wintersports insurance, their policy will exclude injuries suffered while skiing or boarding. Back to the NHS again, I'm afraid. If you're travelling on your parents' private policy, you need to check before you go that it covers wintersports.

Q: I didn't realise I had to get my claim in within seven days:
A: Bummer. That's just cost you money.

There's nothing wrong with Carte Neige insurance, but it's designed only to get you off the mountain and drop you into the local health care system. This is all very well if you're a part of that system (ie if you have a French social security number), but if you aren't, then you will have a million forms to fill out, a lot of shouting at jobsworth bureaucrats to do, and possibly some bills to pay. And do you really need all this when you're in a cast, in pain and having trouble dressing yourself, let alone anything else?

If you're on a French contract and in the system, by all means go with Carte Neige – it's universally recognised and the pisteurs are happy to accept it. But if you're bumming it or working for a UK tour op it's worth forking out for full insurance – you can then lie on your hospital bed taking morphine and drinking tea while someone else deals with the paperwork.