Insurance

Recommended insurance for the young person travelling
You are advised to take out personal civil liability and repatriation insurance covering the costs of medical care and hospitalisation, accidents suffered or caused to another person, participation in all the activities the child is likely to take part in during their stay, travel cancellations, repatriation and loss or theft of luggage.

Questions you might ask:

- What is civil liability?
Civil liability is insurance that covers the cost of material or immaterial damage to a third party that your child may cause involuntarily during their stay in the host family or elsewhere. Note! If your child is already covered by this type of insurance, check that it is not limited to their home country.

- What happens as far as costs are concerned if my child is ill?
There is a distinction between:

• A stay in an EEA country or in Switzerland, when care is given by approved doctors and costs are generally covered in full by the welfare organisation. However, if your child is ill during their stay, they may have to see private doctors with higher fees. In the majority of cases, the sickness insurance institution will only cover a portion of the costs. The sum you will still have to pay will only be reimbursed by a private organisation if you have taken out additional health insurance.

• For other destinations: the administrative procedures are often complicated and time-consuming and there is no guarantee of reimbursement by welfare organisations or top-up insurance firms. As a result, you are advised to take out medical insurance.

- Where can I find more information?
For more information, first contact the top-up insurance firm your family is registered with, and your child’s school insurance.

- What about insurance offered by payment cards?
You may in fact be covered without realising it. Some international payment cards offer their cardholders significant levels of cover abroad. If you have paid for your child’s trip with one of these cards, you may be covered for the costs of medical care and repatriation. Check the small print on your contract or contact your bank for more information.

Recommended insurance for the host family
Check that you have appropriate insurance for hosting children under the age of majority in your home in the context of a language study holiday and participation in all of the activities the child is likely to take part in during their stay. Check with your insurer.

Social Security

Staying in an EEA country or in Switzerland: your sickness insurance institution will supply your child with a European Health Insurance Card on request. The card makes it easier to access healthcare through the public sector and speeds up the reimbursement process. Allow at least 2 weeks before your child is due to leave to apply for their card (if you are unable to get your card in time, your sickness insurance institution will issue you with a provisional replacement certificate instead).

› For more information on the European Health Insurance Card (select your language from the top right-hand corner) check the European Commission website.

Health

Pocket money

Whatever kind of stay you have chosen, check what expenses will be covered by the host family (meals, transport, cultural and leisure activities, and so on). Then assess the cost of living in the host country and work out how much your child will need each week (outings, souvenirs, drinks and snacks, and so on). Instead of cash, which can be difficult to manage, it’s better to provide the option of a bank card or travellers’ cheques, which are insured in case they are lost or stolen.

Useful links

• Online translation
• International speaking clock
• School holidays
• International dialling codes
• Currency converter

Information to be provided before the trip

Information to be provided by the child’s family to the host family:

• About the child:
- Health problems and allergies
- Medical treatment and medication
- Likes and dislikes
- Habits
- What’s allowed and what isn’t
- Diet

• About the stay:
- Arrival date and time, flight/train number, station/airport and terminal
- Departure date and time, flight/train number, station/airport and terminal
- Emergency contact details
- Organisation name, address and reference number for sickness insurance institution
- Organisation name, address and reference number for civil liability and accident insurance covering the host country

Information to be provided by the host family to the child’s family:

- Expected climate and temperature – to help plan appropriate clothing
- Planned activities – to help plan appropriate clothing
- Important rules within the family (what’s allowed and what isn’t)
- How the child will be welcomed on arrival

Check list

Remember to pack :

- the child’s European Health Insurance Card
- a copy of their health or vaccination records
- their blood group card
- a copy of any medical prescriptions
- a list of useful telephone numbers and e-mail addresses
- small gifts for the host family (typical items or products)
- a camera
- a lightweight, manageable bilingual dictionary
- a notebook for making a note of new words
- a phone card
- etc.

Preparing your child for their stay

If your child is very young or anxious, why not make the journey to the host family with them to make it easier for them to acclimatise? If you decide to send them on their own, it’s important that they should feel confident and ready.

In general terms, to ensure that your child gets as much benefit from their stay as possible (progress in the language, a wider view of the world, greater independence and sharing ideas with their foreign hosts) we advise you to work through the following preparatory steps:

- Encourage them to have plenty of contact with their partner before they leave.
- Check that they feel positive about the idea of the stay.
- Involve them in preparing for the stay.
- Warn them about possible cultural differences. If their language study holiday is to be a success, your child needs to abide by their host family’s rules and customs. Explain to them that cultural differences are expressed in day-to-day life, for example in their diet or how they behave at mealtimes.
- Encourage them to adapt. Explain to your child that the family they will be staying with is ready to include them in their day-to-day life but that they won’t change their pace or way of life for them. It’s up to them to adapt to their new environment.

- Encourage them to communicate. If they are going to learn to get to know and understand their family, your child needs to be curious, ask questions and be willing to talk about themselves, their family and their culture so that there can be a real exchange of ideas.
- Encourage them to participate. Sharing in family life means taking part in all the family’s activities: going to the supermarket, watching television, visiting friends, taking part in leisure activities and so on. This is how they will broaden their vocabulary and widen their view of the world.

The effort they make to adapt to and assimilate a new way of life will be the key factor that triggers their progress in the language.