New research from Direct Line Travel Insurance reveals that 13.7 million people believe they have to pay for a Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) – the new replacement for the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) – despite it being free. With unofficial websites charging around £29 per application, this could mean Brits risk losing up to £451 million collectively if they are misled into paying when applying.

Around a third of Brits (17.5 million people) have an EHIC that is still in date, while a fifth (19 per cent) are not sure when their EHIC expires. With so many unofficial websites out there, many of these people could be at risk of being misled due to a lack of understanding that a GHIC is free.

Additional research by the insurer found that it takes less than 10 seconds to find an unofficial website when searching for ‘GHIC application’ on a search engine² – with five links on the first results page directing you to websites that charge to manage the application process. One website had even paid the search engine’s advertising rates to come at the top of the search.

The most common ‘benefit’ these unofficial websites are using to encourage unwitting people to use their ‘service’ is that they will either fast-track or manage the application process for ease. However, the time it takes for the application is sometimes longer than the stated time for the real NHS website. It is important to know that If you are planning to travel, when the Government restrictions are lifted and travel is allowed, GHIC applications are completely free and can be applied for using the NHS website.

These misleading websites have been around since the inception of the EHIC card, which was also free of charge. In fact, more than 8.5 million people said they paid for their EHIC when they last applied – in monetary terms, this represents an estimated unnecessary £245 million.  Interestingly, it would seem that men were more likely to believe they needed to pay for their EHIC, with 5.5 million men (32 per cent) vs 2.9 million women (17 per cent) paying for the service.