I have been heavily involved in trying to arrange insurance renewal for my sons and it is a minefield. So what is the issue? The way travel insurance works is your darlings want to remain in their country of study over the Summer or Christmas but the insurance company want them to be back home in the UK when it expires. Well it is "Travel Insurance" after all! Now some of you will be screaming "No you don't!" and this is partially true. You can get an extension to your current policy, but the insurance company don't have to issue it.
So how do we get round this situation? What you need to do is agree a time when your "child" will definitely be returning home. So for example if the first semester starts in August and you have agreed they will return at Christmas then take out insurance until December. In January take out insurance for the whole year (if they are not returning in Summer). That way they can remain where they are throughout the Summer and not have problems renewing their travel cover.
Another type of insurance available in most but not all educational institutes in the USA is a preferred insurance provider. This is normally a money stream for these institutes which is why the rates are quite high. For us parents here in the UK it is convenient because we don't have the time or resources to contact insurance companies local to the educational institute for a better rate. To find out who is the preferred insurance company either contact the International Affairs Office of the institute or search their web site. One UK insurance provider did suggest you should have travel insurance AND local medical cover but to date we haven't needed both.
So how do we get round this situation? What you need to do is agree a time when your "child" will definitely be returning home. So for example if the first semester starts in August and you have agreed they will return at Christmas then take out insurance until December. In January take out insurance for the whole year (if they are not returning in Summer). That way they can remain where they are throughout the Summer and not have problems renewing their travel cover.
Another type of insurance available in most but not all educational institutes in the USA is a preferred insurance provider. This is normally a money stream for these institutes which is why the rates are quite high. For us parents here in the UK it is convenient because we don't have the time or resources to contact insurance companies local to the educational institute for a better rate. To find out who is the preferred insurance company either contact the International Affairs Office of the institute or search their web site. One UK insurance provider did suggest you should have travel insurance AND local medical cover but to date we haven't needed both.
Be aware if you only take out local insurance then your offspring will not be covered for medivac service back to the UK should things go seriously wrong.