Outside the Policlinico Umberto I on Viale del Policlinico, a British couple waited three hours last Tuesday for documentation they would later need to file a medical reimbursement claim with their UK-based insurer. They are not alone. According to figures released this week by IVASS, Italy's insurance regulatory authority, foreign visitor claims against travel policies rose 34% year-on-year in the first two months of 2026, the sharpest increase since records began in 2019. When we spoke with claims adjusters in Milan, they described backlogs stretching into April.
The surge appears linked to several converging factors. First, inbound tourism has rebounded beyond pre-pandemic levels, with the Federazione Italiana del Turismo Organizzato reporting 11.2 million arrivals in January alone. Second, medical costs at private clinics have climbed roughly 18% since 2023, pushing more claimants toward their policies. Third, and perhaps most telling, awareness of coverage gaps has grown. Many travellers purchase basic policies that exclude pre-existing conditions, adventure sports, or rental vehicle incidents, only discovering these exclusions after an incident occurs. The timeline for regulatory updates remains unclear.
Regional disparities complicate the picture further. Claims originating in the Veneto and Lazio regions account for nearly half of all submissions, yet reimbursement approval rates there lag behind Lombardy by about 12 percentage points. Our correspondents in Florence observed queues at the British Consulate extending around the corner onto Lungarno Corsini, as tourists sought assistance with paperwork their insurers had rejected on technical grounds. One consular official, speaking on condition of anonymity, described the situation as "manageable but persistent." Meanwhile, the smell of fresh cornetti from a nearby pasticceria offered small comfort to those waiting.
Dott. Marco Ferrante, Director of Consumer Affairs at the Associazione Nazionale fra le Imprese Assicuratrici, offered a measured assessment during a press briefing on Wednesday. He noted that insurers are hiring additional claims handlers and that average processing times, according to figures that could not be independently verified, have dropped from 47 days to 39 since December. Still, consumer advocates remain sceptical. They point to a pattern: companies market comprehensive-sounding policies aggressively at airport kiosks and booking sites, yet the fine print often restricts coverage in ways that only become apparent during a claim.
What does this mean for travellers planning Italian holidays this spring? Industry guidance suggests reading policy documents carefully, particularly sections on excess fees, medical evacuation limits, and documentation requirements. Carrying digital copies of all travel documents has become standard advice. The ANIA recommends that visitors confirm their policy includes a 24-hour assistance hotline staffed by Italian speakers, as translation delays have contributed to at least 400 disputed claims since January.