International medical assistance company used lies to threaten the government, private rescue agencies and hospitals in Nepal
A month-long investigation by the Post shows that Traveller Assist does not represent any of the insurance firms it claims to, and has been using the fraudulent rescues probe by the government to market itself as the only operator for all helicopter rescues and insurance claims in the country.
In a letter to Nepal’s tourism minister last month, the managing director of Traveller Assist, an Australia-based medical assistance company, threatened the government that his clients would stop issuing travel insurance policies in Nepal if the administration does not take action against trekking agencies, helicopter companies and hospitals that have been involved in fraudulent rescues.
“I am writing on behalf of our clients to submit a formal open letter that will serve as Final Notice to the Ministry for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation. To be clear, this is an ultimatum!” the letter from Jonathan Bancroft reads.
A similar ultimatum had been issued in August last year, in which Traveller Assist gave the government until September 1 to take action. The government then issued a directive on the day, asking all helicopter companies, travel and tour operators, and hospitals and insurance companies in the country to submit details of rescue flights, medical treatment and insurance bills to the Tourist Search and Rescue Committee, Tourist Police and the Department of Tourism.
But a day before the government’s order, Danny Kaine, the head of assistance at Traveller Assist, sent an email to one of the helicopter charter services, asking the company owner to sign an agreement with his firm.
“We would like you to read, and if you agree, sign and return the attached agreement,” Kaine wrote to Kathmandu-based FCI Heli Charter Service. “It is very important that if you receive a call to provide a heli for any traveller insured by our clients, that you must first inform us.”
While the government’s investigation was in progress (and it still is), Traveller Assist attempted to impose its services on Nepal-based service companies, essentially claiming that it was the sole representative for major global insurance firms.
Several dozen emails obtained by the Post show that Traveller Assist has been threatening government officials to stop issuing travel insurance for all tourists travelling to Nepal if the government does not take action against those involved in the helicopter rescue scam. The Post can also confirm that at least one senior executive at the Australia-based company has sent emails to private sector service providers — including top hospitals in Kathmandu, trekking and rescue agencies, and helicopter companies — asking them to carry all insurance businesses through Traveller Assist, or else they would be blacklisted.
In the emails, Kaine, the head of assistance at Traveller Assist, claims that his firm exclusively represents top global insurance companies — True Traveller, Intana Global Assistance, World Nomads Group, World Nomads (Australia and New Zealand), Travel Insurance Direct, Sure Save Insurance, Cheap Travel Insurance, QBE Insurance, QBE Travel Insurance (Australia and New Zealand), QANTAS Visa Card Insurance, Ouch Travel Insurance, HCF Travel Insurance, Flight Centre Insurance and Smile Insurance — which would blacklist Nepali service providers if they did not go through Traveller Assist.
However, a month-long investigation by the Post shows that Traveller Assist does not represent any of the insurance firms it claims to and has been using the fraudulent rescues probe by the government to market itself as the sole operator for all helicopter rescues and insurance claims. The Post also discovered that Traveller Assist used a fake article under a Post reporter’s byline to tout its services and promote its image in the country.
In a series of WhatsApp conversation with the Post, Kaine, who refused an on-camera interview despite multiple requests, denied that Traveller Assist is trying to get a bigger market share of the rescue insurance and said it simply wants to bring the guilty parties to justice.
“Our investigation has uncovered a multimillion-dollar insurance fraud scam in Nepal,” Kaine wrote. “The government has admitted this is happening. We just want to bring those people and companies to justice so that Nepal is a safer place for travellers and less risky for insurers.”
[Read: The Post’s response to Traveller Assist’s statement on Medium]
