Like the Fake ESTA sites that are around (which will confuse people even more now the fee is coming in), there’s also a market on Fake European Heath Insurance Cards (EHIC) as well.
The EHIC is a free benefit across the European Economic Area and thus not charged for.
The Office of Fair Trading has got in on the act, and has clamped down on 5 providers who now either have given up selling, or have gone “offline”
Their investigation which was launched in March, has discovered that consumers believed they were paying for an EHIC via the official site, and were unaware that EHICs are available free from the NHS.
More importantly, these traders breached the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 and, in some cases, the Electronic Commerce (EC Directive) Regulations 2002.
Heather Clayton, from the Office of Fair Trading states:
While it is not unlawful to charge money for a reviewing and forwarding service, traders must be clear about the product or service they are offering, and not trick consumers into parting with money for services they don’t want.
People seeking to obtain government-funded services such as an EHIC should check carefully that they are using an official government website.”
For British Citizens, you can get your EHIC cards from https://www.ehic.org.uk/Internet/home.do. Other European national, please consult your local/national health providers.
