Neurodivergent travel insurance disclosure: what the evidence shows

The short answer

Neurodivergent travel insurance disclosure is a live worry for many UK travellers, but the official sources we reviewed do not establish that insurers are asking for more. None of the five GOV.UK documents examined covers travel insurance, so we cannot confirm that firms are increasingly requiring neurodivergent people to declare conditions, or that premiums are rising as a result. That claim needs evidence from insurers, the regulator or consumer groups, and we have not been given it.

What the sources do show is why the question matters. An independent review published by government describes a pattern in which autistic people hold back information about their diagnosis because they fear being treated unfairly. The Buckland Review of Autism Employment, published in February 2024, found that only around 35% of autistic employees are fully open about being autistic, and 1 in 10 tell no one at work.

That is evidence about workplaces, not holiday cover, and it should not be stretched into a finding about insurers. It does, however, explain why a request to declare a condition can feel risky, and why clear, published rules would help. This explainer sets out what the sources say about disclosure, where the gaps are, and the practical steps a traveller can take before buying a policy.

How disclosure works in the sources we have

The clearest legal duty to declare a neurodivergent condition in the material reviewed sits with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency. GOV.UK states: “You must tell DVLA if you have autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and it affects your ability to drive safely.” If autism does not affect driving, there is no need to tell the DVLA, and people unsure are told to ask their doctor.

The penalty is specific. You can be fined up to £1,000 for failing to tell the DVLA about autism that affects safe driving, and you may be prosecuted if you are involved in an accident as a result. Learner drivers do not usually need to declare, because the driving test assesses their ability. Full car or motorcycle licence holders must report a change that may make them an unsafe driver, using form A1, while bus, coach or lorry licence holders use form A1V.

This rule turns on effect, not diagnosis. The test is whether the condition affects a specific activity, not whether a label exists. That is a useful way to read any question about health, though the DVLA’s test applies to driving licences and says nothing about how an insurer words its own questions.

For employment, the guidance runs the other way. Government guidance for employers says it is against the law to treat someone less favourably because they are disabled, and that employers must make reasonable adjustments. The Equality Act 2010 defines a disabled person as someone with a physical or mental impairment that has a “substantial” and “long-term” effect on their ability to do normal daily activities. Whether a given neurodivergent traveller falls within that definition depends on the individual, and the sources do not say how it applies to insurance.

Autism and ADHD health disclosure: what the research says about openness

The Buckland Review, led by Sir Robert Buckland KC MP and supported by Autistica, with secretariat from the Department for Work and Pensions, is the most detailed source on why people choose not to disclose. It says the most common time to disclose is after starting a job, “highlighting a persistent and well-founded fear of discrimination during the recruitment process”. The authors describe that fear as well founded, which is their conclusion, not ours.

The review also records that around one third of autistic employees felt unable to discuss their adjustment needs at all. Of those who did ask for adjustments, over a quarter were refused. It adds that many autistic people feel they must mask their traits to succeed, and that neurodiverse people do not consistently identify as having a long-term health condition, so official counts are likely to be an undercount.

To show what the disclosure figures mean in practice, take a hypothetical workplace with 100 autistic employees. On the review’s numbers, around 35 would be fully open about it and around 10 would have told nobody. That leaves roughly 55 who have told some people but not everyone. This is our arithmetic applied to the review’s percentages, not a figure from the review, and it describes employment, not insurance.

Autistica estimates that around 1 in 70 people is autistic, about 1 million people in the UK. In 2022/23, 680,000 working-age people reported autism as a main or secondary long-term health condition, according to the review.

Disability travel insurance in the UK: what we cannot say

It is worth being plain about the limits of the evidence. The independent review into mental health conditions, ADHD and autism, whose interim report applies to England, says demand for assessment has increased and that the number of diagnoses has risen. It does not examine insurance, and it states that its interim report offers no conclusions or recommendations.

That rising number of diagnoses is the only link we can draw to the angle of this story, and it is a weak one. More people holding a recorded diagnosis could in principle mean more people facing medical questions on forms, but none of the sources says insurers have changed their questions, their pricing or their exclusions. We have not seen any insurer, trade body or regulator statement, and we have not seen any price data.

Readers who have been quoted a higher premium, or refused cover, after declaring autism or ADHD can still act. The sources do show that discrimination because of disability is unlawful in the employment context, but they do not say how that law applies to insurance products. Anyone in that position should ask the insurer in writing why the condition affected the quote, and keep the reply.

Key dates

Several dates in the sources shape the wider picture of disclosure and support for neurodivergent people. None relates directly to travel insurance, but they show where official attention is focused.

The Buckland Review was launched on 2 April 2023, World Autism Awareness Day, and published in February 2024. The government’s 10 Year Health Plan was published in July 2025, and 1,000 Pathways to Work Advisers have been in Jobcentres across England, Scotland and Wales since that month.

Looking ahead from the government’s response to the Expert Academic Panel on Neurodiversity, the first round of bids to the £60 million Pathways to Work Innovation Fund was due to open in September 2026. Four fit note pilots across England were due to begin in July 2026. The independent mental health, ADHD and autism review has said its final report will set out conclusions and recommendations, but the interim report gives no date for it.

The government response also says Connect to Work, a £1 billion supported employment programme, has a specialist pathway for neurodivergent and learning disabled participants. To the end of June 2026, 4,100 people aged under 25 had started on it and 470 had moved into work, which the response calls an early snapshot.

Your questions answered

Do I need to declare anxiety on travel insurance?

The sources do not answer this. They do not cover insurance, and none sets out what a travel insurer may ask about anxiety or any other mental health condition. The reliable route is the policy’s own medical screening questions and its terms, which should state what must be declared. Answer them accurately, keep a copy of what you said, and ask the insurer to clarify any question you find ambiguous.

Do travel insurance companies share information?

The sources reviewed say nothing about whether insurers share customer information. We therefore cannot say what happens in practice. The insurer’s privacy notice is the place where it must explain how it uses and passes on your data, and you can ask the company directly if the notice is unclear.

Do you have to declare coeliac disease on travel insurance?

Coeliac disease is not mentioned in any of the sources, so we cannot say whether a given insurer asks about it. The same approach applies as for any condition: read the medical questions on the application, answer them honestly, and ask the insurer in writing if the wording leaves you unsure whether a condition counts.

Is there any law that tells me to declare autism?

Not for insurance, according to the sources we have. The one explicit duty is to the DVLA, and it applies only where autism affects your ability to drive safely. If you are unsure, GOV.UK advises asking your doctor.