For many years , my wife and I have travelled in Italy by car , renting an apartment to explore an area for a week before moving on to our next destination . Last June , with a month of exploring already behind us , we ended up at the geometrical centre of Italy where we rented an apartment in Poggio Bustone near Rieti . While travelling leisurely along Via Salaria road , we were hit by a small truck going in the opposite direction . I managed to avoid the head-on collision , but the left rear wheel of my car was hit . My car swerved to the left , jumped about a metre in the air , landed on its three remaining wheels , and hit the concrete wall on the left side of the road , finally stopping in the left lane perpendicular to the original direction of motion .

We both ended up in hospital ; my wife for nine days , myself for two . From Canada , my daughter contacted Beneva on our behalf . The treatment we received exceeded all our expectations . It was Beneva ’ s subsidiary , AXA , with whom we were in contact for the next month . My wife and I each received a case number and two phone numbers in Canada that we could contact 24 / 7 . When calling , we were always immediately connected with a live agent , who seemed to know everything about us and our case . They frequently called us in Italy to ask about our health , and our phone conversations with the Beneva and AXA agents were always a pleasure .

Beneva arranged for a medical doctor to come twice by car from a town some 200 kilometres away , as well as a physiotherapist for my wife . More importantly , they insisted that we stay in Italy for as long as necessary for my wife to recover , as all but two of her ribs had cracked and they were concerned about fluid around her lungs . Beneva was also prepared to arrange and pay for a hotel for us in Rieti ; however , we preferred to stay in our rented apartment .

After a month of keeping in touch with our doctors and following up on my wife ’ s test results , Beneva / AXA allowed us to travel back home .

When the day came , a large Mercedes van arrived at our apartment to take us more than 160 kilometres to the

Rome airport . Our return flights were paid for , and for the first time , we travelled in business class .

Our outstanding experience with Beneva and AXA has restored our confidence that there are decent and caring people in the corporate world .

Sincerely yours , Zbigniew W . Gortel

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