'It's an insult': Outrage as student's insurer referred to artificial leg as 'baggage'

Sarah's European trip was turned on its head after she fell and snapped her prosthetic leg. Photo / Fair Go

A 26-year-old Kiwi who is studying in Switzerland has hit out after her travel insurer referred to her artificial leg as "baggage".

Sarah Fuhrer, who has artificial limbs on both legs, suffered a nasty fall while on a class trip around Europe.

She said she snapped her prosthetic leg after she fell down concrete stairs, describing the incident as terrifying.

However, her unfortunate accident went from bad to worse when she was told by her insurance company "her prosthesis is only covered to $1500, it's considered baggage and we hadn't declared it as a specified item".

Sarah's mother Louise was left dumbfounded after claiming she had declared the prosthetic limbs with Southern Cross.

Louise told Fair Go that Southern Cross's stance is appalling.

"It's an insult, her limbs are part of her. She can't function without them," she said.

Sarah Fuhrer (pictured) was travelling around Europe when she fell down a flight of stairs. Photo / Fair Go

The damage to the prosthetic was estimated to be around $3000 and about $8000 to replace the whole leg.

Southern Cross said it would not pay more than $1500 and Sarah began to worry she would have to pick up the bill.

"To suggest that something that belongs to her that essentially is a part of her is baggage, I find actually quite insulting and distressing," Louise told Fair Go.

Louise, Sarah's mother, claims she was told 'her prosthesis is only covered to $1500, it's considered baggage and we hadn't declared it as a specified item'. Photo / Fair Go

Southern Cross originally said it was not prepared to pay more than $1500 but has since changed its stance.

She snapped one of the artificial limbs which she uses for mobility (pictured). Photo / Fair Go

After investigating the incident chief executive Chris White apologised to Sarah and her family for the distress caused.

"Sarah's case [a damaged prosthetic] is not a scenario our staff are used to dealing with every day, but we've learned from it and have already started making changes so we can do a better job in the future," he said.

Southern Cross will now cover the full cost to fix or replace the damaged prosthetic leg.