If you travel then travel insurance is a must have

Travelling is fun and exciting but it can also be expensive and risky. Anyone who has had their luggage pinched or ‘misplaced’ by baggage handles can attest to that. Lost traveller cheques can simply ruin what has taken months to save up for and the loss of money can leave you stranded in a foreign country, especially if all your travel documents were taken too. Travel insurance is not a luxury; it is a necessity even if your company is picking up the bill.

What about medical emergencies? What do you do if you or someone in your group is taken ill? Do you have the funds to get them medical attention? Often medical facilities ask for hefty cash up front payments before they will treat foreign nationals. Medical attention can be so expensive that it is not uncommon for an insurance provider to offer as much as £2m in their travel insurance cover.

Under this area of cover it is worth mentioning some facts about what is not covered. Pre-existing medical conditions are generally excluded as they should be covered in your normal medical cover, but it is worth having a conversation with your insurance specialist about this anyway. Sports that carry high risk such as scuba diving or abseiling are also excluded. So are injuries sustained while visiting countries that are considered high risk for natural disasters or terrorism. War torn countries also fit into this category. However it is often possible to purchase separate insurance for any or all of these.

Pregnancy on the other hand is usually covered only if you travel within the first trimester, after that things may get a little tricky and cover varies from insurer to insurer so it is advisable to check all the facts before your journey. What is definitely excluded however is any injury or illness caused by either alcohol or drug use.

These are the most common risks most travellers include in their insurance. There are a host of other cover options available too such as delayed departure or even having to cancel your trip for various reason, funeral expenses, emergency evacuation, legal assistance, rental car damage excess and even personal liability cover. There is even an option available for adventure travellers or students who may travel for months at a time.

Surprisingly travel insurance can even provide you with extra bonuses and very helpful services such as concierge services and emergency travel assistance, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.

Your insurance should not cost you more a small percentage of the total cost of your trip. All you need to do is speak to your insurance provider and discuss which options suit up best. This way you will have peace of mind that everything your need to travel safely and confidently is covered in your travel insurance.

Travel Insurance Basics

The vast majority of holidays go off without a hitch with most holidaymakers experiencing nothing worse than a bit too much exposure to the sun. However in the tiny minority of cases where things do go wrong it can be a great source of comfort to know that you will be well taken care of and that you will be able to cover the huge costs often associated with emergencies abroad. This is exactly where travel insurance comes in. The purpose of travel insurance is to offer cover against some of the most common mishaps (ranging from the irritating to the life threatening) that people experience while they are on holiday or travelling for business.

The first important distinction that travellers have to make when buying travel insurance is how long they want their policies to run for. It is possible to buy a ‘single trip’ policy that will only cover you for a specified amount of time. The other alternative would be an ‘annual multi trip policy’. This will almost certainly work out cheaper than getting a series of single trip policies if you are a frequent traveller. The fact that you are insured year round also means that you can save yourself the hassle of having to arrange insurance before every single trip.

In evaluating travel insurance policies it is important to verify that they have excellent cover in all of the following areas:

Medical Cover: Emergency medical expenses in a foreign country can be extremely high and excellent medical cover should therefore form the cornerstone of any travel insurance policy. Some of the things that are generally covered are:

• Emergency treatment and hospitalisation
• Evacuation and/or repatriation if necessary
• After care (e.g. payment for physiotherapy after an injury)

United Kingdom citizens travelling in the Europe Union enjoy the privilege of free or reduced fee medical treatment. Getting a ‘Europe Only’ travel insurance policy can therefore sometimes be significantly cheaper than a worldwide one. You can prove your entitlement to free or reduced medical care in Europe by applying for and always carrying an “European Health Insurance Card” (EHIC) with you.*

Cancellation/Postponement Cover: This part of your policy will cover you against unforeseen events like a flight being delayed for a long time (your policy will help to cover costs incurred, e.g. hotel bills, in such cases) or cancelled altogether. It will also normally cover you if you have to cancel a holiday or flight from your side due to unforeseen circumstances.

Possessions Cover: Knowing that your property is insured against loss, theft or damage can be very reassuring when travelling.

Personal Accident Cover: Most travel insurance policies will pay out a lump sum upon your death or permanent disability.

Legal Expenses: Being sued in a foreign country can be a daunting experience. Many travel insurance policies cover legal expenses related to personal liability arising from accidents and other incidents.

When choosing a travel insurance policy it is important to make sure that it fits in perfectly with your particular circumstances and destination. In some cases you will, for example, have to pay an extra premium if you participate in any activity considered high risk (e.g. bungee jumping, snowboarding etc.). Checking whether there is not a Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) warning against all travel to a destination in place is also a good idea since some insurance companies clearly state that their policies will not be valid if you ignore FCO advice^.

Summary:

• Travel Insurance can be a great way to experience a bit of peace of mind while travelling
• Policies are generally for a single trip or for multiple trips over a year.
• The areas that are normally covered by travel insurance policies are: Medical, Possessions, Cancellation and postponement, Legal and Personal Accident
• It is important to check whether you are adequately covered, especially in the light of exclusions related to hazardous activities and FCO warnings

* More information about the European Health Insurance Card can be found at: http://www.nhs.uk/EHIC/Pages/About.aspx
^ The full details of FCO travel advice for different countries can be found at:
http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travelling-and-living-overseas/travel-advice-by-country

Travel insurance

Time was when travel insurance tended to be sold as a single, standard package, one trip at a time, wherever in the world you were going and whatever the purpose of the travel. This posed two major drawbacks: the standard package could well result in your buying cover that you really did not need; or – potentially worse – leave you without a particular type or aspect of cover which you really did need.

Travel insurance today, however, is far more sophisticated and can be tailored to fit individual needs to ensure that vital cover is included, while unnecessary elements can be excluded and full value for money enjoyed. Features of such insurance, therefore, are likely to include the following:

Annual or single-trip

One of the most helpful innovations has been the marketing of annual insurance that gives the reassurance of knowing that every trip is covered. This avoids last-minute dashing around to arrange what could prove to be more expensive single-trip insurance and recognizes that many people travel abroad more frequently these days. For the less adventurous, however, it is still possible to take out single-trip insurance, as and when it is needed.

Adventure

Travel insurers recognize the recent huge growth in the numbers of people combining travel with adventure sports and activities. Whether this is skiing or snowboarding, other mountain sports, water sports or a myriad other forms of adventure, specialist insurance packages are available to cover the particular and peculiar needs of those who determined to mix action with their travel.

Cruising

Another explosion in holiday choices has been the growth in cruise ship travel. This also entails the need for cover that addresses the particular needs and concerns of cruise passengers, whatever their age.

Golfing

A sporting trip on which you are unlikely to run the same risk of injury as the adventurously inclined is a golf holiday. But, once again, there are particular needs and concerns that insurance packages can cover for the traveling golfer. Golf clubs and other equipment are valuable and need insuring, for example, whilst tailored packages can also cover the cancellation of expensive green fees or other bookings.

Backpackers

More and more students and many other young people are taking advantage of “gap years” and other extended holidays to see more of the world and spend longer overseas. Where standard holiday insurance is frequently limited to a maximum number of days that would fall short of the backpackers’ expectations, these specifically-designed insurance packages provide cheap cover for those planning to be away from home for up to a year or 18 months (depending on the insurer).

Age-related

Given that many travel insurance plans provide cover for up to a maximum of £10 million medical cover, the policy holder’s age and any pre-existing medical conditions need to be taken into account. These days, however, disabilities, special needs or pre-existing medical conditions need be no barrier to a holiday and securing the appropriate level of travel insurance. Neither is age any obstacle, since many companies will insure travelers up to 99 years of age, simply recognizing that the age of the policy holder will of course affect the level of risk insured and therefore arranging cover as appropriate for those aged up to 65 years, those 66 to 69, 70 to 75, and over 75.