Making Travel Insurance
Work Better for You
1. Why do I need travel insurance?
We buy travel insurance for the same reason
we purchase any insurance policy: to cover
us when things go wrong. Not every country
has a free health service and you could find
yourself facing a hefty bill if you fall ill
abroad. Then there are the problems which
are not life-threatening but still stressful
- lost luggage, cancelled flights and so on.
The bottom line is it makes sense to take
out an insurance policy unless you're prepared
to find yourself out-of-pocket as a result
of any holiday mishaps.
2. What cover can I expect from a
travel insurance policy?
Your travel insurance policy should cover:
medical expenses, personal liability, cancellation
and curtailment, loss of baggage and theft.
The two most important parts of the cover
are the medical expenses to cover the cost
of any emergency medical treatment you may
require and personal liability - this covers
you in the event that you’re faced with
a bill for any damage or injury you cause
to anyone else or their property while abroad.
You should also have cover to pay out a lump
sum if you’re injured or if you die
while abroad. The amount of insurance for
each of these categories obviously differs
from policy to policy, generally the cheaper
the policy, the lower the cover. Some insurance
policies offer a range of value-added services,
such as replacement vehicles, house-watching
and so on. It may also be worthwhile choosing
an insurance policy which offers an international
helpline, especially if you are going to a
country where English is not readily spoken.
3. Is it really worth shopping
around for travel insurance?
What's wrong with the policies offered by travel
agents? The cover on offer is highly unlikely
to be the best deal you can get, so it is a
good idea to shop around. The normal holiday
discount is 15% or to put it another way a £150
saving on a £1,000 family break. But a family
of four will pay nearly as much for insurance
with leading travel agents such as Lunn Poly,
Going Places and Thomas Cook.
Click
here for a Travel Insurance comparison.
4. Do I need extra insurance cover to take my
car abroad?
When you plan on driving abroad, check with
your car insurer about just how much protection
your existing policy provides. At the very least
you will likely need a green card, which is
proof in Europe that you are insured. You should
also consider an international roadside assistance
policy. A travel insurance policy will not cover
you when driving abroad. If necessary you will
have to arrange extra cover through your existing
car insurer.
5. Is it worth buying an annual
travel insurance policy rather than one for
each trip abroad?
If you are a frequent international traveller,
making two trips a year or more you will probably
be better off arranging an annual travel insurance
contract rather than cover for each journey.
These policies generally allow unlimited trips
as long as no one trip exceeds 90 days. Annual
policies are offered by insurers such as Columbus,
WorldCover Direct, Inter Assurance, GA Direct
and Barclays. But check the cover, some annual
contracts will not insure you for winter sports,
for example, so if one of your trips is to the
ski slopes, you may still be better served by
dedicated policies. And if you are planning
a long trip off the beaten tourist path, you
will probably need specialist help.
6. Why do I need to buy special insurance
for my skiing holiday?
Statistically, you are far more likely to have
an accident skiing, or indulging in some other
hazardous sport, than you are sitting on a beach
reading a book. This is why most basic travel
insurance policies exclude hazardous pursuits.
You should make sure you are covered, for example,
for mountain rescue costs (if you need to be
brought off the mountain); the cost of prepaid
expenses such as ski pass and skis; and expenses
incurred as a result of delays caused by avalanches
in addition to the standard travel cover.
7. Can I get free travel insurance
cover from my credit card issuer?
Credit cardholders paying for holidays or air
tickets with their plastic may be eligible for
free insurance. Standard cards protection may
be limited but many gold cards provide comprehensive
travel insurance. If your household insurance
policy is arranged on an "all-risks" basis,
it means your possessions are also insured outside
the home.
8. What kind of cover should I
be buying?
Are you travelling on your own or with your
family or as part of a group? If you are buying
insurance for more than one person, a joint
policy is likely to work out cheaper than separate
policies for each individual. The kind of cover
you will be looking for will depend on how much
cover you already have. Your possessions may
already be covered through an all risks clause
on your home insurance policy and your actual
travelling costs may be covered by insurance
through your credit card (assuming you used
it to purchase the holiday tickets). When you
buy travel insurance be sure to find out details
of coverage.
9. What sort of problems I might face
are not covered by travel insurance?
There are some dangers you might face while
on holiday which will not be covered by any
travel insurance policy. These include detention
or confiscation of belongings by Customs or
any other government officials. You will also
find that nobody will cover you against the
risk of radioactive contamination. You may feel
that both of these possibilities are remote
enough not to worry about. However, there are
more prosaic dangers that may be equally expensive
and life threatening in that order: no travel
insurance policy will cover you against losses
as a result of exchange rate movements or against
HIV infection or AIDS.
Travelling abroad you should remember to take
your passport and tickets, together with any
visas or entry permits and, where necessary,
vaccination certificates. You should also have
a copy of your travel insurance policy with
you. If you're taking your own car abroad
or are likely to be hiring a vehicle you should
also have an International Drivers Licence and
your motor insurance certificate green card.
If you are taking your own car you should also
have a copy of your car registration document.
Finally, don't forget your travellers' cheques,
foreign currency, credit cards and, for the
last stage of the return trip, some Sterling. |
