Travel Insurance Policy Guide - What Is and IS NOT Covered By Most Travel Insurance Policies?
You should always make sure that you
have travel insurance if you are thinking of traveling abroad.
Just think what you would do if your luggage or your currency
was lost or stolen, or if you had a slight accident and found
yourself landed with a thousand dollar medical bill. Hopefully
none of this will happen, and for the most part it doesn’t
but there are people out there who have ended up in a lot of
debt due to an unforeseen incident and the fact that they had
no, or insufficient, travel insurance.
If you are going on a package holiday
with insurance included then you should check just what you are
covered for – you
don’t want to find at the end of your holiday that there
is insufficient insurance to cover whatever mishap has occurred.
It is far better to know in advance then you can purchase additional
cover if you should need it. Even so, most ‘comprehensive’ insurance
policies will not cover you for everything. So what should you
expect from a good general policy?
Most policies cover you for luggage and travelers checks that
are lost or stolen, the amount you get will depend on the premium
that you can afford to pay, and what the excess is i.e. companies
may not pay the first $100 of any claim, which means that you will
have to pay that. You should also be covered for medical attention
if you are ill, dental treatment for pain relief and emergency
hospital treatment. Not all policies will pay for repatriation
due to medical reasons so you would need to check that out.
Find out whether you are covered for
cancellation fees as most travel agents will not refund the cost
if you have to cancel your holiday after a certain date – if
the policy does not allow for this then you may want to get extra
cover.
Companies will not pay for medical
treatment for an existing condition and if you have not been
truthful about this when you took out the insurance then you
could be liable for fraud. Most policies do not cover you for
accidents and damage caused if you are driving while abroad neither
will they cover accidents related to water sports or boat trips.
You should always read the small print on your travel insurance
so that you know exactly what is and is not covered. Company
representatives don’t always remember to
tell you these things. If you are going skiing or on an adventure
holiday then you will need extra cover for the risks associated
with these things – particularly with skiing as you may need
an air rescue team. Going scuba diving? Then before you go you
need to check out which companies can offer cover for that. You
may not come to any harm but it is better to be safe than sorry.