You’ve bought those last few holiday essentials, made your final bookings and are ready to pack your bags… but do you have your travel insurance in place? Often overlooked till the last minute, travel insurance is an essential holiday inclusion, especially if you are going overseas. And if your destination is the United States it should be the first thing you buy! But how much do you really have to pay to get what you need? Will cheap travel insurance do the trick or will it leave you vulnerable if you have to claim? Here we outline the things you will probably miss out on with a cheap travel insurance policy so you can decide for yourself if the risk is worth it.
Why is it cheaper? Have they missed stuff out?
The old adage you get what you pay for holds true for travel insurance. Buying cheap travel insurance means either you are covered for the same things but at a lower value, your excesses are higher or you will miss out on the nice-to-haves such as cover for your luggage and legal expenses in the event of a personal liability claim. It may also mean you are not covered for pre-existing medical conditions, such as asthma, or sporting or extreme activities that aren’t specified. Pregnant women should be very careful when taking out a travel insurance policy so they are aware of any restrictions and are certain they are covered to travel – both at the beginning of the trip and the return journey.
One of the potentially pricier consequences of buying cheaper travel insurance can be receiving only limited medical cover. Having a cap on this type of cover means there could be expensive, leftover costs in such circumstances as the need for a medical evacuation (this can go way past the $100,000 mark in Australia) and hospital costs (in destinations, such as the US, this can be about USD$10,000 a day).
Other shortfalls can include only being provided a couple of hundred dollars for travel inconvenience, such as flight delay, missed connections and delayed or lost luggage. If, for example, a flight delay runs into days, your out-of-pocket expenses could add up to be considerably more.
Many travel insurance policies also end as soon as you hit home soil, so if you leave early due to, say, a relative being sick or a death in the family, and your policy does not cover you for special circumstances, you cannot get a refund for the portion of the holiday you missed out on.
Comprehensive travel cover versus cheap travel insurance
Good travel insurance may provide unlimited cover for medical emergencies and evacuation, as well as address cancellation costs, loss of baggage, personal liability (and associated legal costs), damage to rental cars and flight delays. A cheaper policy may only provide a restricted amount of cover, such as medical cover, personal liability, missed departure and connection, personal baggage and your cash.
It may seem like a big chuck of cash to fork out upfront but not taking out an appropriate level of travel insurance could bankrupt you. Once you leave home turf and step out into the big wide world stuff happens. Most people have a story to tell about lost baggage, cancelled flights, missed connections or stolen belongings. A few also have stories to share about broken limbs, evacuations (especially from countries not medically equipped to deal with more serious medical emergencies) and family circumstances that compelled an early return. To be sure your holiday is as restful as possible be sure you take out enough cover to give you peace of mind.
Source : http://www.insurancebuddy.com.au/
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Cheap travel insurance: is it enough?
Friday, December 21, 2007
Cheap Holiday Travel Insurance - Spend Your Vacation Peacefully
Spending holidays away from your home in a foreign land with friends and family is an essential part of our life because it provides a kind satisfaction to you and also acts as rejuvenation for work ahead. Cheap holiday travel insurance works as a tool of giving this chance to you.
Cheap holiday travel insurance does the work of giving protection to you in foreign country so that you can spend your holidays away from all the tension of traveling. You can never predict that when the traveling undertaken to spend holidays in foreign land will prove the most disastrous moment of your life. The cover given by cheap holiday travel insurance help you to live well in such circumstances and come back safe to your home after spending holidays.
Cheap holiday travel insurance covers you for the following:
Trip cancellation and trip interruption: this coverage can protect your airline ticket investment. Some policies include coverage for terrorism and natural disasters.
Trip delay: this coverage will reimburse you for the meal and hotel expenses when a trip is delayed. Emergency health and medical: cover necessary emergency medical costs incurred while traveling so that you do not have to take tension about the medical cost which might occur in foreign land. Emergency medical evacuation: covers for the emergency medical evacuation to an appropriate hospital or medical facility and include travel to return home when medically warranted. Lost, Stolen, Baggage and Personal Effects: Covers costs relating to items lost and stolen during your journey including baggage, personal effects, credit cards, passports, and travel documents. Apart from these covers if you pay extra premium then you can also get cover for third party damage if accidentally in foreign country you damage to any other person, in that situation your policy of cheap holiday travel insurance will cover for it.
If you are planning for some holiday abroad and you want to buy a policy of cheap holiday travel insurance then you can check it online. Online you can compare different cost and coverage for cheap holiday travel insurance. Even if you have any confusion you can instantly solve it online and you can also get information online that which policy of cheap holiday travel insurance is most suitable for your type of trip. So now for what are you waiting for? Just be online and get the best cheap travel insurance policy for yourself to enjoy with your loved ones.
Source : http://ezinearticles.com/
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Tips for thrifty travel
Source:http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2007/12/8/lifefocus/19690647&sec=lifefocus
Monday, December 17, 2007
Insuremore Offer Older People Travel Insurance for the Same Price as an 18-Year-Old
Insuremore has expanded its range of inexpensive travel insurance solutions to encompass an often overlooked demographic. The company has accepted that the huge demand for cheap travel insurance for seniors is too large to ignore, and after much research have slashed the cost of their policies for those aged 61-65 to match the prices paid by their younger counterparts.
Managing director, Patrick Chong, explained why the demand from the older market became too much to ignore. "We have recently been working on the online marketing of our site, and over the course of our research we discovered that there are huge numbers of people looking for cheap travel insurance for seniors," he explained. "We found a massive number of people typing terms like 'cheap senior travel insurance' and 'older people travel insurance' into Google, Yahoo! and MSN every month. We'd like to be on hand to offer them quality protection at a price that won't break the bank."
The price reduction coincides with wider research that indicates that, contrary to stereotypes, the older demographic are increasingly interested in taking part in activities typically associated with a younger generation. While the popular view is that older people are spending their twilight years knitting, playing bingo and gardening, a recent survey by AXA revealed that 28 percent of older respondents listed travel as one of their main hobbies. The survey also revealed that more active holidays and adventure travel were of interest to the older generation, which may surprise younger marketers who believed cruises were their sole interest. With this in mind, it's reassuring to hear that a 64-year-old man can get travel insurance covering winter sports for the same price as someone a third of his age!
Some may raise their eyebrows at an online travel insurance website targeting a generation typically considered to be technophobic, but once again the survey breaks with stereotypes, with over 40 percent of respondents listing internet usage as a hobby, which makes perfect sense to Mr Chong.
"The growing number of 'silver surfers' interesting in travel and the internet means that there is always going to be a demand for cheap travel insurance for seniors," he said. "In fact, I can only see this market growing as more and more people retire with the computer skills they have needed for work. Contrary to popular wisdom, the market is real and the market is growing."
The company's prices start from just £4.30 for single trip insurance around the UK for those aged 18-65, undercutting many of their rivals who still 'load' their over 60s with additional fees for senior travel insurance. The only difference between the company's policies is that a younger person would only pay the first £100 on any medical claims related to an activity they participated in, while someone in the older age group would pay the first £150. Patrick Chong feels that older people will realise this is a small price to pay for cheap seniors' travel insurance. "I think most of our older customers will appreciate that they could pay that difference on the initial policy from some of our rival travel insurance providers, let alone the premium in the worst case scenario," he said. "We're also aware that the vast majority of holiday makers don't end up making a costly claim, so they shouldn't let this worry them unnecessarily."
Source:http://www.prweb.com/releases/2007/12/prweb574173.htm
Top 10 Travel Insurance Tips
You spend hours and hours agonising over where to go on holiday, yet most people either book their travel insurance at the last minute or – horror of horrors - don't take it out at all
Leave your travel insurance to the last minute and you will probably end up paying a lot more for your policy. And while no one likes to think that things will go wrong, unfortunately sometimes they do. You could miss your flight or ferry, lose your baggage or money, or, perhaps worst of all, become ill or injured while you are abroad.
Travel insurance can help you deal with these emergencies. For many people it enables them to continue their holidays. For those that have to curtail their holidays because of illness or injury, they have the peace of mind that they will receive the treatment they need and if necessary be brought home.
It has emerged recently that the terms and conditions of many credit cards contain clauses that mean many people are not insured when travelling abroad, even though they believe they are. It's vital to be insured and it's vital that you are covered for every eventuality. Here's 10 things to consider when choosing travel insurance:
1. Does the policy provide sufficient cover for any medical eventuality and repatriation? The Foreign and Commonwealth Office recommends that the level of cover should be £1 million for Europe and £2 million for the rest of the world.
2. Does the policy provide a 24-hour emergency service/assistance company?
3. Does the policy cover a full refund of your costs if the trip is cancelled or cut short for any reason?
4. Does the cancellation cover start immediately?
5. Does the policy cover all the activities and sports that you might do? Many policies do not cover various activities, particularly "extreme sports" such as bungee jumping and sky diving.
6. Does the policy cover personal liability, in the event that you accidentally cause injury or damage to others and their property and they sue you?
7. Does the policy offer reimbursement of legal expenses incurred if a damage claim needs to be made?
8. Does the limit for stolen, lost or damaged possessions sufficiently cover what the items are worth?
9. How many children are covered under a family policy?
10. If you are travelling regularly during the year, would it be cheaper to take out an annual policy rather than single-trip cover each time?
Source:http://money.uk.msn.com/guides/Holiday-Money/article.aspx?cp-documentid=4752056
Monday, December 10, 2007
Insurance warning for gap year travellers
At least a quarter of gap year travellers are under-insured, which is a serious cause for concern, according to an industry observer.
Tom Griffiths, the founder of gapyear.com, stated that more than 25 per cent of those embarking on a gap year abroad do so with inadequate insurance or no insurance at all.
He added that parents' homes could be at risk if their under-insured offspring is involved in an accident abroad.
"It's very easy to rack up a bill of £50,000 and at some point, with the travel and backpacker market growing and more people travelling without insurance, someone will lose their home, or they'll have to remortgage and lose their life savings," Mr Griffiths said.
He warned that people often misunderstand the importance of travel insurance and view it as boring or irrelevant.
And while travellers may assume that travel insurance is important if you are going to participate in extreme sports, for example, the reality according to Mr Griffiths is that claims are more frequently made for things such as falling off a kerb or a donkey.
Source:http://www.londonstockexchange.com/en-gb/pricesnews/investnews/article.htm?ArticleID=18382815
Backpackers do not take out travel insurance
Backpackers do not always take out travel insurance despite carrying more than £600 worth of goods on their travels, according to a survey by insurance website Insurewithease.com. Despite carrying at least £200 worth of gadgets - such as mobile phones, laptops and digital cameras - almost a third of backpackers are not taking out any travel insurance. The poll also revealed that an unlucky one in ten travellers has been hit by thieves, losing goods worth an average of more than £100. Eight per cent also had their bags taken from the luggage carousel at the airport. Insurewithease.com operations manager Jack Harris said: "What's astonishing for us as an insurance provider is that the main reason given for not taking out adequate travel insurance was the cost. "When people are carrying more than £600 worth of goods with them, and when the average backpacker insurance policy for a 12 month trip is less than £5 per week, this is a complete false economy. "There seems to be a lack of awareness and understanding of how essential travel insurance really is and we hope to change that." The poll also revealed that traveller's biggest concern is their personal safety while 17 per cent worry about running out of money. sourcce:http://www.travelweekly.co.uk/Articles/2007/11/16/25922/backpackers-do-not-take-out-travel-insurance.html
Backpackers 'show lack of insurance awareness'
Travellers enjoying backpacking holidays are neglecting to take out travel insurance despite carrying valuable goods with them, it has been reported.
Travel Weekly reports that research from Insurewithease.com suggests that some backpackers travel with up to £600 worth of possessions and no travel insurance while a third of those with £200 worth of belongings neglect to take out cover.
Furthermore, the study revealed that a tenth of backpackers have been the victim of thieves incurring average losses of over £100.
"There seems to be a lack of awareness and understanding of how essential travel insurance really is and we hope to change that," commented Insurewithease.com operations manager Jack Harris.
He added that the most common reason cited by holidaymakers for failing to take out travel insurance was the cost.
However he added that this is a "false economy".
Traditional backpacker destinations include Australia and Thailand. However, the Association of British Travel Agents reports that flung destinations such as Costa Rica and South America are becoming increasingly popular among holidaymakers.
Source:http://www.gotravelinsurance.co.uk/public/news.asp?id=18361478