Travel insurance

 

The insurance which is expected to cover the losses incurred doing a travel which includes medical insurance, financial and other losses within the country or abroad is called travel insurance. 

The travel insurance offered by the insurance companies has more inclusive than the travel insurance which is offered by the travel agents for the travel booking company. However, the travel insurance can also be purchased at the time of the trip which includes the period of stay in the hotels and also the medical costs incurred while returning from the trip.  

During a journey or a gala tour there are many risks as such as loss of baggage, terrorist attack, hijacking of the plane, theft cases of valuables, natural calamities and accidents and a travel insurance policy can be a help full while facing these situations. 

The concept of travel insurance is pretty easy. The insured pays a premium; the company which is providing the coverage of travel insurance will be responsible for any kind of unfortunate happenings. If as said above, nothing happens then the travel insurance provider will fetch the premium into his account. 

A travel insurance policy is beneficial for variety of travelers such as students who go on vacations or on study tours, business travels, leisure travels, adventure travels, cruise travels and international travels.

The most common risks which are covered by a travel insurance are-

 

• Cancellation of tickets
• Curtailment
• Delayed departure
• Loss, theft or damage to personnel money or goods.
• Legal assistance

 

• Delayed baggage
• Funeral expenses, if in case the policy holder dies on a trip
• Emergency evacuation / repatriation

 

• Accidents

Some of the major risks are elaborated below-

 

Trip cancellation- There is a probability of numerous circumstances in which one has to cancel his trip and cancel his/her travel tickets. If one has to go for cancellation of journey tickets very often there is a chance that one can hope for a refund from the airlines, because generally airlines do not refund for those who cancel their journey tickets in the last moment. But if the person is covered with a travel insurance policy, then he /she will get refund for the cancelled tickets from the travel insurance company, provided it is under the guidelines of the travel insurance company. 

Loss of travel baggage- if there is a loss of travel baggage during the travel the cost of worth of the total baggage which is lost is paid or refunded by the travel insurance company. But must and should abide the rules of the insurance contract. 

Medical bills cost- in case if the traveler gets sick due to a climatic change or due to other reasons on a journey, then he/she will get the reimbursement of the total medical treatment costs incurred during the time of treatment. 

However, the golden rule is that, all the insurance rules and regulations must be pre- learnt before going for the policy and even the fine print of the policy must be thoroughly read. 

• Some of the top insurance companies offer to their consumer’s additional services such as sports which involve high risk in them

 

• Traveling to danger prone countries like Pakistan and Iraq

 

• They also provide cover for pre- existing medical conditions.

 

The exclusion from the travel insurance inclusions are 

• Most of the travel insurance companies opt out for insuring the people who have pre- existing medical problems

 

• They also opt out to insure those travelers who are traveling to the countries which are war prone or which encourage terrorism.

 

• The travel insurance law also excludes pregnancy related costs, but under the additional benefit schemes only the top companies issue insurance policy for even pregnant women travelers.

 

• Most of the travel insurance companies opt out to insure people who have the habit of regular intake of alcohol and smoking.

While going for travel insurance policy the following points must be remembered

 

1. Always thoroughly read and learn the travel insurance policy, before purchasing it.

 

1. Before going for a travel insurance policy, one must make full estimation or detailed survey about the assistance service which is offered by the travel insurance company. Most of the travel insurance companies are disinterested in providing their customers with perfect medical assistance and route the queries of their customers to the call center which will provide some medical assistance through clerks instead of a qualified doctors. And in the case of emergency, they refuse to provide the assistance saying that their insurance company has not abided to do so.  

 
 

1. Every policy regarding travel insurance has its own limitations or conditions. One must ensure that the pre- existing rules and regulations of the travel insurance company must be fully learnt and also not the important rules like will the rules or the travel insurance policy comes into existence from the day of departure or from the day the policy has been purchased. If the consumer has purchased a annual multi trip plan then the conditions will apply to the departure date of each every trip.

 

1. Be cautious about the claims settlement scheme and make sure whether it is in dollars or in the local currency of the country visited.

 

1. If the travel insurance companies ask you to opt for a deductible, then that is a good choice opt for it.

 

1. If the consumer has a plan of going for a multi trip during a course of a year, then it is better he opts for an annual travel insurance plan which includes his/her trip tour and also includes a variety of trips through the year and is valid all along that year.

 

1. When travel insurance is taken then automatically a doctor is provided if any health problem arises during the course of a trip. The policy holder will be assisted to go to the nearest doctor who is in the travel insurance company’s panel of doctors. But a dangerous practice is that the policy holder refuses to get treated for a drug change and this can lead to serious consequences.

 

1. Almost all the travel insurances companies need the proof of departure and return and all the proof which is used to purchase the tickets like credit card bills and debit card bills. .

Traveling tips needed while traveling and which can avoid maximum risks.

 

1. While traveling, to avoid muscle strain it is better to take frequent intervals from driving and also if possible opt for a short nap. This helps in refreshing and also makes the body stress relief.

 

1. Lack of immunization can cause serious illness. So make sure that one is properly immunized and is safe to travel.

 

1. Traveling with basic needs like a thermometer, some regular tables, analgesics, antiseptics and anti biotic will be helpful in need.

 

1. If the policy holder is taking a prescribe medicine which is essential to his or her basic health like a inhaler pump in case of asthma and the adequate supply of regular medicines will avoid any kind of medicine shortage.

 

1. Consider to have a through dental and total health check up to avoid any future risks involved due to health.

 

1. Maintain normal routine as it is and better to avoid drugs and alcohol during the travel or also stay.

 

1. If the travel insurance policy holder has a pre- existing condition like hyper tension and diabetes and also asthma, then it is wise to travel with another health person in case of emergency need.