Travel is exciting. It gives you the chance to be adventurous, to experience new things and grow as a person.
But, to stay safe it is important that you buy the right level of travel insurance coverage. Sometimes it is not enough to simply purchase the deal that is offered by your airline. Or, stick with the travel insurance your bank offers as part of its customer loyalty package. In fact, often, doing that is a dangerous thing to do. As you will see, frequently, these one size fits all travel insurance packages, are woefully inadequate.
Always get medical coverage
One thing most of these policies are lacking in is proper coverage for medical emergencies. If you fall sick miles from home the last thing you need to worry about is whether you can afford your medical bills.
You need to make sure that your policy covers you for all kinds of illnesses, medical incidents and injuries. If you have pre-existing conditions, you need to find a provider that will allow you to buy coverage for those as well. It will cost you more, but it is far better than not being able to secure adequate treatment for yourself.
To clinic transport and proper medical repatriation cover
It is also important to check that the policy includes the cost of transport to the medical treatment facility. In some cities, even an ambulance can cost you hundreds. If you are going somewhere remote, the only option could be a helicopter, in which case, the bill would be huge. So, always make sure this is covered. If it is not, be prepared to pay a little extra to buy what you need.
The other thing that catches a lot of travelers out is not having proper medical repatriation coverage. People underestimate this cost. They figure it might cost them double or triple the price of a plane ticket to travel home with a nurse or doctor. This figure is miles out. You are looking at double-figures even for a journey that just takes a couple of hours. So, if the policy you are offered provides up to $10,000 of cover in the event of medical repatriation, that is not going to cover it. Prices typically range between $25,000 and $50,00, but the bill can go much higher. How much you pay depends on a lot of factors. So, always over insure yourself.
Are all of your activities covered?
If you are planning on doing something that is categorized as risky, you may need to buy extra coverage. Even things like skiing, snowboarding, hiking in remote places and certain types of boat trips can fall into this category. So, make a list of the things you want to enjoy doing while you are away and make sure that if you get injured while doing them, you will be covered.
More things to consider
This is not designed to be a comprehensive guide to buying travel insurance. It has been written to make you think and alert you to some of the dangers of not buying a policy that provides adequate coverage. So, we recommend that you click the provided link and use the information that you will find on that page as a checklist.
