TRAVEL INSURANCE ADVICE

It is a brave traveller who is prepared to take a holiday or business trip uninsured. The prospect of requiring medical treatment abroad, losing luggage or having to cancel or curtail trips makes travel insurance a must have.

Unfortunately for a lot of travellers and holiday makers there is a tendency to take the easy option of accepting over inflated insurance from travel agents and travel companies. So whether it is family travel insurance or business travel insurance that you require, there are some general good principles to follow.

If you make two trips or more abroad per year then an annual travel insurance policy is probably going to work out as cheaper travel cover for you. By choosing to opt for an annual policy you can obtain family travel insurance and business travel insurance in one go and of course you don’t have the hassle and expense of organising travel cover for each trip.

For travel in Europe, you should look to obtain a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC). This has replaced the E111 Form that used to be available from the Post Office. This EHIC will provide you with access to medical treatment due to illness or accident on the same basis as the residents of the country you are present in. Depending on which country it is, you may not be covered for all of the things that you would expect to receive without charge from the NHS, so you may have to contribute to the cost of any care. Of course an EHIC will not provide for costs of getting you home either, so even for travel closer to home in Europe, taking out full travel insurance is still very sensible. You can apply for a EHIC at the European Health Insurance Card website.

There is little point in purchasing travel insurance that doesn’t cover you for the activities you have planned for your trip. So if you think you may play sports, take part in adventurous activities or anything out of the norm then ask your insurance broker or insurance advisor if you will be covered. This should include considerations for injury to yourself and also if you cause damage or injury to others. eg. If you damage someone else's property in a jet ski accident. It may be that your insurance broker can get you additional cover for free or for a small addition to the premium.

Should you be offered FREE TRAVEL INSURANCE by your travel company then you may want to ask two questions. Firstly is the cover they are providing likely to be as good as a paid for policy? Secondly are you in fact paying for the travel insurance through added costs in your holiday anyway?

You may find FREE TRAVEL INSURANCE offered to you by a credit card company or another financial services organisation. Be very careful to check what is being offered as with most of these offers you are not being offered full travel insurance but only “travel accident insurance”.

Do you have a household insurance policy that covers home contents and “all risks”? If so, this may provide you with baggage insurance cover for holidays. If this is the case you should mention this to your insurance broker or insurance advisor when arranging your family travel insurance.

Different insurers and insurance policies will charge more depending on how great a risk they believe you to be. Some do this on a blanket basis and some do not. eg. Over 65's can be charged more on some policies and on others there will be standard rates up to the age of 80. An insurance broker will be able to advise and find you the best policy to suit such circumstances.

The best value travel insurance policies will generally not be found on the high street or at a travel agents. Which? Magazine surveys the market regularly and advises that the best rates will be found from specialist insurers. It therefore pays to speak to an insurance broker if you are comparing the market yourself.

Of course the staff at Bowlin Insurance are always happy to talk you through the various options that you may consider relating to Famiy Travel Insurance and Business Travel Insurance

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