Travel Insurance |
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What is Travel Insurance? |
Travel insurance is insurance that is intended to cover medical expenses and
financial (such as money invested in nonrefundable pre-payments) and other
losses incurred while traveling, either within one's own country, or
internationally.
Temporary travel insurance can usually be arranged at the time of the booking of
a trip to cover exactly the duration of that trip, or a more extensive,
continuous insurance can be purchased from travel insurance companies, travel
agents or directly from travel suppliers such as cruiselines or tour operators.
However, travel insurance purchased from travel suppliers tends to be less
inclusive than insurance offered by insurance companies.
Travel insurance often offers coverage for a variety of travelers. Student
travel, business travel, leisure travel, adventure travel, cruise travel, and
international travel are all various options that can be insured.
The most common risks that are covered by travel insurance are:
Medical expenses Emergency evacuation/repatriation Trip
cancellation/interruption Accidental death, injury or disablement benefit
Overseas funeral expenses Curtailment Delayed departure Loss, theft or damage to
personal possessions and money (including travel documents) Delayed baggage (and
emergency replacement of essential items) Legal assistance Personal liability
and rental car damage excess Some travel policies will also provide cover for
additional costs, although these vary widely between providers.
In addition, often separate insurance can be purchased for specific costs such
as:
pre-existing medical conditions (e.g. asthma, diabetes) sports with an element
of risk (e.g. skiing, scuba-diving) travel to high risk countries (e.g. due to
war or natural disasters or acts of terrorism) Common Exclusions:
pre-existing medical conditions war or terrorism - but some plans may cover this
risk injury or illness caused by alcohol or drug use Usually, the insurers cover
pregnancy related expenses, if the travel occurs within the first trimester.
After that, insurance coverage varies from insurer to insurer.
Travel insurance can also provide helpful services, often 24 hours a day, 7 days
a week that can include concierge services and emergency travel assistance.
Typically travel insurance for the duration of a journey costs approximately
5-7% of the cost of the trip.
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Who is eligible to avail Travel Insurance? |
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Whether you are a first time flyer or a frequent flyer and are going on single
trip or multiple, travel insurance can be taken by anyone. The type of traveller
does not have any impact on anyone opting fro travel insurance. |
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What risks are covered by Travel Insurance? |
The most common risks that are covered by travel insurance are:
• Medical expenses
• Emergency evacuation/repatriation
• Overseas funeral expenses
• Accidental death, injury or disablement benefit
• Cancellation
• Curtailment
• Delayed departure
• Loss, theft or damage to personal possessions and money (including travel
documents)
• Delayed baggage (and emergency replacement of essential items)
• Legal assistance
• Personal liability and rental car damage excess |
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What is excluded in the coverage? |
Medical expenses arising out of:
• Pre-existing conditions except in case of life-threatening situations
• Addiction to alcohol, drugs
• Mental disorder, anxiety, depression
• Venereal diseases
• Sexually transmitted diseases, AIDS, HIV
• Radiation, nuclear weapons induced
• Sporting activities
• Loss of passport in public place
• Expenses arising out of loss of valuables, money, securities, and tickets |
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What is the premium for Travel Insurance? |
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The premium for travel insurance depends on which part of the world you are
travelling to and the duration of your stay. Generally, the premium for
travelling to the US and Canada is different from travelling to the rest of the
world. |
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How do you make claims for the reimbursement of expenses covered by the
insurance? |
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With the increasing competition between insurance companies, the procedure for
making claims has become very easy. Generally, you need to call up a toll free
number of the insurance service provider and register your claim. You will be
advised on the documents that would be needed to be submitted to process your
claim. A Third Party Administrator (TPA) would then validate your documents and
will process your claim. |
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