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Travel Insurance Guide

Things to watch out for

• Pre-existing medical conditions: if you have one, you must inform your insurer before taking out the policy or you may not be covered. When looking for cover, a simple tip is to contact the support organisation related to your medical condition: they will know who can offer insurance

• Period of trip: most annual travel insurance policies are for up to 31 days at a time, so if you are planning to stay away for longer, you may need a specific policy that allows you to do that. There are several types of “backpacker” policy available

• Winter sports: increasing numbers of people want to ski for a couple of weeks. Not only is it important to have a certain amount of ski cover, but if you intend to take part in certain “intensive” winter sports (off-piste skiing, for example), make sure that too is covered

Also, if you are a regular skier, specialist insurance may be necessary to protect against theft of ski from roof racks, lack of snow, ski lifts being closed and so on. Again, it may be worthwhile talking to experts.

• “Extreme sports”: most policies don’t cover microlighting, mountaineering or parachuting, so be sure to check

• Travelling separately: if you and your partner make different overseas trips, you will want protection for this. Not all policies offer this, so ask

• Cover for older people: many insurers don’t offer annual policies to older travellers, as they tend to travel more often. And, because they're perceived to be in greater risk of needing medical help when travelling abroad, they are thought to be more likely to make claims. Age Concern and Help the Aged set no age limit on annual policies, while Nationwide will cover travellers up to the age of 99

• People with HIV: talk to the Terrence Higgins Trust to find a broker offering specialist policies

• Families: some annual policies, such as the one offered will cover a family of two adults and two children up to the age of 18 years. A few extend this to age 19, or even older if still in higher education. Others simply cover adults under the age of 65 plus any number of children or grandchildren under 18 in full-time education living at the same address

• Duplication of cover: travel insurance often duplicates cover you may already have available under the terms of home contents “all risks” policies. Some insurers offer discounts of up to 10-15 per cent for excluding certain items (camcorders, portable computers) from their travel cover. Ask

• Possessions: insurers will often set limits on the amount that can be claimed for individual possessions stolen at the same time. This may mean that a £400 camera claim is reduced to a fraction of what it is worth. Check before you take out the cover.

More pages

Page 1: Introduction
Page 2: Things to watch out for

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