• 31
  Oct
  2009

• Trip cancellation – Cancel for any reason

  
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Traditional travel insurance policies reimburse for trip cancellation only if your trip gets cancelled or interrupted during the travel due to injury or illness. You may be reimbursed even if you cancel due to sickness just before departure.

However, if a pandemic breaks in your destination country or you are not sure about good weather and you decide to cancel your trip due to some imagined worries or uncertainties, you would not be reimbursed for your losses.

"Cancel for any reason" benefit in trip cancellation insurance covers you for any cancellation reason and typically offers 75% reimbursement of your expenses that you have paid in advance while planning the travel. Generally, you may have to cancel about 2 days prior to your departure to reap best benefits.

The price that you pay for this additional benefit is an additional amount of about 50% of your travel insurance plan. The premium is quite high if you avail this benefit but it is value for money if the planned trip is of very high value and the losses would be huge in case the travel gets cancelled.

• 30
  Oct
  2009

• Things to do while travelling abroad

  
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International travel insurance is a primary requirement while you plan an abroad trip. In order to reap best benefits from the insurance plan, you need to follow some additional precautions while applying or filing claims.

While applying:

Disclose pre-existing medical conditions, your medical history and any symptoms of a health disorder, else the insurance provider can reject if you file any claims at a later date

Opt for direct claims settlement

Read exclusions as well as terms and conditions before finalizing the plan

While travelling

Take the insurance policy document copy and any id card given by your insurance provider

Note down the emergency helpline number and carry it wherever you go

Store important documents, travel tickets and the pictures of any expensive item that you are carrying

In case of filing claims

Follow the procedure strictly while filing claims and do it right the first time

In case you lose any item at the airport, insist on the receipt from the airlines of baggage handling section

Do not delay reporting about theft or loss of any item quickly

• 29
  Oct
  2009

• International travel insurance - common pitfalls

  
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While trying to buy ‘cheap’ insurance plans, many travellers fall into certain loop holes of international travel insurance coverage.

Firstly, such insurance plans tend to charge very high deductibles (the amount the insured needs to bear before getting reimbursed for expenses). Another trap could be multiple excesses. For example, if you lose a purse containing a mobile, it is considered as 2 excesses though the loss is single.

Ensure that you go through the exclusion section very carefully as it may come up with additional restrictions on what it would not cover! In addition, the reimbursement limits of the benefits may be very minimal. For example, if the baggage cover limit is $250 and your average worth of your belongings is more than $1000, this coverage limit may not be really sufficient.

If you are buying a trip cancellation insurance, be very careful about understanding what the insurance means by “unforeseen” circumstances. Sometimes, you may have to buy cheap trip cancellation insurance plans a few days after purchasing the tickets in order to eligible for full reimbursement.

• 28
  Oct
  2009

• International Travel insurance for senior citizens

  
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Senior citizens find limited choices and insurance providers willing to offer coverage for international travel. Most of these plans are pretty expensive and sometimes unaffordable by these aged people.

Individuals with pre-existing medical conditions are often charged twice the premiums as compared to young adults. This is because the claims filed in case of any medical complications are also very high during old age as recovery is slower and difficult. Treatments may take longer and the amount of medical attention required is also quite high.

Now that the average life span of individuals has increased, the number of senior citizens in the country has also increased a lot and the insurance demands of this section of people are very high. Exclusion of certain claims for travellers who have crossed the age of 70 is also another problem.

As the trend of parents visiting their children staying in the US increases, the availability of visitors insurance plans for the older people is slowly increasing as the huge players come with certain insurance plans which are beneficial and affordable for this section.