Whenever you travel outside your own country it is essential that you have travel insurance that will cover your medical expenses in the event that you become ill or are injured in an accident. Without such insurance cover in place, you will be facing hefty medical bills and in some cases you may not even receive the treatment you need without having some form of documents attesting to the fact that you do have insurance. Without it the costs of your vacation will be very costly and could even bankrupt you.
Taking out a travel insurance policy requires some thought and planning in order to find the best policy for your needs. If you have health insurance back home, and you travel on an annual basis or more frequently than once a year, it may be a wise decision to pay extra premiums to have the cover you need under this policy. However, when you book a flight to another country, you always have the option of purchasing the insurance along with your airline tickets.
It is essential for you to read the policy in its entirety to ensure you understand the type of coverage you have and any exclusions in the policy. The cost of the premiums vary from one insurance provider to another and also depend on the risk factors involved in your specific travel destinations. Like other types of insurance, the travel insurance industry does use special terminology that you may not fully understand. The purpose of this article is to define the more commonly used terms in travel insurance so that you have a basic understanding of these terms.
COMMONLY USED TRAVEL INSURANCE TERMS
Excess/Deductible
The two terms excess and deductible refer to the amount of money that you will be expected to pay for each occurrence or claim you submit on your travel insurance policy. This amount is specified in the policy. If you can afford to pay more on your own, it will lower the cost of the premiums because the insurance company sees that you are willing to assume more of the risk.
Repatriation
Repatriation means that the travel insurance will pay for your return to your home country. If you are injured it may include any medical needs you have on this trip or if you have been fatally injured while travelling, the insurance will pay to have your body returned to your family.
Annual/Multi-trip
You can have insurance that will cover you for one trip per year or provide coverage for several trips to various destinations within one calendar year. There is a limit on the number of days you can be out of the country at one time or during the year in order to qualify for this insurance and for you to be able to submit a claim. If you travel regularly, it is of utmost importance to pay attention to the number of days listed on your policy.
Single Trip
Travel insurance for a single trip will cover you for the length of time you are away. This will start on the day of your flight and end on the day you return home. You can take out this insurance for each trip you take during the year.
Winter Sports Cover
If you are traveling to take part in winter sports that could be considered dangerous, then you will need to have separate cover over and above that which you have for single or multi-trip insurance. Some policies can be very restrictive in the kinds of these activities for which you can take out insurance and you will have to list the winter sports in which you intend to participate when you take out the travel insurance policy.
Pre- Existing Medical Conditions
If you already have a medical condition that could be life-threatening, you will not be able to have travel insurance for this condition. The travel insurance policy will list these conditions as exclusions of the policy, along with the medication you are taking.
Personal Liability
If you deliberately or accidentally cause damage to the person or property of another while traveling, your insurance policy will cover the costs associated with such damage. It also covers an legal expenses you may incur as a result of the injury or damage.
Trip Cancelation Insurance
Each travel insurance policy is different and you do have to read the fine print. Some may not include trip cancelation insurance so if this is something that you need, you should specify this when you take out the policy. This can include cancelation of your trip due to unexpected occurrences, such as illness, death in the family or other events that prevent you from carrying out your travel plans.