Travel insurance: are you ready for your holiday?
January 24, 2023The Covid pandemic brought many changes to our lives. Disruptions to life as we know it affected many of our travel plans, perhaps more than any other area of activity. A succession of necessary lockdowns meant that even local travel was difficult, and foreign holidays became out of the question.
As those restrictions are lifted, you may enter a different world of travel than the one you knew before. However, if one thing has not changed, that is the need for travel insurance.
So, remember your travel insurance if you’re planning some last-minute winter sports or looking forward to those well-earned summer holidays.
The importance of travel insurance
Adequate travel insurance can save you many thousands of pounds. As Citizens Advice explains, insurance protects you against a host of potentially serious pitfalls when you are on holiday or travelling. Those risks include:
- medical emergencies and your need for treatment while you’re away or even repatriation for specialist medical care;
- the financial losses you face if you have to cancel or cut short your travel plans for reasons beyond your control;
- the costs associated with making up for missed or delayed transport arrangements – again, for reasons beyond your control;
- liabilities arising from incidents in which you injure others or damage their property;
- your lost or stolen baggage, documents (including essentials such as your passport), and money; and
- compensation for your personal injury or death.
You could be significantly hard-pressed if you had to meet these potentially substantial costs from your own pocket.
Skiing and your travel insurance
If you are planning a skiing holiday – or any other kind of winter sports – you will need to check carefully that any travel insurance you arrange covers these more hazardous activities. That is because a standard travel insurance policy is unlikely to cover what are regarded as high-risk activities.
While acknowledging that all travel insurance policies are different, the British Insurance Brokers Association (BIBA) urges consumers that, if they are planning a skiing or other winter sports holiday, they make sure that the activities in question are specifically declared in the policy documents.
Does travel insurance cover cancellation due to Covid?
The fact that you can travel abroad once again might suggest that the coronavirus is now well and truly beaten. But sadly, that is by no means the case, and you might still encounter Covid-related restrictions or conditions that are ultimately reflected in the extent and nature of your travel insurance.
The official Moneyhelper website reassures travellers that most travel insurance policies will cover you against cancellation that has been caused by Covid.
But it is also true that some policies are more generous or comprehensive than others, so you will do well to check the small print or ask your insurer.
Does my EHIC or GHIC card take the place of travel insurance?
Even after the UK’s departure from the European Union, your European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) remains valid and will help you secure emergency or necessary state-provided medical care free of charge or at a reduced cost – on the same terms as residents in the country you are visiting.
While explaining the benefits and use of your EHIC, the government website warns that it is in no way a substitute for adequate travel insurance – you will need both your EHIC and travel insurance to travel with any peace of mind.
It is worth bearing in mind that if you currently have an EHIC card it will remain valid until expiry, at which point you’ll then need to apply for the new replacement GHIC card.
What else do I need to consider when choosing travel insurance?
Consider the likelihood of an excess being applied to any claim you make – and the fact that the excess may vary in cost depending on the type of claim. (The excess is the first part of any successful claim that you are financially liable for).
Also note that different policies are likely to set different maximum periods of cover while you are outside the UK – a good travel insurance policy may provide cover for as long as a maximum of 120 days.
Your travel insurer may also define the maximum length of any one trip – aim for cover that provides cover for trips lasting at least 30 days or more.
Summary
As we return to something resembling normality when it comes to foreign travel, we should remind ourselves about the importance of travel insurance and its capacity for protecting against any number of things that can go wrong.
Ensure that the cover you arrange is suitable for your trip and any activities you intend to pursue while away. There might also be lingering impacts of the coronavirus epidemic, so check whether you are adequately covered on this score too.