Before you complete your adventurous travel plans, make sure you have a clear understanding on obtaining adequate health and travel insurance. Hopefully, you will not ever have to use the insurance but getting these plans in place is a big factor you have to consider. There is no doubt about it, going abroad can be loads of fun and it is quite easy to get caught up in the excitement. On the other hand, if you can handle the anticipation of a great adventure while still preparing properly, going abroad with a health and travel insurance is both worry-free and exciting.
Choosing Your Plan Carefully
There are so many types of lifestyles and different ways to seek thrills that most insurance firms now have a wide range of travel insurance plans available. They offer these types of policies especially to frequent travelers whose jobs require traveling to different countries and places. When you have this type of insurance coverage, your plan is always active wherever you travel which definitely gives you peace of mind knowing that if something goes wrong, you already have your bases covered. There is no need to renew your policy each time you travel if you choose your coverage wisely.
On the other hand, some health and travel insurance provide limited benefits based on the place where you acquired your plan. Some insurance are eligible to various places around the world while also leaving out coverage for traveling around in volatile regions. Make sure to get the necessary information regarding the different limitations that may or may not be included.
Benefits Derived from Health and Travel Insurance
In regards to what people may think of, health and travel insurance is not just a financial expenditure. The available plans to cover your health and possible injuries while overseas are relatively inexpensive and have important features like minimal rates of interest so that you can manage compensation.
It really is a no-brainer when you compare the massive cost of hospital bills in most countries against the much smaller premium you will have to pay for medical travel insurance. As I am sure you know, accidents are not planned and can unfortunately happen anytime, even during your much anticipated vacation.
Most plans provide a wide range of benefits. Getting health and travel insurance gives you the benefit of not having to worry about trip cancellation, trip interruption, theft of valuables, medical expenses of illness and injuries, baggage damage and much more.
It is quite common for travelers to assume everything will be fine and nothing bad will happen which is a very risky approach. This is the main reason why you must never reject the idea of looking into the options you have for travel insurance policies. But before you sign into a contract, read the extremely boring, somewhat confusing fine print first. The fine prints contain all the answers to all of the questions you want to ask.
Limitations and exclusions of a health and travel insurance
Most types of health and travel insurance as a general rule have some limitations and exclusions. These include self inflicted injury, civil unrest, lost and theft of baggage due to carelessness, loss and theft of cash and some medical conditions that existed even before the period of travel.
Most travel insurance policies do not cover injuries that happened as a consequence of too much alcohol or drugs. Standard travel and health policies exclude ‘extreme’ or ‘dangerous’ activity like surfing or snowboarding, kite surfing, rock climbing, scuba diving, hunting and bungee jumping. There are some plans that accept these sports but will most likely require an additional premium to offset the risk.
As a general rule of thumb, insurance coverage for personal belongings and luggage are limited. Expensive personal stuff like laptops, cameras and some jewelry has a per-item premium on it. Some require you to pay an extra fee for these valuable items. So it is therefore recommended to bring only the basic things you actually need when you are out of the country.
Is health and travel insurance really needed?
Most travelers reach their destinations and back safely but that is not always the case. Unfortunately, accidents happen and you are then faced with the stark reality of unplanned medical expenses. Also keep in mind, you will most likely have to pay cancellation fees to reschedule your itinerary if you are stuck in a hospital. This is where travel and health insurance enter. You need not worry about spending for your hospitalization and rescheduling your trip because your insurance will take care of it.
This guest post was written by Nicholas Martin who is completely obsessed with exploring the countless destinations around the globe. He writes for Passport Visa Travelers Guide where you can find travel visa guides and how to get a US passport fast before going overseas.
