What is Travel Insurance?
Travel insurance is a policy that covers the financial risks associated with traveling. It provides indemnity against minor risks such as loss of luggage, a delayed flight, and even major risks like medical emergencies and trip cancellation.
Companies in the business of traveling, often give an option of purchasing travel insurance packages which you can choose based on your budget.
Before I tell you why you should opt for travel insurance, let’s look in detail at what your travel insurance covers.
What Does Travel Insurance Cover?
1. Cancelled trip
Cancelled trips are one of the most important reasons to purchase a travel insurance plan alongside your ticket. However, the reasons for cancellation must be legitimate, and they include health reasons, weather conditions, the bankruptcy of the travel agency and sickness or death in the family.
2. Lost, stolen or delayed baggage
The possibility of personal effects and luggage being lost is a travel problem that occurs often. However, if you have a good travel insurance plan, the transport system is liable to cover the cost as long as the error is from their side. Also, the personal travel insurance covers baggage delay by providing money to buy essential things before your delayed bags arrive and travel delay which covers additional expenses incurred such as hotel rooms or meals as a result of travel delay.
3. Medical Coverage
Under medical coverage, there are two types of policies. The first is short term and covers trips ranging from five days to a year, depending on the type of insurance plan purchased. The second is for long trips ranging from six months to a year. From helping you locate health facilities to covering medical expenses, this particular benefit of a travel insurance plan is beneficial for medical emergencies.
4. Flight Accident or Accidental Death Coverage
Flight accidents and Accidental death insurance covers accidents that occur during flights made by a licensed commercial airline. If these accidents result in serious injury, disability or death to the traveller, the policy pays the benefit to the beneficiaries. However, deaths occurring as a result of sickness or overdose of drugs are exempted.
Other additional benefits of purchasing a plan include having access to a 24-hour hotline service to assist you and also a collision damage waiver (in case you get into an accident with a rented car).
Why Should You Purchase Travel Insurance?
As fun as a trip may sound, it is an investment of not only time but also money. If things do not eventually go as planned, travel insurance policies provide an avenue for you to recover your money, depending on the plan you purchased.
Most people tend to ignore travel insurance either because they see no need for it or because of how expensive the trip is. However, having a travel insurance plan is a good bet because it protects you from unexpected circumstances.
What You Should Consider Before Getting Travel Insurance
There are some considerations that need to be factored into your decision before approaching any of the travel insurance companies in Nigeria. It’s essential to get the best type of cover for your needs. You might want to consider the following:
- Your choice of destination: Different countries, different rules. where you’re travelling to is important. For example, if you’re travelling to the USA for the first time, you might be needing an extra medical cover
- Age – your next birthday: Generally, the older you are the more the cost of insurance. Your cover will cost more if you’re over 65 because of health risks. Some insurance companies offer special policies for older travellers.
- Travel frequency: If you travel very often in a calendar year, it may be better to choose an annual travel policy instead of single-trip policies
- Your purpose of travelling: You might need to buy some add-ons to your travel policy if you will be taking part in some dangerous activities such as mountain climbing or skiing.
Conclusion
Travel insurance may come in different forms depending on the various factors mentioned above. However, there are some basic covers your policy MUST include – and they are
- Medical expenses
- Personal injury, accidents or damage
- Lost or damaged properties
- Delayed items of baggage
- Cancellation of flights