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Does It Really Matter What Travel Insurance I Get?

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One of the best experiences that one can have is exploring new destinations. Travelling to new places and countries can change your life for the good. These experiences can foster a lot of growth in you as you learn about different cultures, traditions, cuisines, music, sites, and so on. It is one of the simplest yet most effective forms of learning and growing. If you are someone who loves to travel, you would want to have travel insurance.

Depending on what you are looking for, there are various reasons why you should travel. Some individuals love making friends and travelling gives you plenty of opportunities to do that. Travelling expands your knowledge and the horizon of your thought process as well. Travelling across the world can help you discover more about yourself and, in turn, build a better you as well. You will come across incredible sights and amazing new things as well.

The ongoing pandemic has changed travel a bit over the last couple of years. As more and more countries open their borders to travellers, it is important that you consider travel insurance for your upcoming international trip. The presence of different types of travel insurance can be a bit overwhelming for travellers, and they end up choosing the most basic forms of insurance. Here is all that you need to know about travel insurance and which one to pick.

Important Components of Travel Insurance

Different components make up a travel insurance plan, and depending on your needs or the country that you are visiting, you can prioritize them. Irrespective of your needs or country of visit, medical cover is one of the most important components of a travel insurance plan. Simply because a medical emergency can be extremely painful and stressful on your finances.

It makes even more sense to opt for a sturdy medical cover plan in countries with high medical expenses. For example, all the wealthy countries such as the USA, Australia, Canada or some of the European countries usually charge 3 to 5 times the cost of treatment that you are used to in India.

Not having adequate medical coverage in such countries can hurt you a lot financially. In fact, a lot of countries have made it mandatory to have specific medical cover before you can travel. Countries like Thailand, Qatar, Germany, etc. require you to have a simple medical cover of a certain amount to proceed with your travel plans. These include minimum sum insured, coverage for Covid-19, medical evacuation, etc.

How to choose Travel Insurance?

People buying travel insurance for the first time will find it a bit confusing to choose from various options. Since various insurance providers in the country offer different types of plans, you must be careful in picking the plans. Here are some of the factors that you should keep in mind while choosing travel insurance.

A. Travel Purpose:

The first filter for choosing a plan of your choice should be the purpose of your visit. Based on this, you can eliminate plans. If you are planning to visit different countries as a part of a trip, the same plan might not work. For example, a Schengen plan might not work in non-Schengen countries. Multi-trip insurance might be a much better option.

Similarly, you must buy a plan covering employment if you are travelling for work. Your employer might add you to a group health insurance plan as well.

B. Travel Destination:

The type of policy you opt for depends on your travel destination. A Schengen travel insurance policy might suffice for someone who wants to visit Switzerland. Similarly, you would need travel health insurance if you are visiting Japan. A few other countries in the world have specific requirements when it comes to travel health insurance.

They require you to purchase insurance with a minimum sum insured, even before issuing a visa. Thus, your destination has a big say in the type of travel insurance you want.

C. Travel Duration:

There are several factors that decide the premium for your travel insurance policy. These factors include your age, destination of travel and dates of travel. The duration of the trip plays a crucial role in deciding the policy premiums. A shorter duration would warrant a lighter premium, and a longer trip would result in a higher premium.

Usually, for shorter trips, which are less than 180 days, you can opt for a single trip insurance policy, which is quite common as well. If you are a student, opting for an insurance plan for a year or more would make more sense. It is essential that you have continued protection for your entire stay duration.

D. Traveller’s Age:

The age of the traveller is another crucial factor that decides the policy premiums. If you are above the age of 60 and want to travel to a country to visit your kids, buying a senior citizen policy would be ideal.

With old age, the chances of you being susceptible to illness and disease increases by a few folds. Likewise, the policy premiums would also increase. Insurance companies have a higher risk when providing policies to senior citizens or middle-aged people with pre-existing health issues.

As a result of this, the policy premiums will also be on the higher side. Generally, you can buy a travel insurance policy for people between the age of 3 months and 60 years.

Additional Requirements

There are a few conditions that are not usually covered as a part of a standard policy. For example, if you have hypertension but need to travel abroad. Your doctor might have given you the clearance to travel, but your insurance provider might not provide cover for the same. In such cases, you would want to buy a policy that offers this cover or opt for this as an additional cover by paying a small premium.

Should there be a need for claiming your policy, and it does not have this coverage, your claim might get rejected. This would nullify the whole point of buying insurance.

Conclusion

Given the ongoing pandemic, it is essential that you opt for travel insurance for your next international travel. The above is some of the crucial factors that will help you make a better decision when it comes to buying travel insurance. Choosing the right type of travel insurance can make a world of difference in the time of need.

Disclaimer: The above information is for illustrative purpose only. For more details, please refer to policy wordings and prospectus before concluding the sales.

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