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If
you are going on holiday – or
even having a mini break somewhere -
travel insurance is a must. Many people
don’t even bother taking out travel
insurance, thinking they won’t
need to claim on it. However, if something
goes wrong when you are away from home
and you need medical treatment, you
could spend out literally thousands
of pounds in overseas hospital costs
and repatriation. So, rule number one
is - get travel insurance! That in itself
could save you thousands of pounds!
The
second rule is to shop around for it.
Many people buy their travel insurance
as part of their holiday package, not
realising that they can probably get
a cheaper policy – with the same
or even better level of cover –
elsewhere.
You
are not obliged to buy travel insurance
from your travel company – there
are many online specialist sites (such
as www.protection-insurance.com
or www.uk-travel-insurance-online.co.uk)
that have quick and easy access to online
quotes and can save you up to 50% on
premiums!
Holidaymakers
should also be aware that you are not
fully protected by the Financial Services
Authority (FSA) when buying standalone
travel insurance cover from High Street
travel agents such as Thomas Cook and
Thomson. Therefore, using one of the
many FSA registered online facilities
will give you peace of mind that the
policy is valid.
The
third and final rule of buying travel
insurance is to understand different
levels of travel cover that are available
– for example, gold, silver and
bronze. When comparing the cost of travel
insurance, it is imperative you compare
like with like to ensure you get the
right level of cover at the right price.
….And
if you are still not sure of the importance
of travel insurance .. then read on…
Bernie
P (40), an avid skier from London never
really valued the importance of travel
insurance, seeing it as a ‘formality’
when arranging holidays. However, a
near fatal skiing accident in March
last year brought it home to him, with
hospital and repatriation bills totalling
over £45,000.
His
travel insurance policy covered all
the medical and transportation costs
both in Austria (which included being
airlifted off the Alps, two weeks spent
in a coma in hospital and treatment
for 10 broken ribs, a ruptured spleen,
a collapsed lung and a smashed hip joint).
The policy also continued paying for
further operations once he was back
in the UK, including a hip re-build
operation.
Over
a year on, Bernie is 99% fit and has
just returned from a skiing holiday.
He says: "Without the travel insurance
policy, I wouldn’t be as fit and
well as I am today. I got the best in
medical treatment without the worry
of paying the bills”.
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If
you aren’t on a low, fixed rate
mortgage, then have you considered remortgaging?
Many people are paying more for their
mortgage than they have to - and mainly
for two reasons: they do not really
understand how remortgaging works. Or,
they do understand, but think that it
will mean a lot of form filling, and
costs etc.