Millions of people travel to vacation destinations around the world each year without having any insurance.
Occasionally, the reason for that is unknown, but more frequently, studies indicate that it is one of the following:
trying to cut costs on a vacation but not knowing exactly what could go wrong or how much it would cost if it did. Thinking, often incorrectly, that “somewhere” else is covering them and that “it’ll never happen to me.”
In a sense, there is nothing wrong with saving money. That is, assuming that you have properly weighed the risk factors and determined that the typically small amount of money you will save is worth the risk of spending hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars in the event that something goes wrong.
Fair enough, though, and let’s all hope your luck holds if that’s your decision.
Choosing to save money even though you are unaware of the risks is dangerous.
Take, for instance, the scenario in which you and your family are staying in a posh vacation home. You might have been unlucky enough to break an ankle, which means you won’t be able to fly back with them to their base for a few days.
Because of this, you will require a different flight. It’s possible that a member of your family has stayed behind to assist you in getting home when it’s time. In total, that will amount to an additional flight cost in addition to their additional hotel nights.
You could be facing a bill of tens of thousands of dollars before you even blink. Is it true that you do not require insurance?
This is a common misconception among individuals who believe, for instance, that their personal property household insurance will also cover their vacation possessions and luggage.
Well, it might, but you shouldn’t expect it! If your luggage is stolen or lost and you file a claim on your household policy, you won’t want to find out that your claim is invalid because your belongings were outside your property’s boundaries.
The lesson here is simple. Never make presumptions about the potential coverage of any existing policies. Instead, check and, if in doubt, inquire by calling your insurance provider.
If other policies already offered such protection to the policyholder, then travel insurance would not exist.
Automatic travel insurance, which is sometimes offered by credit card companies or financial institutions, is a small variation in this scenario. That may be acceptable, but remember to carefully read the cover information. It is very likely to have limited security if it is free.
It will never happen to me In 2015, the travel insurance industry paid out nearly 500,000 holiday insurance claims in the United Kingdom.
Nothing else will convince you that travel issues are not simply a freakishly rare occurrence.
Things like injuries, flight delays, theft, cancellations for personal reasons, and accidents do occur. Even though we all have the sincere hope that they won’t happen to you, the question of how you would deal with it if they did and you didn’t have insurance to help you is worth asking.
It’s possible that you are naturally fortunate and have no doubt that your vacation luck will never run out. However, if you are still not entirely convinced of that, travel insurance might be something you should reconsider.