If you are planning a trip abroad, even if it's just a weekend break, travel insurance should be right up there alongside sun cream, insect repellent and flip flops on your list of holiday essentials.
If something goes wrong beforehand that causes you to have to cancel your trip, or you fall foul of illness, theft or an accident while you're away, you will have no protection against the consequential costs and could end up seriously out of pocket unless you are properly insured.
The good news is that, provided you shop around and read the small print to ensure your policy provides the right level of cover for your needs, travel insurance costs relatively little for the level of protection it provides. 'Best buy' policies giving a decent level of cover against a range of expensive mishaps for 15 days in Europe, for example, are available at around £10 for an adult under 50 or £22 for a family, according to the latest Which? report on travel insurance*. But with everyone from travel agents, direct insurers and banks to your local post office, high street stores and supermarkets offering policies these days, how do you identify the best value deal and make sure you have the level of cover you need?
Picking up a policy at the same time as booking your holiday may appear to be the most convenient option, but it is extremely unlikely to be the cheapest. You can end up paying up to three times more if you buy insurance from your tour operator or travel agent than if you shop around and go for one of the many cheaper policies offering the same level of cover currently on the market, according to research carried out by Nationwide building society.
The fact is that, when you come to choose a travel insurance policy, the 'you get what you pay for' rule which can be applied to most financial products simply does not hold true. "Choosing a pricey policy over a cheap one doesn't necessarily mean you'll get better cover and customer service," says Matt Brown, author of the Which? report. The free travel insurance offered by some credit card companies and bank accounts may give you a perfectly adequate level of cover - although you shouldn't automatically assume that this is the case.
Ultimately it comes down to you, the consumer, to check exactly what a policy covers and to ensure that the cover it offers is adequate for your needs. Read the small print, be aware of restrictions and exclusions that could affect you and if you are still unclear, check with the insurer. As a basic guide, however, any policy you consider should at least provide
· medical cover of at least £1m in Europe and £2m elsewhere in the world
· a 24-hour emergency service that will, for example, arrange to get you home quickly in the case of a serious accident or illness
· cancellation and curtailment cover sufficient to reimburse you for the entire cost of your holiday, including pre-paid expenses and any extra costs incurred in getting home if you need to cancel or cut short a trip (due to illness, for example)
· appropriate cover for stolen, lost or damaged possessions - perhaps £1500 or more. Policies generally limit claims for single items, typically to £250 and there is usually a similar limit on the total paid to replace valuables, such as cameras. Consider buying extra cover if you are taking expensive items that aren't already covered by your home insurance
· personal liability cover of at least £1m to protect you if you accidentally cause injury or damage to others or their property
· legal expenses cover to help you pursue compensation for damages following personal injury
Don't assume that travel insurance policies will automatically cover you for every loss that can occur on a holiday. Again it's up to you to check out what they don't cover as much as what they do. Standard travel policies, for example, will not cover you for any pre-existing medical condition - so if you suffer from any condition, are taking medication or having any treatment, have recently had an operation or are waiting for tests or results, tell the insurer and ask how this will affect your cover. They may agree to cover your condition for an extra premium. If not, you can get cover at a slightly higher pricefrom a specialist insurer.
Most travel policies will not cover you for medical expenses and personal accident benefits if you take part in any hazardous sports or activities such as scuba diving or jet-skiing on holiday, while some include less obvious activities such as riding a motorbike or hot-air ballooning in their definition of dangerous activities. Check you'll be covered for all the activities you have planned for your holiday, including winter sports if you are planning a skiing trip.
Be aware that insurers won't normally pay out for loss or theft of baggage left unattended or left in vehicles, or for cash and valuables not kept in a safety deposit box or hotel safe when not in your possession. In all cases of theft, you should contact the police and get a written report in order to make a valid claim.
If you intend to take two or more overseas trips in a year, you are likely to save time, money and effort by buying annual multi-trip insurance. And if you have dependants, you can also look at cutting costs by buying a family policy, although it's important to check that all your children will be covered.
· For details of best buy single trip and annual policies, see the April 2004 issue of the Consumers' Association's Which? magazine, available in local reference libraries.
