Backpacking And Finding The Right Travel Insurance
So you’re planning a trip backpacking through Europe this summer, are you going to need travel insurance? The answer is a big YES!
I’ve traveled through Europe numerous times, and I never go without getting some travel insurance cover. Every traveller worth his salt knows that travel insurance is a must. It’s not a con, and it’s not a sell. There are good companies out there that offer great policies – you just need to find them.
Overseas medical costs are not a joke. Being emergency air lifted from a mountain during a hiking trip or having to be emergency transported back to your home country for some horrible reason – someone needs to foot the bills for these fees, and if it’s not going to be you – then it could mean your family’s mortgage.
The best place to start when looking into travel insurance, is to determine what you’re covered for already. Then you need to find an insurance policy that is going to fill in those gaps. It may be the case that you’re already covered a little bit by your credit card company, for goods purchased using the card and the flight tickets (maybe more) – it depends on the policy, obviously. So start there.
Then investigate your medical policy and life insurance policy – do they cover you for anything overseas related? What exactly do they cover for?
Then you need to go out and find a travel insurance policy that will cover everything else – you don’t want any gaps, that’s just asking for trouble!
I’ve yet to make a claim on any of my travel insurance policies, yet I will still always backpack with travel insurance. Why? Because I’ve seen a friend break their wrist in Croatia, then they needed emergency surgery in Germany, then they had to fly home to Australia for further emergency surgery. This would have cost her a hefty sum if she had not taken out travel insurance.
Always, and I repeat, ALWAYS read the fine print. A lot of companies will bury policy information in the fine print, full well knowing that you would rather chop off your toes with some rusty nail clippers then spend your time sifting through all that ‘garbage’. Get it right in your head exactly what you ARE covered for. The last thing you want is a nasty travel insurance surprise. As in, surprise, you’re paying and we don’t cover you for that!
A great travel insurance company will have a direct list UPFRONT that explains to you exactly what you are covered for.
This was a guest post from Tom at www.activebackpacker.com.
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