To many of us, travel insurance may sound like just another expense. If someone comes and asks if you have travel insurance for the upcoming trip or not, you may end up asking why one should get travel insurance anyway? Trips are expensive and adding another expense does not sound right. But what if you face any problems during the trip? What if there is an emergency, medical or otherwise? What if you lose your luggage? What if, above all, you have to cancel the trip for one or another reason? In all these cases, travel insurance will come to the rescue.
Here are the top 10 reasons why buying travel insurance can prove to be a wise decision
- Trip cancellation: Countless reasons can lead to cancellation of the trip such as death, sickness, work, natural or man-made calamity and more. In these cases you may end up losing the money spent on flight tickets, hotel bookings etc. as most of them are non-refundable. If you have travel insurance, the provider will reimburse you for the cost.
- Missed connecting flight or other modes of transport: Delays can happen, and you end up missing the connecting mode of transport say flight or train. In such cases, if you have travel insurance, the company will help you in arranging alternate means of travel and pay for the travel charges as well.
- Cancelled flight: From natural disaster, weather conditions, fault in the plane or even a terror attack or an epidemic can lead to cancellation of the flight. Those who have Travel Insurance Plan will get a refund or a new ticket. While you wait for your flight, the insurance company will also arrange a hotel room for you.
- Natural disaster destroys the destination: In some cases, natural disasters like a tornado or an earthquake may destroy the destination, and you end up staying back at home. In such cases, it is next to impossible to recover the pre-paid cost. The travel assistance services will reimburse you the money you have spent, and they can also provide help in booking a trip to another safer destination.
- Terrorist attack at destination: There are many amazing destinations like Egypt that are prone to terrorist attacks. In such cases, the authorities often close down the airports and put the city on lockdown for a while. If your trip gets ruined because of such incident, the travel insurance will not only reimburse you in case it happens before you leave, they can also provide medical assistance, airlift, evacuation support and more in case you are at the destination.
- Medical emergency: While you are on foreign land, any medical emergency can put you in major financial loss. Many of us think that the health insurance plan that we have will cover the medical emergencies overseas, but that is not the case. In such cases, the travel insurance can provide you cover as well as the company’s support department will assist you in locating nearby hospital and making travel arrangements to your home country.
- Delayed or lost baggage: There is always a chance that you may lose your baggage in the transit or your baggage gets delayed. In such cases the travel insurance provide you support in recovering the bags and reimburse you for the essential items like a pair of clothes, toiletries etc
- You lose the passport: The travel insurance companies assist in speeding up the process of replacing and paying for the new passport in case you lose it, or it gets stolen while you are on a trip to some other country.
- The travel company goes bankrupt: You book your trip with a well-known travel company and just a few days before the trip the company announces bankruptcy. It may sound weird, but it is possible and happens more often than you think. In such cases, the insurance company will reimburse you for the money you have lost with the travel company.
- Assistance for emergency services: There are several emergency services for which travel insurance companies happily provide support. From a cancelled train to medical evacuation, countless things can go wrong on a trip. Some of the common reasons may include:
- If you or your partner on the trip needs medical care
- If you or any of your travel partner need medical evacuation
- If you miss a flight or a train
- If you lose your passport or travel documents
- If you need any legal assistance
Apart from these factors, many others are covered under travel insurance. Every insurance company has a dedicated support department where you can call and ask for help.
Final words to consider
Everyone loves to travel, and there can be many reasons to travel to a specific destination. While you can have control on where to go, how to go and what to pack, you cannot claim control over what can happen to you before or during the trip. Even a minor accident can derail your entire plan and travel itinerary. You may end up losing more than you can think. Thus you must buy travel insurance so that in case any natural or man-made disaster happens; you do not have to go through any monetary losses. You can easily buy one by visiting the website of the insurance company.