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Always Make sure you buy Travel Insurance, it will save you a fortune in the long run. Travel insurance does not have to be expensive there are a lot of cheap travel insurance out there that are even better than the expensive one.
Whether you are traveling for business or pleasure, purchasing travel
insurance can help save you money. It is the same principle that
applies when you buy something of value like a car or a classic piece
of jewelery. Should anything happen, you do not want to lose your
investment in one day. Most likely, you would want that car or ring
replaced at full purchase value. If you have purchased air tickets, you
would want to protect that investment as well. Who wants to lose money
especially in these dire economic times?
Ways that Travel Insurance Can Help You Save Money
There are at least three situations where purchasing travel insurance can help you save money:
•
Cancellation of flights – If you or the airline decides to cancel the
flights you are booked in, your airfare will be partially covered by
travel insurance. Say if you spent $4,500.00 worth of air tickets for
you and your family, and suddenly the airline closes down for business
or cancels a flight for any reason, you do not lose all of the
$4,500.00 because travel insurance will reimburse that amount. Of
course the airline will probably refund you the money if it is their
fault, but having travel insurance will compensate you for the
inconvenience and trouble. Also, if you cancel the flight yourself,
travel insurance will get you back your money.
• Loss of luggage –
When you purchase travel insurance, make sure it covers lost luggage as
well. Imagine landing in some foreign country with none of your
luggage! While most airlines are efficient about recovering lost
luggage and delivering them to your door, don’t rely on that
efficiency. There have been instances where luggage was never recovered.
•
Medical problems – You may be in perfect health when you leave for
vacation but you increase the likelihood of getting exposed to viruses
or bacteria either in the plane or in your country of destination.
There’s also the chance that you could accidentally drink the local
drinking water or eat contaminated food. Medical visits in some foreign
countries can cost an arm and a leg so you wouldn’t want to spend all
your vacation money on doctor’s visits! If you have travel insurance
that covers expenses for brief hospitalizations, medicine and emergency
situations, think about how much all these could add up if you didn’t
have travel insurance.
Tips for Purchasing Travel Insurance
• Ask
your insurance provider - If you have an insurance company that insures
your car, house and other property, they may also offer travel
insurance or they may work with a partner or affiliate who does.
Because you are an established customer, they may offer you travel
insurance at lower rates. It doesn’t hurt to ask. In fact, in some
instances, you may be better off going with your existing insurer than
purchase separate insurance from the travel agent who books your flight.
•
Go for the whole nine yards – What this means is if you are traveling
with the family, you might be better off buying family travel insurance
instead of separate insurance policies. It also means that because
traveling with children entails more risk than traveling alone, you may
want to consider travel insurance that offers comprehensive coverage;
that is, plane fares, luggage, and health and medical visits.
•
Multi-trip travel insurance - If you make more than one trip every
year, you might be better off purchasing an annual multi-trip travel
insurance policy. This would save you the hassle of purchasing travel
insurance several times during the year. Some travel insurance
companies will usually sell you a 12-month package that is renewable
yearly and this is a huge convenience if you travel a lot during any
given 12-month period. The single biggest advantage of buying an annual
policy is that you don’t need to worry about arranging for emergency
medical coverage.
• Compare packages and prices – As for most major
ticket items, it pays to shop around for insurance. If you know you
will be travelling six months from now, don’t wait until the month
before your travel date to do some bargain hunting. Start now so that
you are not rushed about reading the fine print and you can make a more
informed decision about the kind of travel insurance that is ideal for
your situation.
Remember to do the cost analysis if you are ever
tempted to skip travel insurance. Even if your ticket is discounted,
say you paid $600.00 to go to the Caribbean. Travel insurance will cost
about $85.00 to $100.00. If you are forced to cancel your trip, you
lose $600.00 (restricted and discounted tickets are usually
non-refundable or non-transferrable) versus the $100.00 you paid if you
had purchased travel insurance. If you want to save money, put travel
insurance on the top of your list.
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