Tommy Lloyd
Author: Tommy Lloyd, Managing Director

Tommy has over 15 years experience within the insurance industry, and his primary focus is helping travellers find the right cover for their medical conditions.

Originally posted: 3rd Mar 2021

The key components of your travel insurance explained

When you buy travel insurance cover for your trip abroad, it's important to know exactly what you'll be covered for. If you know the different areas of cover that are available to you, then you can travel safe in the knowledge that your costs will be covered in the event of a mishap before you travel or whilst you are away.


Travel insurance can cover medical expenses, lost luggage, travel delay and much more. And each insurance provider imposes a limit on the amount of money they will pay out for under each section of your travel insurance policy. You will usually see the sections of travel insurance cover and limits promoted quite prominently, but what do they actually mean?

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Medical and repatriation expenses

This is the most important section of your policy. If you fall ill or have an accident whilst you are abroad, your insurer will pay for medical treatment, even surgery. In extreme cases, your repatriation costs will be covered if you need to be returned to the UK. Your insurer will provide a 24 hour emergency support line for you to contact in the event of a medical emergency.

Cancellation

It's important to have cancellation cover in case you need to cancel your trip due to unforeseen circumstances, for instance if you or a close relative falls ill before your holiday, you can cancel your trip and claim it back on your travel insurance. Other reasons for cancelling can include jury or witness summons, redundancy and pregnancy. The exact definition of a close relative and the reasons for which you are entitled to claim for cancellation will vary with different insurers, so you should check the policy wording carefully to see what your travel insurance covers.

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Curtailment

If you need to cut your trip short, perhaps due to ill health, your travel insurance cover will pay for you to return home early and the cost any unused accommodation etc. Again the specific terms and conditions will vary with different insurers.

Travel delay

Your flight needs to be delayed by a certain amount of time (usually 12 or 24 hours) before an insurer will pay up. After this time you can usually choose to abandon your trip and claim the cost of the holiday back, or wait for the delayed departure and claim back reasonable expenses for any food etc. that you've had to buy.

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Missed departure

If you miss your departure through no fault of your own, you may be able to claim for some additional travel or accommodation costs as a result of this. Reasons for missing your departure include your vehicle breaking down or being involved in an accident, getting caught in road works or a public transport delay.  The reasons for which you are entitled to make a claim will differ between insurers so you should always read the policy terms and conditions.

Catastrophe

Additional accommodation or travel costs will be covered by your insurer in the event of a catastrophe. Catastrophes covered include hurricanes, floods, earthquakes and more. Read your policy wording for details of other catastrophes that your policy will cover.

Skiier

Winter sports

Most travel insurers give holidaymakers the option to add winter sports cover to their standard policies. If you are going skiing or snowboarding, winter sports cover can protect the loss, theft or damage to ski equipment, unused ski pack due to illness or injury and piste closure. You will also need to purchase winter sports cover to ensure that are covered for accidents and injury whilst you are on the slopes.

Additional sports and activities

Travel insurers will include cover for certain activities and sports as standard on their policies, but there are many activities for which you may need to buy extra cover. Always check the policy wording to ensure that you are fully covered for any activities you intend to take part in when you're away.

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Frequently Asked Questions

You must have a permanent UK address, have lived in the UK for the last 6 months and be registered with a medical practitioner in the UK. All trips must start and end in the UK and you must purchase the insurance before you depart for your first trip.
Annual and Single policies can be arranged for individuals, couples, families and groups. An individual policy provides cover for one person only. A couple is two individuals living at the same address. A family is either one or two parents travelling with their child or up to 10 children (under 18 years) for whom they are legal guardians and who all reside together.  A group is 2 or more people travelling together, regardless of their relationship, up to a maximum of 12. Check with your insurance provider whether everyone insured on an Annual policy must live at the same address.

A pre-existing condition is a diagnosed medical condition that existed before taking out a policy. We'll ask a series of questions about the medical history for you and any travellers on your quote. If you answer yes to any of these, you will need to tell us about the traveller's conditions. This could be a condition that a traveller has now or has had in the past. If you are not sure what conditions you need to declare, we have online support available to help you 24/7!

If you don't travel much then a single trip cover is perfect as you can cover specific dates suited to your trip. If you have cancellation cover, you'll also benefit from this as soon as you buy your policy. If you travel 2 or more times a year, it may be cheaper for you to go for an annual trip cover. It's best to start your annual trip cover as soon as possible, as if you have cancellation cover, you'll only benefit from this from your policy start date.
If you are taking out single trip cover, and have cancellation cover included, you'll be covered for cancellation from the moment you buy your policy. However, if you are taking out annual trip cover, and have cancellation cover included, you'll be covered from the start date of your policy. Consider starting your annual trip cover as soon as possible, especially if you have already booked your trip!
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