What if something goes wrong?
Last week I cam across a worrying news item: according to the results of a survey conducted by the Association of British Travel Agents, as many as 20% of Brits travel without insurance. Now, although I am often suspicious about surveys, this report set my alarm bells ringing.
A similar survey earlier in the year came to similar conclusions and revealed that those who admitted to not taking out insurance gave three main reasons: “A third (34%) said they would rather take the risk than take out adequate cover, (although it didn’t give the reasons why they said this … perhaps because it was conducted on behalf of an insurance company and “cost” was the underlying issue); “another third (33%) thought their European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) would cover their travel needs and a further quarter of people said taking out travel insurance ‘didn’t occur to them’.”
That last one was quite worrying. Some people think that I am a pessimist because I am always asking “what happens if something goes wrong?” I don’t think I am a pessimist, I prefer to think of myself as a realist. Things rarely go according to plan and, as Robert Burns put it, “The best laid plans of mice and men gang aft agley”!
- A vehicle can breakdown.
- An element of the tour itinerary not being available
- An element of the tour can be not up to a satisfactory standard
- Weather conditions can cause a change in the itinerary
- Someone can fall ill
- The airline may lose your luggage
- There could be theft, such as having your pockets picked in a market or crowded place
- Loss or theft of important documents such as passports, tickets etc.
- A tourist could be arrested
- An accident – such as a road accident of fall
- A natural disaster such as an earthquake or avalanche
- You could miss a deadline – such as an onward flight
Technically, having medical insurance cover is a legal requirement for visitors coming to Kyrgyzstan, as it is in many other countries. (To be honest, however, nobody ever checks … at least, not at the moment.)
Sometimes a tourist falls ill just before they are due to travel, or a relative dies and they have to stay at home to deal with the arrangements … and cancel their tour. No-one really wants to think about or consider the possibility – but it does happen! We, for example, have had clients who have had to cancel for precisely such reasons. It’s not always possible to get a refund of the money paid for the tour, (we, for example, have cancellation fees to meet from our suppliers). To avoid being left seriously out of pocket, cancellation insurance provides a way of being able to recover any money that would otherwise be lost.
Sometimes unforeseen events happen that mean that a trip has to be cut short. Travel insurance with with cover for curtailment can ensure any money already paid out for things that are missed can be recovered.
Lost documents can cause a traveller - Misplacing a passport can mean more than losing all those hard-earned Entry and Exit stamps. It will be necessary to have a new travel document issued and in most cases this may take time to arrange, (some embassies do NOT have the authority to issue passports – and where they can it may be limited only to travel back to the home country), and involve expenses.
The cost of replacing documents while abroad can really deplete your finances and if you don’t have enough funds with you to replace lost tickets, then you can really be stuck.
Again, no-one really wants to consider the possibility, but people do fall ill when they are away from home – and the medical expenses incurred when getting treatment may well involve additional expense. It can be surprising how quickly the sums add up. (For those travelling to Kyrgyzstan from Europe, the EHIC doesn’t work here.)
Losing things can be stressful at the best of times, and even more so in the case of theft. Travel insurance, however, can help to cover the cost of replacing your belongings when you’re on the road, (or when you return), including such expensive items as cameras, ipods, mobile phones and mp3 players.
Personal liability - People often forget this, but if you happen to cause an accident that damages property or affects another person, then you could be legally liable for damages. Travel insurance with a liability clause can protect you in a legal claim.
Likewise, if you need to make a compensation claim after an injury or accident that happened overseas, professional help can be very costly and insurance can help you by meeting the cost of Legal Expenses.
But most of all, taking out a travel insurance policy can give you Peace of mind – Although it’s common to think that ‘it’ll never happen to me…’, there is such a thing as Murphy’s Law: “if things can go wrong, they will”. An insurance policy may not cover every eventuality, and may be limited as to the amount that can be claimed in any particular situation, but it doesn’t really cost that much when you consider the total cost of the trip and the likely cost of the alternative. As the old TV advert used to say, ”Get the strength of the insurance companies around you”. Pay your premium and sleep easy.
All in all, it seems to me that taking out travel insurance is just common sense … which is why I found the fact that about 1 person in four that took part in the survey said that taking out travel insurance “just didn’t occur to them”.
Bishkek