Travel Insurance
For quite a few years I never took out travel insurance. I just thought ‘it would never happen to me’ so I will save the money for a few extra beers that were really not required but made sense at the time anyway. Now, I know you are probably now expecting a tale of woe about my ‘big mistake’ about not taking out the insurance and how it cost me my life savings and my property and all the rest of my belongings and how if I had only taken out the insurance then I could have saved all the heartache and what a big nincompoop I am for not having done so. Sorry to disappoint you. The truth is I never required any insurance and so managed to get even drunker on the money I had saved to enable me to sleep in a ditch instead of my hotel bed and apart from a few minor scratches there was no real harm done but on reflection I have to say I was pretty lucky.
When I think about the things I used to do before I had a child and therefore serious responsibilities it makes me shudder mainly because I am worried my son may have inherited my genes and I will have to stand back and let him make his own mistakes in life too.
One thing I will be impressing on him when he gets old enough to go on holiday by himself is to get some decent annual travel insurance. Why? Aren’t I being hypocritical? Well, the reason is because if he is half as crazy, stupid or just plain naive as I was then there is a fair chance he will get into a spot of bother and I don’t want to foot the bill.
In fact, I will happily pay the insurance for him because as a parent we all want peace of mind even though it may be illusionary at least if he did have an accident the fact he has insurance depending on the country could be the difference between getting excellent treatment or none at all!! I also know the value of insurance because I took out a policy for my family about a year after moving to Turkey and not long after that my wife had a serious accident from which she is still recovering nearly two years later.
If we never had insurance then I would have lost the aforemention property just to pay for her hospital operations never mind the fact that we would not have been able to afford to rent anywhere and couldn’t make an income due to the fact I had to care for her and look after my son. The fact we had that policy was a Godsend and that is putting it mildy. I won’t tell you that hospital expenses are particularly expensive here in Turkey because they are not and the service at the hospitals is pretty good too but I know from experience that it is better to have insurance than not to have it and for the price of it surely that peace of mind has to be worth it, just don’t think because you have insurance you can drink a couple more tequilla slammers on top of the 6 beers, 3 tequillas and 2 packets of Salt and Vinegar crisps you have survived on that day because ultimately insurance is something we don’t really want to cash in on because you can have much more fun on holiday in the bars, at the beach or even touring around the archeological sites of interest than you can lying in a hospital bed safe in the knowledge that at least you still own your house even if it will take you a couple of weeks to regain full use of your legs or whatever.
So I ask you not do you think travel insurance is a wise idea but exactly what kind of cover do you think would suit you best? For yes, there are different kinds of cover available and you have to choose what is right for your needs. For instance, do you take expensive camera equipment or sports equipment on holiday?
Can you leave stuff secure in a hotel or are you a backpacker that needs to take your belongings with you everywhere? If you are a traveller you may think it worthwhile to insure everything including your cash just in case your wallet gets stolen when you are sleeping underneath the stars on a remote beach one night. I am not telling you these things to install fear into you but rather just to point out that there are different kinds of policy which suit one traveller better than another and therefore some of you may only need the basics covered wheras others may choose to upgrade if required.
For instance if you plan to Scuba Dive that may require a special note on your insurance form. Your insurance policy should offer at least £1,000,000 in medical expenses in case the very worst happens and preferably more if possible. It should also offer 24-hour emergency service and repatriation in case you need to be flown home.
This is the absolute minimum that any travel insurance policy should provide you with in order to travel safely and without worry the rest is up to you. I should mention though that if you have a pre-existing condition it is always best to tell the company about this because you could still get insured for it but maybe pay a little more rather than thinking you are insured and discovering you are not because you answered the questions incorrectly on the form albeit with the best of intentions like saving £10. It is better to do these things correctly and above board so that you don’t have to deal with any unfortunate consequences should they occur.
Another good idea is to take a print out of your insurance with you wherever you go. I am sure you could fit them into your purse or wallet without taking up too much space and you could also leave a copy with some family back home just in case they are contacted for any reason. Again, this is not something I would have thought about before researching this topic a little but it does make good sense.
Finally, you should always read the small print or even clarify things on the phone when taking out your policy. For example, you may need to contact the insurance company before you have an operation or even just simple medical treatment. You may need to get a police report withing 48 hours if you have something stolen from you.
It is not enough to have the insurance, you need to know how to make full use of it. Have a good day and if you are planning on going on holiday soon be sure to have a safe, healthy but most importantly happy trip safe in the knowledge that you are covered for every eventuality…..your house could depend on it, never mind your legs. 
