Authored by Insureandgo.com.au
There are plenty of myths surrounding travel insurance, from thinking it’s unaffordable to believing it’s a waste of time. We bust 5 common travel insurance myths and explain why travel insurance is essential for every trip!
Myth #1: Travel Insurance is a Waste of Time
“I don’t need travel insurance. Nothing’s going to happen to me on my trip. And if it does, I’ll just deal with the costs myself.”
Busted: Anything could happen when you’re overseas. If you experience an emergency, getting help can be incredibly expensive.
Medical treatments and hospital stays can cost thousands per day, and even a simple medical evacuation can cost up to $300,000 in the US. If you don’t have that kind of cash to spare, travel insurance is the only thing that can help (your home government won’t help with financial fees).
(Read more about case studies of Australians travelling without medical/travel insurance abroad.)
Myth #2: Travel Insurance is Unaffordable
“Travel insurance is expensive and can pile hundreds of dollars on top of my trip costs – I can’t afford that!”
Busted: Buying travel insurance doesn’t have to be expensive. In fact, it often only costs a fraction of your overall trip. It’s simply a matter of considering various providers, choosing the right level of cover and shopping around to get the most competitive deal.
Myth #3: Travel Insurance is Only for High-Risk Holidays
“I’m not going to be doing anything crazy on my holiday – like bungee jumping, skiing, rock climbing or diving – so there’s no need for me to get travel insurance.”
Busted: Accidents and illnesses aren’t always the result of high-risk activities.
Even if you’re taking a ‘relaxing’ trip, unfortunate incidents – like road accidents, thefts and even food poisoning – can still occur, meaning you’ll need medical attention or another form of help.
Travel insurance is essential in ensuring you’re covered, no matter what you’ll be doing while you’re away!
Myth #4: Travel Insurance Should Be Purchased Through a Travel Agent
“Travel agents can provide expert travel advice and deals, so they’ll be able to give me a great deal on travel insurance too, right?”
Busted: This isn’t always true. Travel agents aren’t necessarily experts in travel insurance. Going through a travel agent doesn’t mean you’ll get the best policy for your holiday or the cheapest option.
A lot of the time, they might also only offer you insurance with certain companies because if you buy, it means more profit for them.
Myth #5: My Travel Insurance is Already Covered Elsewhere
“I already have travel insurance through my credit card or another insurance package, so I don’t need to buy another insurance policy.”
Busted: Even if you do have travel insurance cover through another provider, there can be strict limits and exclusions. You might also only be covered for the most basic of emergencies or incidents, or only for a minimal amount of money.
Going with a specific travel insurance package can mean much more comprehensive cover and more dedicated help when you need it most.
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- There are plenty of myths surrounding travel insurance
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- There are plenty of myths surrounding travel insurance
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Photo credits: Hand with stack of $100 bills by Pictures of Money.
16 Comments
As a frequent traveler, I’ve been carrying annual travel insurance for several years now. Paying once a year just seems easier than purchasing it trip by trip. Ir really DID pay off a few years ago, when I had a bicycling mishap on holiday. All of my out-of-pocket expenses were fully reimbursed. Unfortunately, I did forget to renew it one year, and I had my passport stolen. This was actually quite costly. While the passport itself cost about US$90 to be replaced, my Chinese visa would have run $250 – plus I needed to pay for transport to the nearest consulate (US$100) PLUS eight nights in a hotel. All of that would have been covered by the travel insurance had I not forgotten to have the policy renewed.
This article is an eye opener! I’ve always felt it’s expensive and unnecessary to have travel insurance- except of course for high risk travel. How wrong I was! I have actually been putting my personal finance at risk without having one!Truly insightful
This is a great reminder… do your homework before you leave home when you embark on an adventure. It’s true, nobody ever knows when a medical emergency could come up while traveling. Bringing light to what could happen, something as simple as food poisoning, can be a major event and travel insurance would have been helpful. Great insight and again, thanks for the reminder of how important travel insurance is.
Travel insurance is one of those things you don’t want to need but when you do you’re glad you have it. I think Myth 3 really nails it. You fall into the trap of thinking nothing will happen because you’re not snowmobiling or white water rafting, but then you slip and fall in the hotel shower. When I was in Costa Rica, I slammed my finger, not on the zip line, but closing a car door. Luckily, it wasn’t broken, but I had insurance to let me get it checked out by a local doctor. :)
Your article and tips are bang on! We never travel anywhere without travel insurance, especially not to the United States, where health care costs are off the charts. There are just too many horror stories and cautionary tales of travellers who have not purchased insurance, gotten sick or had an accident, and have practically had to crowdfund to return home. You never want to use it, but are grateful to have it should you need to!
Depending on your travel, insurance could be the best purchase you have ever made. If you’re into adventure and adrenaline or even getting off the beaten path it’s not bad to have a little piece of mind. Perhaps, when mom is going into her “be careful” speech, you should ask her to get you some some insurance.
I think a travel insurance must be an indispensable part of travels. Especially for frequent travelers, who can never anticipate or guess what can happen. I once got into a sudden emergency situation on my maiden trip to Bangkok. Luckly my insurance came to my rescue. And yes, it didn’t happen due to any of the adventures that I tried :)
I still believe in all those myths and have not used travel insurance at all!
I’ve been keeping an active travel insurance policy for the past 8 months as I travel more nomadically and my wife and I are between expat assignments. Fortunately we’ve never had to make a claim on our insurance, but unfortunately (?) that means it’s hard to know how easy it would be to maneuver in the system or get payment for a loss. I do worry about it sometimes that our coverage won’t actually cover us if something happens, but until it does, and we’re forced to use it, we won’t actually know! But…keeping it just in case :)
Coming from an insurance background, travel insurance has always been a must for me. Luckily I haven’t had any need to use it so far. I’m however always surprised when some of my friends choose to travel without insurance. Some are doing it not out of myths but more like they just want to take chances & risks while saving some money. To me it’s a big gamble considering that an annual travel insurance – when divided by 12 months – can be pretty cheap.
No 4 is not quite correct. The reason travel agents are only selling certain policies is because selling insurance of any kind is a financial service and requires them to be qualified by doing a little compliance course for every single insurance provider they wish to offer. They are not permitted to resell just any travel insurance policies out there, because if this requirement. So they end up concentrating on one or two insurers. Also,unfortunately only a handful of insurance companies do provide specific insurance products that are sold through travel agents.
Aha! I though you were talking about cancellation insurance, which could be of value- it it WERE less expensive. but, the travel/medical/emergency service is very reasonable- and,when you are traveling in a place where your own health insurance is not part of the buying program, or where the facilities may not be up to the bar we find acceptable, it is a very valuable add-on.
I can’t believe people insure their homes and cars but travel and don’t consider travel insurance.
All very fine. Where can you get travel insurance if you don’t have a permanent address?
Hi Ian, not having a permanent address could make getting travel insurance difficult, since travel insurance is meant to be valid from the time you leave home until you return home. So if you are travelling in a continuous motion without returning to a base this wouldn’t be compatible with any travel insurance products I know. You could contact an insurance broker though, maybe they can actually find you a niche product that will cover more than the traditional travel patterns…
I never fly to the US without travel insurance. It’s just not worth the risk.