Don’t make the same mistake as me with Travel Insurance

I believe that some types of insurance are an essential product in life. There are times when it is an essential legal or product requirement like car insurance and house insurance. And there are times when I have insurance to feel security and reassurance, life insurance, income protection and health insurance fall into these categories. I also choose to have annual travel insurance. This will cover my family and I for any loss or injury on holiday or that holiday being cancelled.

My last annual travel insurance has failed me, with a claim this year rejected. I have now learnt my lesson.

Comparison site checks

In the past I have used a generic travel insurance comparison tool and have chosen the policy that comes from a recognisable name and is value for money, read as cheap. I chose Debenhams travel insurance, it covered me and my three boys for worldwide travel. It wasn’t the cheapest but there were far more expensive policies available and it cost £75 a year and came with a £10 Debenhams gift card and a bit of cashback.

The policy was worthless

I pressed purchase and didn’t read the small print. Always read the small print, or at least the highlights! Turns out the policy I purchased was bronze level, and there were four levels of policy, bronze, silver, gold, platinum. I had the basic package that only provided cancellation cover for £1000 worth of holiday, very limited loss of goods cover and medical cover. Also, the policy was with Rock insurance, not Debenhams, it was just a well-known cover name for another company.

When I had to cancel my holiday in March 2020 due to Covid-19 I struggled to get hold of my insurance company for 6 weeks. No one was answering the phone or replying to emails. Eventually they flatly refused my claim for £1000 of the cancelled holiday citing some random small print from my policy. Waste of £75, worthless policy.

Top Tips for Travel Insurance

I like to have an annual policy in place so its always there for all holidays. In a normal year I might have a holiday with my boys abroad, another holiday with my friends and maybe a few weekends away. It is value for money to have an annual travel insurance policy rather than to take lots of individual policies to cover each holiday. It’s also worth taking out family cover to cover everybody rather than individual person cover.

This also means that you always have cover in place from the time of booking, until the time that you go on holiday and whilst you’re away. It is important to mention that travel insurance should be taken out as soon as the holiday is booked to provide full benefits and cover.

Recent Findings

Comparison website, Compare by Review has recently announced findings from their latest report uncovering holiday makers thoughts and habits when it comes to buying travel insurance.

Whether it’s lack of time, lack of knowledge or the optimistic ‘it won’t happen to me’ thought process, less than 50% of those surveyed had ever bought a bespoke travel insurance policy.  More shockingly is that out of the 71.7 million visits overseas last year, over 10 million of those trips were taken uninsured, putting those individuals at serious medical and financial risk.

I it shocking that 1 in 7 people travel without any travel insurance. What happens if you get ill or if you are victim of theft or your airline lose your luggage? Or the holiday is cancelled? Surely, it’s a small cost for peace of mind? Especially in 2020 when so many holidays have been cancelled.

Compare by Review ranks insurance providers exclusively on the quality of their service rather than just price alone. Most often you find that many policies that fall flat are often cheaper and do not hold a lot of cover.

What to Look for in a Good Travel Insurance Policy

• Check the number of reviews. Have lots of customers used them and left reviews. The higher the better.
• Check the quality of the reviews, Compare by Review show the review score with a mark out of ten. Based on an average of all scores of user review and product quality
• Check the defaqto rating and that the insurer has a 5-star rating.
• Check the price, as you probably want something not too cheap or too expensive. In the middle is best for value for money and quality of product.

My Travel Insurance Quote

I need a new annual travel insurance policy with my previous rubbish one ending on 4^th August 2020.  Staysure looks good based on these factors, plus they offer Covid-19 related cancellation cover. Bonus.

This is the price for 15 months’ worth of cover for a single parent family with three children, worldwide cover. There is one exclusion, cruising. I am not going on a cruise anytime soon. £102.68 upfront feels great value for money compared to the £75 I paid for a 12-month worthless policy.

I will be getting this cover for all holidays over the next 15 months. It’s a great deal with a reputable company with great customer reviews and 5-star Defaqto rating. Thank you, Compare by Review, for the clear guidance.

This is a collaborative post with Compare by Review, but I am genuine customer and have tried and tested the service and have bought a travel insurance policy through them.