Here's Why You Should Never Travel Without Insurance

Even after you have booked the best flight and packed your belongings for your next destination, travelling without any travel insurance might affect you when overseas.

Here’s why you should never travel without travel insurance:

Delayed Flights

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When your travel plans are deterred by delayed flights, be rest assured that you have the legal entitlement for compensation as long as your travel insurance is up to date. Majority of travel insurance policies stipulate that the airline is obliged to take care of you if the flight delays are caused by unforeseeable factors, such as adverse weather conditions, protest action, or mechanical breakdown of the plain. Travel insurance would benefit you because it covers other expenses incurred waiting, most times this includes food and accommodation.

Lost Luggage

Lost luggage is a common occurrence even though most airlines reduce such instances by tagging all bags electronically so that they can trace it back to you within 24 hours. With travel insurance, you can be compensated for your lost or damaged luggage during your trip. Furthermore, you can claim compensation from your insurer if you are forced to buy food and new clothes while waiting for the airline to recover your belongings. An updated travel insurance allows you to claim for reimbursement of expenses incurred while reapplying for new travel documents, such as passport and credit cards after you reported them stolen or lost.

Medical Emergencies. This is not the case for every insurance company, but most insurance companies make sure their clients are fully covered.

Medical Emergency

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One of the leading reasons why many people purchase travel insurance is because they would like to be reimbursed for medical expenses incurred when travelling. You should never book a flight without an active travel insurance since many companies provide comprehensive policies with a number of benefits, which take account of internationally recognised medical plans. When you fall sick on transit, and you are admitted to a foreign hospital where you run up a huge bill during medical care, travel insurance will come to your rescue. However, you must ask for proper documentation of all medical procedures carried out along with the discharge papers so that your insurance company can reimburse you without a hitch. Other important documents include invoices displaying all diagnoses, treatment dates, and prints of test results. Make sure that your travel insurance covers all of these components.  

Legal Issues

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When abroad, you should be aware that you are governed by the laws of the country you are visiting. Therefore, you have to adhere to all rules and regulations as well as the political environment and social protocol so that your travel insurance can be enforced in case any legal matters arise. However, if your insurance company unfairly denies you compensation for expenses incurred in a foreign country, you are obliged to lodge a formal complaint in writing. If their response is unsatisfactory, you can go ahead and forward the complaint to the insurer’s internal complaints procedure. If none works, you can hire an expert travel insurance attorney to assist you in appealing your policy claim.

Money Matters

Among the many reasons brought forward by travellers, protecting oneself from huge financial losses is one of the leading reasons for purchasing travel insurance. For instance, you can save a lot of money with an annual plan of travel insurance because of its cost effectiveness as compared to a one-trip travel insurance plan. In the end, it is important to note that travel insurance helps you make unpredictable happenings predictable and when they occur, you can save a lot of money. Generally, if you don’t travel many times in a year, you can choose to go for the annual travel insurance policy rather than a single trip cover because you will end up spending less on the former compared to the latter.

If you’re planning a trip in and around South Africa, contact car hire South Africa for more details on car hire cover and regulations in South Africa.