The process of searching for travel insurance can be very off-putting if you don’t understand the key terms that are being thrown at you by all the companies who are trying to win you over as a customer. It’s essential that you know what the terminology means so that you are not tricked into buying a policy that fails to provide the things you really need. This A to Z of travel insurance should help to turn you into a travel insurance whiz, and give you the confidence to handle the process easily.

ANNUAL COVER. Annual cover pretty much does what it says on the tin: you’ll pay a one time price which then provides you with cover for all the travelling you intend to do during one year. The other option you’ll be presented with is Single Trip insurance, which could save you some money if you’re only planning to take one trip this year.

CLAIMS. A claim is just the term used when you ask for compensation from your insurance company for something covered by the policy you’ve decided on. For instance, if you’re travelling and you have a bag stolen that contained valuables, cash and your passport, you can file a claim with the company that provides your insurance to pay for the loss you have suffered.

EXCESS. An excess is the amount that you must pay towards each claim you make. These will vary depending on the company you go with, so be sure to read the small print. It’s worth checking how much your excesses are before making a claim, to ensure that it’s really worth it.

EXCLUSIONS. Each policy will have certain things that are excluded from your cover. Common exclusions can be things like claims arising from medical conditions that you haven’t declared, or claims for medical expenses that arose from the policyholder not taking reasonable precautions to prevent injury.

LEGAL EXPENSES. In case you should need to make use of legal aid when it comes to your travel insurance policy, or if you incur any legal expenses whilst travelling, most companies offer a certain amount of cover for legal expenses within their policy.

POLICY HOLDER. The policyholder is the person, or organisation, who has been issued the policy by the insurance company. It’s worth checking to see if you are entitled to any discounted rates as a policyholder – there are often cheaper rates for couples, families, children and the elderly.

WINTER SPORTS COVER. Just as there are different types of holidays, there are also different types of travel insurance to cover every traveller for their individual needs. One example is winter sports cover, which is provided by most companies for those who intend to take a skiing or snowboarding holiday, for example. This can be very helpful in eliminating the need for unnecessary cover: if you’re planning a winter sports holiday, this will cover you for any additional risks, whilst travellers planning family holidays by the beach can pick a different policy to avoid the extras.

Visit etravelinsurance.co.uk for your student travel insurance and get an instant quote backpackers travel insurance and buy online from our safe secure and easy to use website, or if you have any special requirements or need to cover a pre-existing medical condition you can talk to one of friendly call centre staff.

This entry was posted on Sunday, July 26th, 2009 at 9:35 pm and is filed under Financing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.