Travel insurance could cover you against injury, losses and other mishaps during the course of a holiday or other trip. Single trip travel insurance, as the name suggests, covers you for a single trip only. Before you consider whether such a policy is the right option for you to take, it may be prudent to consider your own individual circumstances.
If you only make one or two trips, of limited duration, over the course of a single year, single trip travel insurance can be the cheapest way to obtain cover.
If you are a more frequent traveller, annual or multi-trip travel insurance may be a more cost effective option. Annual travel insurance covers the policy holder for multiple trips taken over the course of a year. An annual insurance policy will tend to cost more than a single trip policy offering similar cover, but may cost much less than several single trip policies combined.
If you are travelling with a family or other group, family or group cover may be better value than individual single trip policies. Again, the key is to evaluate what you want from a policy and exactly what is on offer.
A single trip policy will usually have a maximum duration. The maximum length of the trip can vary but it might not be enough to cover lengthier excursions, even if they are still technically single trips.
Other options such as long stay travel insurance or backpackers insurance may be more suitable depending on the circumstances of the trip. Most insurers will take the length of your trip into account when working out the premium you pay.
What is covered by single trip travel insurance?
The list of eventualities covered and the amounts for each eventuality will vary from insurer to insurer and between individual policies.
These eventualities can include injury and illness, cancellation and delay, loss or theft of baggage, personal belongings and holiday money. Single trip travel insurance may also cover you if you have to cut short or cancel your holiday because of illness, injury or the death of a relative.
A policy may provide personal liability cover in case you injure someone or cause damage to property. It may also cover the costs of emergency repatriation. There may be a 24 hour emergency hotline and you may be able to get help if you lose your passport or other important documents.
The amount of cover offered will also vary. Medical and personal liability cover can often run into millions. It can be difficult to know how much cover you need for these things, but if you're unsure you can always ask the insurance company what they would recommend and why. They will be happy to help and can hopefully help you to come to a sensible decision on this issue.
Other levels of cover may be easier to judge. Many people would, for example, want to match the amount covered for cancellation to the cost of a holiday, or the amount of cover for baggage to the approximate value of the belongings they're taking away.
Exceptions and excess
There may be an excess you have to pay in the event of making a claim. The amount of excess payable may vary widely between policies. The amount payable can also vary on the same policy, depending on the type of claim you are making.
There may also be exceptions built into a single trip insurance policy. These could include activities that are considered dangerous such as water sports, climbing and bungee jumping. Injury or loss of property due to terrorist activities used to be routinely covered but are now frequently excluded.
Can I get additional cover?
Many insurers will offer specialist versions of standard single trip insurance policies or will allow you to choose additional extras at extra cost. These extras could include things like ski insurance or winter sports cover.
There may be a cap on the maximum value of any one item covered under loss of baggage or personal items. Individual items such as laptops or expensive camera equipment can sometimes be specified and covered separately though.
How do I choose a policy?
Taking out travel insurance is not compulsory, but it can protect travellers against a range of eventualities, from the merely inconvenient to the truly catastrophic. There is no such thing as a perfect, 'one-size-fits-all' single trip insurance policy though.
The right policy for any individual will depend on several factors, including the type of trip and the amount of cover required. Cheaper policies may have higher excesses to pay in the event of a claim or may offer more limited cover. There are many options available and what's right for one person might not be ideal for another.
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