Forget the stress, stay safe with travel insurance

For any unexpected emergency during a trip, nothing else saves you than the right coverage.

The UAE, well established as a travellers' hub, is witnessing a spurt in people opting for travel insurance. The document is no more just a piece of paper that is added to the travellers' burden before embarking on a journey. More and more people, be it residents or tourists, are identifying it as a gateway to a peaceful journey.
No insurance = No travel
Rajesh Chhatliani, an Indian expat in Dubai, said: "Who would want their travel plans to be altered due to flight cancellations or rescheduling? Also nobody likes that an amazing trip turns sour due to unforeseen events like theft, robbery etc; and the worst of all, medical issues in a foreign land. Hence, a travel insurance cover is the most ardent practice a traveller should adhere to cover emergency medical benefits/transportation and to safeguard against lost/stolen baggage and trip cancellations. The cost of taking a travel insurance cover is negligible as against the enormous benefits it provides. For me it's always been 'no insurance = no travel."
Pakistani expat Noor Karim said he preferred travel insurance as it gave him peace of mind while travelling and losing a suitcase is not a nightmare anymore during his frequent business travels.
Hakeem Akinlabi, a Dubai resident from Nigeria, endorsed a similar view. "It is better to have it when you don't need it, than need it when you don't have it. I follow this religiously when it comes to travel insurance because I'm aware that accidents and unfortunate events do happen, especially outside one's familiar environment. Whatever mishaps might happen, having travel insurance in place at least helps you deal with the financial impact."
Avoid travel hurdles
Carol Mathias, product manager of Europe for Holidayme, said there are many factors that could affect a journey. "Extreme weather conditions leading to flight delays, overworked airport staff and inefficient tracking technology leading to baggage loss, political instability, natural calamities, technical failures and recalls of certain aircraft leading to flight cancellations to name a few. More countries going the e-visa route have made travel insurance a mandatory document and the cost of travel insurance has become very affordable to all income brackets. The risk calculation is a gamble as low as 1 or none for the every 5,000 policies issued." 
Himanshu Sampat, business head of the UAE, Cox & Kings Tours, said: "Travel insurance is indeed in demand and mandatory too as it helps to avoid travel hurdles.
Affordable premiums encourage more and more travellers to opt for it, with premium as low as Dh50 per person per trip to Dh1,000 per annum for multiple trips."
Choose wisely
S.C.Mittal, managing director, Omega insurance, recalls that there was a time when people used to take travel insurance only for visa requirement from embassies e.g.
Schengen countries. However, now travel insurance is taken by choice as it gives mental peace to travellers. 
"More and more UAE residents started opting for travel insurance. Family packages are more popular as they find it very competitive. Most people who travel frequently prefer annual travel insurance policies as these are cost-effective and convenient.
They do not have to undergo the process of filling in application forms, making payment and collecting policy documents. Nowadays, many companies are taking our group annual policies for their staff who have to travel frequently for official duties."
Top insurance companies preferred by the travellers include Orient Insurance, RSA Insurance, AXA and AIG. Mostly, people choose their insurance company based on the pricing and limits of cover. European and US people prefer international insurance companies and go for RSA or AIG.
Sanjay Babur ACII, managing director, Cosmos Insurance Brokers, said: "Travel insurance is a must-buy for any trip. The medical expenses and travel inconvenience benefits are essential. One of the key coverages usually being missed by the UAE residents is trip cancellation cover. This covers the costs of cancelling or curtailing a trip due to an accident; for eg. breaking a leg before a ski trip or death in the immediate family. Ideally, they should purchase the policy when they make the first non-refundable deposit. If you pay for a full cruise around 90 days before the trip and buy the travel cover soon, then the cancellation benefit will start immediately even though the trip starts 90 days later. Most travellers purchase policies only for visa purposes or just before flying out."
Travelling internationally is becoming easy because of the fantastic connections airlines offer around the world from the UAE with attractive packages. There has been a lot of increase in the international holiday makers among the senior citizen travellers, especially leisure travellers, and this has brought a remarkable impact on the travel insurance industry.
Roopesh Punjabi, director - marketing, Earnest Insurance, said: "Growth in the tourism is the prime factor that drives the travel insurance market. Year on year, there is considerable increase in the number of travellers and with the growing traffic, increased incidences of loss of luggage and important documents, medical emergencies and natural calamities are being registered. To mitigate the risk associated with such incidences, a greater number of travellers are opting for the travel insurance."
In addition, there are several countries, where travel insurance is mandatory for obtaining visa. It is important to consider the cost of emergency healthcare in the country you're visiting, cautioned Punjabi.
"Even in some of the cheapest vacation spots, if you sustain an injury or get sick, it would cost you thousands of dollars in medical bills. Travel insurance protects you fromsuch a big financial hit. In the UAE insurance market, there is no shortage of options when comes to buying travel insurance policies and most offering identical coverage with small difference in the pricing," he added.
sandhya@khaleejtimes.com
 

• UAE