While overseas travel can be an exciting prospect, there can be situations where things may go wrong, and travellers could find themselves faced with a medical emergency, or finding the funds to replace lost luggage, or having to make an urgent trip home. 

Why Travel Insurance?

While overseas travel can be an exciting prospect, there can be situations where things may go wrong, and travellers could find themselves faced with a medical emergency, or finding the funds to replace lost luggage, or having to make an urgent trip home.

Travel insurance will normally provide the following protection:

• Cancellation and loss of deposits
• Medical treatment costs
• Costs for returning home in certain emergencies
• Loss of luggage and personal items
• Personal liability, excluding deliberate acts and use of motor vehicles.

Travel insurance tips

• Purchase insurance before you leave home. It's unlikely you'll get insurance if you have already left the country.
• If you require cancellation cover, you need to purchase your travel insurance when you book and pay for your tickets.
• Keep the details of your insurance emergency assistance provider with you when travelling. In the event of an emergency you may need to contact them for emergency medical treatment or advice on other travel emergencies.
• Your travel insurance policy will have some exclusions. General travel insurance policies won't cover loss of personal items which are left unattended, or the insolvency of a service provider such as an airline. Your policy may not cover you for losses due to acts of terrorism.

• Declare any pre-existing medical conditions, not only for yourself, but close relatives back home.

• Winter sports. Skiing or snowboarding activities need to be advised to your insurer when taking out insurance as some policies may not cover you for this.

• Hazardous pursuits such as scuba diving, bungy-jumping, hang-gliding, water skiing and motorcycling may not normally be covered, however, you should discuss this with your insurer when purchasing the insurance policy.

• Motor vehicle liability (and damage to the hire car). Generally travel insurance policies do not cover liability for renting a motor vehicle in another country. You should always purchase full insurance in the country that you hire the motor vehicle.

• High valued items. Advise your insurer that you are going to be taking or purchasing high valued items for example cameras and jewellery on your holiday.

• High risk countries. Talk to your insurer about your intention to travel to countries that may have a high-risk travel advisory status. Some of these countries may have security and health issues.

To obtain an up to date status report see the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade safe travel website: www.safetravel.govt.nz

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