Do you think you know everything you need when you buy travel insurance?

Introduction to travel insurance

El travel insurance It is an economic support and assistance for a period of time scheduled for a trip, whether for pleasure, work or study. This benefit is offered commercially by groups of insurance companies with the intention of providing you with security during your stay away from home and making your trip a pleasant experience, knowing that you have the support of a responsible and attentive company in your possible situations of accidents or illnesses away from home.

One of the main elements when purchasing a travel insurance, is to provide the insurer with all the necessary information regarding the trip, such as the reason for the trip, predestined activities to be carried out, possible additional activities and the total duration of the trip. This information is of vital importance, since it depends on the price of coverage and costs thereof, if it is a business trip, a cruise, a study trip or a visit to any city, you can purchase basic insurance, that meets the following coverage during your stay:

Healthcare

It is one of the most important coverages, since it provides the insured with full support in the event that they unexpectedly suffer an illness or accident, inside or outside their country of residence. The healthcare It is in charge of guaranteeing full coverage of medical, surgical, hospitalization and medicine expenses until the insured can start his trip again.

In some cases, this coverage may be extended and cover additional expenses for the transfer and lodging of a companion or family member (maximum ten days), who can take care of the patient or request repatriation if required.

Delays

It offers the insured a compensation For expenses incurred, if during your trip you lose a flight or other means of transportation due to delays beyond your control, one of the most common causes is delays in air transfers. This causes the passenger compensation for living expenses during their wait, and if they need to wait overnight to take the flight, it additionally covers stay and contracted means of transport.

Cancellation of the trip due to technical problems of the company

If the passenger cannot board a flight due to technical problems with the airline, the airline will have a stipulated period of time for boarding it, and if it is not extended, this coverage must reimburse the expenses of food, stay and transportation of the passenger, and according to the characteristics of the ticket, additional compensation may be requested.

Overbooking

When the airlines exceed their maximum transportation capacity, the Overbooking, and causes the passenger to have to wait for the airline to have the availability to transfer the passenger. Through this coverage, the insured has the right to request the payment of all the expenses derived from the wait such as maintenance, stay and transportation, additionally, a partial refund may also be received for the inconvenience caused and they vary depending on the characteristics of the purchased ticket.

Repatriation of the deceased insured

It covers all the expenses of transfer of the deceased to the funeral home of their city of residence, in various situations it covers the expenses and transfer of a companion or family member to take care of the corresponding repatriation procedures, if required.

Luggage coverage

One of the frequently used covers is the one that covers the luggage during the journey and duration of the air transfer, which corresponds to the luggage loss during transportation, as well as damage and theft of personal items. This unexpected inconvenience leads to a complaint being made, so that the company can take the necessary steps to luggage location and cover the necessary expenses to get you to your residence.

In the event that total or partial loss of luggage is declared, the passenger will be recognized an amount in money equivalent to the articles declared as lost.

Normally, these basic travel insurances are included in the packages purchased from any travel agency.

If the client wishes, they can contract additional coverage, as well as extend your policy for a longer time than the one scheduled during the trip. Some of the special contracted extensions are:

Civil liability

This contracted support ensures the individual, support in legal circumstances, from legal defense to advance payment of bail.

Return or interruption of the trip

If the insured during the trip suffers the loss due to the death of a family member up to the second degree of kinship, they may interrupt their trip and receive a partial refund, as contracted in the policy.

Trip cancellation

This coverage is offered by insurance companies to back up and support their clients who, due to circumstances of force majeure, resort to the cancellation of their trip, without this representing any cost to them. The reasons that insurance companies accept for cancel a trip They are usually the death of a family member up to the second degree of kinship, emergency surgeries, accidents, illness and some companies accept cancellations for dismissal from work.

Advance of funds for theft or loss of luggage abroad

The passenger while abroad may request the advance of the funds by Loss of luggage, to replace his lost articles without this representing an unforeseen cost for him.

It is necessary to provide the insurance company with all the details of your trip, so that it puts at your disposal the most appropriate policy for your trip and avoids unpleasant moments during your stay away from home. Because there are various coverages that are necessary according to the trip and are not often offered due to lack of information from the insured, a common example is ski trips, which require special insurance and their coverage tends to be a little more expensive due to the high percentage of accidents that currently stands at 6%.

This insurance can be purchased from about six euros a day, it usually covers all kinds of accidents during the trip and within the ski centers, medical expenses, luggage location, loss of luggage and sports equipment. You can also take out annual travel insurance, which covers and supports all your trips for a year, provided that the maximum duration of each trip cannot exceed 30 days.

There is another policy for long periods of time abroad, normally acquired for work or study reasons, its maximum continuous duration of travel cannot exceed one year, and its cost is calculated based on the information provided by the client, for the coverage allocation.

If you travel outside of Spain, it is necessary to know that in countries such as Spain, France, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Russia, China, New Zealand, Australia and the United Kingdom, it is mandatory to purchase travel insurance policies to enter these countries. Additional after the formation of the European Union, all member states request as an essential requirement for entry to any person from a country not a member of the European community, a special assistance called Schengen insurance, whose coverage covers an amount of 30.000 euros, civil liability and health repatriation.