Planning a long trip and can’t decide if you should take travel insurance or not? Don’t worry, as we have simplified it for you so that you can know what works best for you.
What is travel insurance?
Travel insurance is a type of insurance that covers various risks that may occur during travelling and safeguards you from loss because of it.
How much does it cost?
While each travel insurance is different and customised, most of them cost between 4%-12% of the trip. For example, a trip cost of Rs 5 lakh would attract an insurance cost of Rs 20k to 60k.
What it usually covers?
- Accidents and health expenses
- Trip cancellation/change/delay due to sickness
- Missed flight or flight delays/cancellations
- Passport loss
- Baggage loss/delay
- Emergency medical evacuation
- Home burglary
Some insurance plans may cover more risks than the ones mentioned above at an additional cost.
What does it usually not cover?
- Travel for medical purposes
- Accidents due to life-threatening activities, e.g. paragliding
- Suicide attempts/costs due to mental disorder
- Illness from before your journey
- Dental health checkups
- Pregnancy or childbirth complications
Do you need travel insurance?
Consider your destination, age, duration of the trip, number of travellers, possible risks involved in the travelling and activities that you would be doing to decide. Remember, the location also plays an important role in this. For example, if you are travelling to Nepal, missing a flight would cost as much as the insurance. But if you miss a flight to New Zealand, having travel insurance would save you a huge chunk of money from getting wasted.
Frequent flyers to a particular destination should opt for multi-trip travel insurance as it’s cost-effective and can remain valid for a year. Some companies also have affordable student policies, which are best suited for international travel for education.
