When travelling abroad it is always recommended that you take out travel insurance. If you have an accident, fall ill or have your belongings stolen abroad you could come away from your holiday with a hefty bill in tow. But, while you may think you’ve covered yourself by taking out travel insurance, you may not be as safe as you think. There are some travel insurance clauses that are not well know but which can meant he difference between you getting a payout and not.
Under the influence
Insurers will not pay out when you are injured or ill if you were under the influence when it happened. This doesn’t sound too outlandish. If you’ve been drinking white wine since midday and you fall over in a drunken haze and break your ankle you can kind of understand why an insurer might want you to take some of the blame. But beware, there is no clear cut definition of ‘under the influence’. Lenders will make a decision at their own discretion. That could mean a couple of lager shandies with lunch could be the reason you don’t get a pay out.
Negligence
If you have your belongings stolen you should be able to make a claim on your travel insurance. However, if you have done anything that could be construed as negligent then you won’t. That means, if your insurer believes you weren’t keeping a close eye on your mobile phone when it was taken off the bar table, then you won’t see a penny.
Sports
If you go abroad to ski or take part in extreme sports you’ll probably already know that you will need to take out additional insurance, for example winter sports cover. However, what is classed as sport is something of a grey area. For example, if you have a fall while having a kick around with a ball on the beach and you don’t have additional sports cover you could end up facing a pricey medical bill.
Time limits
You’re probably already aware that you need to get a police report if you have your belongings stolen while on holiday in order to make a claim on your insurance. What you might not know though is there is often a time limit of when the report must be made. If you do not report the crime within 24 hours of it happening your claim could be void. Your insurer will understand though if you cannot report the crime because the police station is closed due to public holidays etc.
Have you read the small print on your policy yet?
