Cancellation

With so many things to organise when travelling, it’s easy to fall into the trap of not buying your travel insurance until the very last minute. But with little time left, there’s a real risk you could rush into buying a policy that’s not suitable for you.

A travel insurance policy provides protection against lots of different potential problems, so it’s important to take a moment to think about what cover you need. According to the Association of British Insurers, its members pay out over £1m each day in travel insurance claims – and that’s just for the UK.

Remember, travel insurance starts protecting you from the moment you buy your policy, not just while you’re away. So in addition to medical cover, it provides cover should you have to cancel your holiday before you leave, or if you have to cut short your trip. That’s why it’s important to get your travel insurance as soon as you have booked.

Holidays are valuable, both financially and personally; the entire point of travel insurance is to protect that value against the costs of unforeseen things that could happen during your holiday – illness, industrial action, theft – or even before it.

Of course, if you decide you simply don’t fancy the holiday anymore or change your destination based on a film you watched last night, your travel insurance probably won’t pick up the bill. After all, these are not unforeseeable events but choices you made. However, there are a wide range of situations in which your travel insurance would cover the cost of your holiday if you needed to cancel your trip or come home early.

You could claim for:

• Unexpected death of a family member or people travelling with you
• Illness or injury while travelling
• A fire, burglary or unexpected damage to your home while you’re away
• You're made redundant
• You’re advised not to travel because of issues with your pregnancy
• You're called for jury service or as a witness in court
• If the country you are visiting becomes unsafe
• If you have to come home early because of one of the reasons above

If you’d like more information on travel advice regarding your destination before you book your travel, visit the Department of Foreign Affairs travel website at www.dfa.ie/travel/

FYI Source of stat: https://www.abi.org.uk/News/News-releases/2016/06/Travel-insurers-pay-out-1-million-every-day

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