- Travel insurance guide

Not just an optional extra

No-one wants the unexpected to happen when they go abroad, but unfortunately there is no such thing as a totally risk-free holiday. Last year Britons made 867,000 travel insurance claims worth a total of £352 million.

Travel insurance is not so much an optional extra as an integral part of any break. Policies need to cover the obvious problems, such as a stolen wallet or purse, an accident or an illness. But good policies will also provide compensation for delays and cancellation, for damaged or lost luggage, and even a telephone help line for emergencies.

What type of cover?

The simplest way to buy travel insurance might seem to be through a travel agent or tour operator, although sometimes, these policies may be expensive. Travel agents are no longer allowed to insist that holiday makers book insurance through them, and it's almost always possible to find a better deal by shopping around.

The traditional way to buy travel insurance is to take out cover for each trip, and this is usually how tour operators sell their cover. If you only make one trip abroad a year, this might be the best option, but a growing number of travellers are now opting for annual travel insurance, as the difference in price is minimal.

Annual multi trip travel insurance

The advantage of an annual policy is that there is no need to worry about arranging cover for each journey, and it is usually better value than buying individual policies for two or three trips a year.

Most annual policies will cover trips of a month or more, and they can be bought to cover Europe or world-wide travel. It's usually possible to add business cover or insurance for sports such as ski-ing for an additional charge.

Annual travel insurance is an even better deal for families. Insurance for a couple will be cheaper than for two single adults, and cover for a family with children under 18 is not usually much more expensive than cover for a couple. Do watch, though, for restrictions on how the cover works. Some family travel policies only cover the family if everyone travels together. The best policies will cover each adult travelling on his or her own, and even unaccompanied trips by the children.

Important!

Unlike a standard single trip policy, in order to obtain cover for cancellation, with annual travel insurance the policy start date needs to be the date on which you book your first trip or decide to purchase the policy rather than the date that you intend to travel.