Mission Travel

Archive for the ‘Travel Insurance’ Category

During travel, travelers face lot of risks like, trip cancellation, loss of baggage, loss of money or valuables, accidents, terrorist attacks, natural calamities and occasionally death. One cannot put a stop to travel because of the risks involved but what an individual can do is to reduce the amount of risk involved by buying a travelers insurance.

The concept of travel insurance is very simple. The insured pays a premium (this is the amount you pay to the travel insurance company), the company in turn pays any costs involved in case of accidents or other types of eventualities. In case there is no eventuality the travel insurance company keeps the premium.

Travel insurance covers lots of risks like:

Trip cancellation: There are lots of chances, due to unforeseen circumstances, you may need to cancel your ticket. If you cancel your ticket at the last moment, almost always you will not get any refund from the airline or you may get a meager amount. Travel insurance provides coverage for this kind of loss. The travel insurance company has to provide the cost of cancellation of ticket. However the cancellation has to be done in circumstances which are covered by the travel insurance policy.

Baggage loss: if your baggage is lost, then the cost of the baggage is paid by the insurance company, but is again governed by the rules of the insurance contract.

Medical cost: if you fall sick during travel and the costs incurred by you are paid by the travel insurance. However if you have bought a health insurance which covers overseas cost then there is no need to separately buy a travel health insurance.

Others: Other things that are generally covered by travel insurance are medical evacuation, accidental death, repatriation of remains etc.

The golden rule in all insurances is to read the fine print carefully. You won’t have time to read it during emergencies.

There are annual policies which allow one to take any number of trips for the year to any destination on the globe. Then you have the family cover, which enables the kids in the family to travel free of cost. This policy is popular with family tours. A backpacker travel insurance policy, which provides you high coverage, is normally meant for extended period of travel – it includes at least one visit back to your home country.

Travel insurance websites have plenty of visitors. At times, over 6 million page visitors are there in a calendar year. These websites are so popular and widely used that an annual award called the Travolution Awards are given to the companies with the best performance, functionality, clarity of products and more crucially, for the credibility of services. These are the key ingredients that make a company worth visiting.

Companies work hard to ensure that their sites are visited time and again. They also make sure that the sites are user-friendly, easily accessible, and clear-cut to the last detail. Some sites have even branched out with medical screening system; others provide help care centers and personalized my account sections in order to make it easy, smooth and useful for their customers. Time and again companies find that their websites and services are good and that is why customers are happy and keep returning to them to avail of their services, for even things like airport parking and airport hotels with them.

Air Trips and Coverage

Air trips have the widest coverage of insurance policies. They are children’s travel insurance, pregnancy travel insurance, group and superior travel insurance, sports travel, research travel, long stay and even gap year travel insurance.

What is Travel Discount?

Travel insurance companies in order to garner more customers offer all kinds of bonuses and benefits. Attractive schemes and offer plans are always on the agenda of any travel agency; discounts being one of them. Some companies provide a 5% off if the customer books 3 or more tours. When one purchases in bulk, it turns out to be a wise and thrifty way to adventure tours. Three or more gap tours can result in a 5% off each trip. This can save you a lot of cash. It can stretch your budget a little further with the extra savings. Discounts must be availed of when one books one’s tours.

What Is Tourism Network?

Tourism Network is fast developing and expanding. Some of the tourist network enterprises offer one home stays, farm stays, guest houses, hotels and resorts. More and more travel operators are focusing on the segment of accommodation. Tourism network is an integrated system that helps aggregating all budget options. So it is advisable to make plans and avail of the facilities that are offered.

More than 1 million pieces of luggage were lost, damaged, delayed or pilfered by U.S. airlines from May to July, 2007. According to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, June and July 2007 were ranked among the worst months for mishandled baggage in 20 years. And unfortunately, this number has been increasing over the past 5 years. In 2002, 3.84 reports of mishandled bags were filed per 1,000 passengers. In July 2007, this figure was 7.93.

Many jobs were slashed after the industry’s historic downturn a few years ago, and restrictions on gels and liquids in 2006 have caused a big increase in the number of checked bags. This leaves more bags to be checked with fewer employees. Add to this the major carriers’ reliance on hubs. Connecting flights increase the probability of luggage being misplaced or not making the next flight in time either.
With carriers buying smaller planes for the regional market, there have been more baggage limitations due to weight restrictions. The airline industry says the baggage problem is due mostly to delays caused by weather and an outdated air traffic control system. Analysts are saying that the problem is only going to get worse too, especially during the holiday travel season.

What can you do to protect yourself?

Buying travel insurance is your best option. Preferred travel insurance policies not only help you with lost, stolen, or damaged luggage, missed a flight, lost passports, etc., but also have an emergency “911″ travel emergency service for emergency medical assistance, last-minute or emergency travel and flight changes, lost luggage tracking, pre-trip travel advice and more.

Other ways you can help yourself are to book a direct flight. Since this is usually not an option, choose flights that have at least an hour between connections. Because of the increase in baggage problems, some people are even shipping their baggage to their destination while bringing a small carry-on bag on the plane. This option even saves you time (typically 30 minutes) as you don’t have to wait at the airport for your checked bags to arrive.

Make sure you obey the size and packaging requirements for personal hygiene products and medications, and anything that looks like a weapon is prohibited. Everything in your carry-on must be searchable. If you are searched, gift wrapped items will definitely be opened. Take metal items such as keys, phones, pagers, PDAs (personal digital assistants), and loose change out of your pockets. Put these in your carry-on, or in a plastic bag before you get into the security line. This keeps lines moving and you wind up having a better experience. Avoid wearing anything that contains metal, such as clothing, jewelry or other accessories such as heavy jewelry, clothing with metal buttons or snaps, belt buckles or under-wire bras. You may be additionally screened because of hidden items such as body piercings, which will cause the metal detector to go off.

Pack your coats and jackets in your baggage when possible. All coats and jackets that you are carrying must go through the X-ray machine for inspection. If you choose to wear an outer coat or jacket to the checkpoint, you will need to either pack it in your carry-on baggage or put it in one of the bins that are provided.