South Africans urged to review travel insurance before holidaying abroad
Now is the time of year when many South Africans go on holiday abroad to warmer countries in order to avoid the cold winter months. As overseas travel can be costly in terms of flight tickets and accommodation, even more so now with the current Rand exchange rate, consumers tend to search for the best deals and cut costs where possible, including for their travel insurance. However, travellers should carefully review the insurance cover they are buying, because a cheaper policy could potentially turn out to be much more costly if the unexpected happens, says independent insurance and risk specialist company, Risk Benefit Solutions (RBS).
Annelie Smith, Corporate Executive at RBS, says that many consumers aren’t aware of the do’s and don’ts of buying travel insurance and tend to opt for a policy that covers the minimum requirement for the purpose of obtaining a visa permit for a respective country, rather than looking at what the possible risks could be for their trip.
“Consumers need to understand that buying insurance off their credit card is not going to provide all the cover he or she will be exposed to. This type of cover can be very restrictive both from a cover and limit perspective” says Smith.
Neil Beaumont, Head of Business Development ACE Insurance Limited South Africa, says that individuals often see travel insurance as an additional cost, but that they should instead view it as a benefit. “While insurance is compulsory for select visas, the benefit of comprehensive cover outweighs the costs, especially in terms of medical cover. For example, when travelling in parts of Africa, where world-class medical facilities may not be readily available, or in Europe and the United States, where treatment can be expensive, medical costs can quickly escalate beyond the average consumer’s means.”
Apart from medical costs, consumers also need to ascertain if they will require political or natural disaster evacuation cover should there be a political uprising or a hurricane, for example. “In the past, you could only be evacuated if you were injured, but nowadays, should the situation be life threatening, you can buy cover to ensure you are evacuated quickly,” says Beaumont.
He adds that other benefits of a comprehensive travel cover package typically include personal liability, kidnap and wrongful detention, as well as baggage cover should your personal belongings get damaged or stolen.
Smith says that when consumers are purchasing travel cover, there are three main things to consider, namely the destination, the risks attached to this area, and what cover is needed to protect the individual and/or their family when going on holiday to this destination.
Smith advises that consumers should find out which aspects are most relevant to their specific trip and then ensure that this cover is included as not all cover and policies are necessary. “For example, while travelling in Africa, an individual may require a higher level of kidnap and ransom cover given the rise in these cases. While travellers in Europe will more likely require cover for pick pocketing scenarios and assault-related instances. There is also a link between all these covers as travel cover expenses can be reduced if the consumer has the relevant insurance covers on their personal insurance policy to cover stolen items for example.”
She says that given that there are a variety of products in the marketplace, deciding on the right cover can be a daunting experience for consumers. “A specialist, such as a broker, would be able to guide consumers on the various products on offer and what they should be considering for their given travel destination. Not only will this ensure comprehensive cover, but could also possibly save the individual costs” concludes Smith.
